Giving Bush (and Rove) the Benefit of the Doubt, Even When There Is None Left to Give

Starting from when they let Bin Laden slip away in Afghanistan in December 2001, to the diversion of military resources from going after al-Qaida to invade and occupy Iraq, to Bush saying he doesn't think much about bin Laden, the administration's consistent pattern is one of losing focus on getting al-Qaida. It's never been anywhere near the top of their priority list.

So what the heck is Jane Harman doing acting all surprised at yet another instance when the administration fails to go after al-Qaida?

Rove also faced questions from the audience on Sunday, from Andrea Mitchell of NBC News and from Rep. Jane Harman, a Democrat from California who is a member of the Homeland Security Committee.

Both Mitchell and Harman asked Rove about a report in Sunday's New York Times that the CIA was prepared in 2005 to go into Pakistan to capture or kill top al-Qaida members, but that the administration called off the mission so as not to upset the government of Pakistan.

"If the New York Times story today is true, it is enormously disturbing," Harman said. "Is this administration seriously focused on getting the top al-Qaida people or is it not?"

After all this time, and she still can't make a judgment on that. Apparently, until she gets a signed letter to her from Rove and Bush that says they aren't serious about catching al-Qaida, she'll still be unsure what to think.