Today was Karl Rove's last day at the White House, and while they're popping corks and wishing him well at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, it's worth taking a moment to look back on the Karl Rove era, and its effects in National and Virginia politics
Of course, it's debatable whether Rove is really a genius.
Here in Virginia, Karl Rove leaves behind a shattered and fractured Republican party, about to
Two years ago, we watched an amazing political event unfold. Gubernatorial candidate Jerry Kilgore released his "despicable Hitler ad" in which a pro-death penalty advocate did his best to connect Tim Kaine to the most famously vile personage of the 20th century. That moment was critical to the story of American and Virginia politics, because it marked the precise moment when the Rovian genius devolved into Rovian failure. Essentially, execrable genius, without the genius, is just execrable.