It's like Karl Rove suddenly announcing that he's going to be covering the US Attorney scandal as an objective analyst. Basic journalistic ethics require that if you were smack dab in the middle of something like the CIA leak case -- nay, the very cause of its instigation -- that you divulge that a columnn making such an observation, and that if you're of the opinion that Fitzgerald viewed "journalists as adversaries," you're taking the opportunity to grind an extremely personal axe.

It's no surprise that Novak didn't -- he's not a journalist, he's a Republican political operative and he's been writing about things for so long without acknowledging his role in them that it's probably just reflexive for him. But the fact that the Washington Post would run this, without even a footnote about Novak's involvement, is egregious even for them.

Time to rouse Deborah Howell from local pie eating coverage: ombudsman@washpost.com.

Some days, don't you feel like we're all trapped in an episode of Mission Impossible? Except it's been renamed Mission Despicable. Or Mission Corruptible. Or even Mission Craptastical. Via AP:In a sworn declaration, White House official Theresa Payton told the court on Jan. 16 that "substantially all" e-mails from 2003 to 2005 should be contained on back-up computer tapes.

The Washington Post reported on Tuesday: "Two former high-ranking Shiite government officials charged with kidnapping and killing scores of Sunnis were ordered released Monday after prosecutors dropped the case. . . . The case was heard at the multimillion-dollar Rule of Law Complex, protected and supervised by the United States, which has said that the development of an impartial justice system is essential to Iraq's long-term stability." Fans of irony will note that Lewis "Scooter" Libby was convicted of perjury and obstruction of justice a year ago today.

Our First Monday series, put together in conjunction with the Alliance For Justice, will have a very special guest next Monday: Scott Horton, the NY lawyer who writes for Harpers, will be here at 3 pm ET/noon PT to chat live. Scott's superb work on the Siegelman case, the long-term effects of politicization of the Department of Justice and the continuing ripples from the USAtty firings and other issues

A Monday tra la through the news spin cycle: I'm with Aravosis -- some public comment on the Bush Administration's plan to yank counterterrorism funding from police, fire and rescue departments would be a good thing. Howie raises some excellent points on war profiteering and the Bush Administration that are worth asking over and over until there are solid, public answers to them....

The best disinfectant for government corruption and bad acts is a healthy dose of sunshine. To that end, I say to Attorney General Mukasey -- release the transcripts: More evidence that new Attorney General Michael Mukasey is running a more transparent and inclusive shop than his predecessors John Ashcroft and, especially, Alberto Gonzales:

dday catches an intriguing bit in an interview with J.William Leonard, the head of the National Archives' Information Security Oversight Office (ISOO), which deals with classified documents from the executive branch. To wit:...Up until 2002, OVP was just like any other agency. Subsequent to that, they stopped reporting to us…At first, I took that to be, 'we're too busy.' Then we routinely attempted to do a review of the OVP and

A fire broke out this morning in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building (the EEOB), which sits adjacent to the WH and houses a number of key executive branch offices...Coincidentally, I'm sure, Addington (as Cheney's proxy) is in the news -- again -- this morning as one of four WH lawyers who allegedly were involved in discussions about the destruction of those CIA interrogation tapes....

Well what have we here. Dubya granted 29 pardons today, and poor Scooter was not among them. I can see Mr. and Mrs. Scooter sitting at home tonight, ice cubes clinking as they wave their highball glasses with abandon and curse the ungrateful Bushies who don't understand that Scooter is a great man, a true patriot and an American hero whose loyalty they have never repaid in kind. Oh well, it'll still be a more cheerful scene than the Conrad Black house.

Despite what the Associated Press is saying, Patrick Fitzgerald's investigation of the CIA leak case -- and the Office of Special Counsel -- are still open.