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Next up for an immunity deal, after the the Gonzalez scandal's Monica Goodling, is the Jack Abramoff scandal's (and former Karl Rove top aide) Susan Ralston. According to today's Wall Street Journal, Ralston is ready to plead the Fifth unless she's given immunity before answering questions from Rep. Henry Waxman's committee about past Abramoff contacts with the White House.It is the first indication that Abramoff-related probes, mainly limited until now to his dealings with lawmakers and federal agency officials, may be advancing into the White House. says the Journal.

White House aide to Rove resigns 13 minutes ago A key aide to presidential political strategist Karl Rove resigned Friday in the wake of congressional report that listed hundreds of contacts between disgraced lobbyist Jack Abramoff and the White House. Susan Ralston, special assistant to President Bush, submitted a resignation letter to him less than five weeks before the midterm elections. "She did not want to be a distraction to the White House at such an important time and so we have accepted her resignation," White House deputy press secretary Dana Perino said. "We support her decision and consider the...

At the nexus of two high-profile investigations roiling the nation's capital is an unlikely - and largely anonymous - figure known for fiercely safeguarding her bosses. Susan B. Ralston, 38, has worked as an assistant and side-by-side adviser to Karl Rove since 2001, helping manage his e-mail, meetings and phone calls from her perch near his office in the West Wing. That has made her an important witness in the C.I.A. leak investigation, as the special prosecutor has sought to determine whether Mr. Rove misled investigators about his contacts with reporters about Valerie Wilson, the undercover operative whose identity was...

The right-wing argues that the outing of Valerie Plame’s identity of as a CIA operative isn’t significant. Special Prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald, by all accounts a no-nonsense guy, disagrees. He continues to actively pursue the case and appears to be increasingly focused on Karl Rove. From ABC’s The Note this morning: Based on ABC News sources (and our own video camera) it appears that at least two witnesses testified before the grand jury last Friday, both close associates of Karl Rove. ABC News has learned that one was Susan Ralston, Rove’s long-time right hand. The other, per ABC News’ Jake Tapper,...