WASHINGTON Delay of subpoenas sought

White House chief of staff Joshua Bolten and former White House counsel Harriet Miers on Thursday asked a federal judge to delay an order to cooperate with Congress while they appeal the ruling.

The court filings indicate Bolten and Miers will continue to resist subpoenas from the House Judiciary committee as the Bush administration heads into its final months.

The plans for an appeal come in response to a ruling last week by U.S. District Judge John Bates, who rejected the administration's broad claims of executive privilege and ordered Bolten and Miers to comply with congressional subpoenas.

Lawmakers are seeking testimony from Miers and documents from Bolten related to the controversial firings of nine U.S. attorneys in 2006. Following Bates' ruling, Democrats announced they would schedule hearings on the issue in September -- less than two months before the presidential elections.