The big political news this week is that the Bush administration has not only invoked Executive Privilege for a number of congressional subpoenas, but asserted that (in effect) when the President invokes Executive Privilege there's nothing anyone can do.

This sets up an almost inevitable court showdown, and it's probably just a matter of time before the Supreme Court weighs in on the matter.

As near as I can tell, the strategy on the part of the Bush Administration seems to be to run out the clock: with only 18 months or so left before the next President is sworn in, Bush and Cheney are betting that these congressional investigations will be rendered moot by the political process before they have to give anything up to Congress.

I think they're risking a terrible miscalculation, though, since these congressional investigations will only increase in intensity over the next six months. As the wheels of the process grind on, this sets up the possibility of a very high profile Supreme Court hearing right in the middle of the primary season.

Even if the Supreme Court rules in favor of the President, this will be a huge distraction for all the Republican candidates, and an unbeatable rhetorical foil for the Democrats--all coming right when the public's attention to the political process is peaking.

The problem for the Republicans is that even if the Executive Privilege claim proves valid, it looks and smells bad. Like taking the Fifth on national TV, it makes it look like the President has something to hide. This will put every Republican up for election in the uncomfortable position of having to choose between abandoning the President and looking like he's enabling a cover-up.

2008 is going to be a tough year to be a Republican (barring a political earthquake between now and then), but this continued digging in by the President is only going to make things worse.