Too Hot To Handle; Rove Cancels Appearances with Embarrassed Republicans

Washington, DC - For the second time in three days, Karl Rove has bailed out on a Republican fundraiser. Rove scrapped plans to attend a Republican National Committee fundraiser in Greenwich tonight, and RNC Chairman Ken Mehlman filled in at the last minute for Rove, who was a no-show, at a Virginia GOP fundraiser last Saturday.

These cancellations come on the heels of reports that Rove, the White House Deputy Chief of Staff, made his fourth criminal grand jury appearance in relation to the investigation of the improper and possibly illegal disclosure of CIA agent Valerie Plame's identity to the media. Questions continue to swirl around the involvement of Vice President Cheney and his top aide Lewis Libby.

"Once considered an 'A-list' guest for any Republican, special-interest fundraiser, it seems that Karl Rove has now become a liability for the Republican Party,” said Democratic National Committee Press Secretary Josh Earnest. “Unfortunately, Rove is just the tip of the iceberg in the Washington Republicans’ culture of corruption. As the GOP attempts to regain its footing amid various controversies and investigations, the American people want leaders who spend time focused on the needs and concerns of the public, not on the ethical problems of the Republican Party. The American people want leadership they can be proud of."

Karl Rove is not the only Republican leader in Washington, DC, to arouse the scrutiny of criminal investigators. In the last three weeks, former House Republican leader Tom DeLay was indicted by a Republican grand jury, and the SEC and the Justice Department launched dual investigations of Senate Republican Leader Bill Frist.