The letter, sent to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., and Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., says, among other things, "the department is not aware of Karl Rove playing any role in the decision to appoint Mr. Griffin," referring Tim Griffin who replaced Arkansas U.S. Attorney Bud Cummins, one of the eight that were fired.

But in a Dec. 19, 2006, e-mail, Sampson explains to White House aides Monica Goodling and Christopher Oprison that "I am not 100 percent sure that Tim was the guy on which to test drive this authority but know that getting him appointed was important to Harriet, Karl, etc."

Sampson's testimony does not go into details on how or why this —or any other —discrepancy was made.

"The truth of this affair as I see it is this: the decisions to seek the resignations of a handful of U.S. Attorneys were properly made but poorly explained," according to his statement. "This is a benign rather than sinister story and I know that some may be indisposed to accept it. But it is the truth as I observed and experienced it."

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