Democrats continued sparring with the White House over interviews with administration officials about the firing of eight U.S. attorneys, but no quick resolution was in sight.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said that whatever rules are laid down for others, he wants something tougher for presidential adviser Karl Rove.

House Judiciary Committee Democrats formally rejected the White House’s March 20 offer to allow Rove, the White House deputy chief of staff, and Harriet Miers, the former White House counsel, to be interviewed in private sessions provided that they are not put under oath and that no transcripts are produced.

And the Senate Judiciary Committee’s 10 Democrats wrote to White House Counsel Fred F. Fielding, rejecting the administration’s proposal but leaving open the possibility of negotiations.

The senators sent their letter the same day the committee voted to authorize subpoenas for three White House aides whom the committee wants to question about their roles in the firings.

Senate Judiciary Chairman Patrick J. Leahy, D-Vt., said the White House offer of interviews behind closed doors and without transcripts left no room for negotiation. “What we’re told we can get is nothing, nothing, nothing,” Leahy said.

Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania, the committee’s top Republican, said he would try to get the White House to agree to transcripts of any interviews. “My judgment is, they are amenable to negotiations,” Specter said after the committee met Thursday. “This has just gotten started.”

Specter said Fielding told him he was not authorized to negotiate but would take the question back to President Bush.

Chris Cannon of Utah, the top-ranking Republican on the House Judiciary Commercial and Administrative Law Subcommittee, predicted that there will be no negotiations before next week. “The rhetoric gets hotter and then staff starts talking,” Cannon said. “It takes a few days.”

The possibility of subpoenas and the threat of a showdown over executive privilege hang over any negotiations, and the administration is not getting strong backing from usually reliable allies.

The Senate Judiciary action came on a voice vote, with most Republicans calling the action premature because the White House offer to provide witnesses and testimony might produce the needed information.

But Charles E. Grassley, R-Iowa, announced that he favored authorizing subpoenas. “I wanted to make the process of congressional oversight work,” he said.

Texas Republican John Cornyn, a strong supporter of the administration who has said he, too, would like transcripts of interviews, left before the committee voted.

Leahy and Specter said Kyle Sampson, former chief of staff to Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales, has been asked to testify before the committee March 29. The committee authorized a subpoena for Sampson last week, but Leahy said it will not be issued if Sampson agrees to testify.

Sampson’s attorney, Bradford A. Berenson, has asked for more time to allow his client to review thousands of pages of Justice Department documents released earlier this week as well as any other documents the administration may provide to lawmakers. Berenson asked the senators to give Sampson 72 hours after the latest release of documents, whenever that might be, to decide whether he will voluntarily answer questions before the committee.

Reid said he has encouraged Leahy and Specter to explore all possible compromises to obtain more information from White House aides involved with the U.S. attorney firings. But he made an exception for Rove.

“We don’t have to have the same rules for everyone,” Reid said. “I’ve only insisted on ‘under oath’ for one so far.”

Reid said Rove “came this close to being indicted” in the investigation that ensnared Vice President Dick Cheney’s former chief of staff, I. Lewis “Scooter” Libby, for lying to a grand jury and to FBI agents investigating the leak of the identity of a CIA operative, Valerie Plame. Libby was convicted of perjury March 6.

Rove’s attorney, Robert Luskin, responded in a statement, “Sen. Reid should show a healthier respect for our system of justice than his unwarranted remarks reflect.”

Although Reid said he was willing to allow time for negotiations to play out, he suggested that subpoenas might be issued the week of April 9 unless a deal is reached.

“I don’t think he should wait forever,” Reid said of Leahy.

Keith Perine and Daphne Retter contributed to this story.

First posted March 22, 2007 12:40 p.m.