If it does not fit, you must acquit

According to David Broder:

For the first six years of the Bush administration, these aides were allowed free rein to carry out whatever policy or political assignment they wished — or supposed that the president wanted done. A Congress under firm Republican control was somnolent when it came to oversight of the executive branch. No Republican committee chairman wanted to turn over rocks in a Republican administration.

You have to feel a twinge of sympathy now for the Bush appointees who suddenly find unsympathetic Democratic chairmen such as Henry Waxman, John Conyers, Patrick Leahy and Carl Levin investigating their cases. Even if those appointees are scrupulously careful about their actions now, who knows what subpoenas for the memos and e-mails in their files will reveal about the past?

They will pay the price for the temporary breakdown in the system of checks and balances that occurred between 2001 and this year — when the Republican Congress forgot its responsibility to hold the executive branch accountable.

It was a fundamental dereliction of duty by Congress, and it probably did more to encourage bad decisions and harmful actions by executive branch political appointees than the much-touted lobbying influence. In reality, many Republican members of Congress did not mind what was happening because they were able to get favors done in that permissive climate. Now, the Democratic investigators will publicize instances of influence by members of Congress, and the political fallout will not stop with New Mexico’s Pete Domenici and Heather Wilson.

So, in addition to the Chewbacca defense, we now have the Ross and Rachel Defense:

HENRY WAXMAN: So, Mr. Rove -- you fired all these U.S. Attorneys simply because they were prosecuting too many corrupt Republicans, and not enough innocent Democrats?

KARL ROVE: We were on a break!