Karl Rove, the deputy chief of staff in the White House and a master strategist for the Republican Party, spoke at fundraisers for two Republicans running for the U.S. House of Representatives.

Rove spoke at a private fundraising lunch for the Mike Whalen campaign at Sunnyside Country Club in Waterloo. At nearby Sulentic Park, 51 protesters gathered to oppose current White House policies.

“Rove uses fear and hatred as distracting tools, so [the Bush administration] can get away with its own agenda, ignoring what people really need,” said Chris Schwartz, the president of the group Cedar Valley United for Peace and Justice and an organizer for Working Families Win, two groups organizing the protest.

The demonstrators lugged signs decrying Rove's position on minimum wage and health care; one declared, “Rove plays fiddle as working families burn.”

The White House official has aroused national controversy since serving as an integral part of President Bush's campaign in 2000. Widely considered the master strategist behind strong Republican showings in elections this decade, Rove has won the approval of conservatives and provoked the ire of liberals.

Most recently, he was the subject of an investigation into the leak of then-undercover CIA agent Valerie Plame's identity in 2003. Plame's status was exposed after her husband, former Ambassador Joseph Wilson, wrote an op-ed piece undercutting the White House's justification for the war in Iraq. Earlier this month, special counsel Patrick Fitzgerald informed Rove he would not be indicted.

After the Waterloo fundraiser, Rove moved on to a private reception at a West Des Moines residence, raising money for state Sen. Jeff Lamberti's congressional campaign.

The Polk County Democrats congregated near the house where Rove's reception was held, carrying an 8-foot sign stating, “Dear Karl Rove, congratulations on not being indicted.”

“He missed indictment by an eyelash,” said Tom Henderson, the chairman of Polk County Democrats. He added that Rove represented “politics as usual.”

“Mr. Lamberti used this opportunity to talk to Rove on issues that are important to Iowans,” said Kevin Graney, Lamberti's campaign manager. Graney said the senator was pleased to meet with Rove – just one of a “laundry list” of politicians pledging their support, such as Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn.

Graney said the protests did not come as a surprise. The Lamberti campaign was “just pleased to have such an influential person here,” he said.

E-mail DI reporter Dean Treftz at:
dean-treftz@uiowa.edu