Interesting write up about Rove's legacy. It's a bit lengthy, but worth the read.

Just a couple choice graphs.

Rove Revisited
Gaining Some Perspective On The Legacy Of 'The Architect'

Rove's brilliance as a campaign operative did not translate to policy successes. This truism has been noted this week, but except for a timely piece in the current issue of the Atlantic Monthly, it has not been examined very deeply. The shorthand version is that the political hack failed at governing because policy prescriptions are more subtle than attack ads. The truth about Rove's failures inside the government is more complicated than that -- and more inexplicable.

(snip)

Rove's partisanship was a costly indulgence even when both chambers of Congress were controlled by Republicans. "Karl is too partisan," a White House aide once told Alexis and me. This aide still reveres Rove, but his partisanship became untenable once Democrats took over the House last year. Forget what the 2006 midterms did to Rove's mystique as a campaign miracle worker; Machiavelli himself couldn't have saved the GOP with the headlines out of Iraq.