"Let's just hope that if they indict [Scooter Libby or Turd Blossom] it won't be for some technicality like lying under oath or obstruction of justice."

-- Kay Bailey Hutchison (R., Tex.)

Interesting
 

This has all the intellectual heft of a Ken Mehlman RNC talking point. RR's lowest numbers weren't in his second term - they were in his first term, after the first midterm election. In his second term,W's numbers are still doing the limbo dance, and there's no indication they will be stopping anytime soon. But that's a moot point anyway - you might as well say that Clinton's lowest numbers were similar to RR's, and ask most Americans who was the greatest President of their lifetimes. It makes no sense at all to conflate W's and RR's numbers because there's no reason why RR's numbers could predict what Bush's will be like.

Hank, do you get your talking points via email, or do you prefer the old-fashioned excitement of a facsimile?

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Why are they relevant then? There'll be a vote.

2. And here are 55 specific instances of W lying about Iraq. There are much more if you care to include the entire administration for which, presumably, he is responsible.

http://democrats.reform.house.gov/Ir...George+W.+Bush

For more recent W lies, how about the "America does not torture" whopper. I offer evidence to the contrary here:

http://www.globalsecurity.org/intell...abuse-pics.htm

Clinton lied under oath. That is wrong. But the only reason we heard about it is because he was President. Had he been a private citizen, it wouldn't have even made the local news. What's more, he lied in a deposition for a lawsuit brought by a woman who had been manipulated by Clinton's political enemies. The underlying purpose of the lawsuit was not to vindicate the rights of Paula Jones, but to embarrass a sitting president. People regard it as a lie about a private affair made public. It's titillating, but the direct consequences of the lie had little effect beyond the parties involved. If you cannot see a qualitative difference, you're willfully blind or an idiot.

Huh? Sexual harassment turned out to be no big deal? Can you still bring these suits?

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Your point on polls is of course correct, after all -- if we had a well-educated and informed electorate (or if Clinton had kept his dick in his pants), we'd be in the second term of the Gore administration.

Still, you do sound a lot like those from the other side railing against the media and polls and propogating the "Bush's big lie" theory back when GWB was riding high. Are you completely right now, while they were completely wrong then?

The success of the "Kennedy/Dean" line and tactic pales in comparison to the strength and success of the Bush Administrations' media efforts until a lot of things started going wrong (or at least, not as people expected). The tactics are close to identical. That's life.

S_A_M

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Yeah, like she listens to Bill.

S_A_M

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Good thinking, Hank.

Didn't he sign an EO authorizing the termination of bin Laden extreme prejudice? You don't put that kind of stuff before the Congress.

P.S. You know, I used to think that I was a brave and patriotic American before Vice-President Cheney set me straight.

S_A_M

Oh, come now. The Republicans were upset with Clinton's lies because they were Clinton's, and the Democrats are upset with Bush's because they are Bush's. For the most part, the attacks are purely partisan.

I note, however, that many Presidents have gotten in trouble for misleading the American people. Nixon and Cambodia is one well documented example, but there are many others.

Clinton's sex scandal effectively hamstringed his second term. Without it, there is a very good chance the Republicans would have never been able to win the 2000 election. There is more reason for the Democrats to be upset with Clinton than the Republicans, but, of course, the Republicans are still enjoying beating the dead horse.

But on both scores, who really cares? Perhaps the only thing sillier than making a big deal out of what Bush said to the American people four years ago is getting upset about what Clinton said to a court ten years ago - and I usually ancient history.

More Ancient History
 

By the way, I'm still really upset about that Cleveland guy. Can you believe he fathered a child out of wedlock?

Or, as one of my party's attack dogs said, "Ma, Ma, Where's Pa? Gone to the White House, Ha, Ha, Ha!"

More Ancient History
 

Bilmore gets this faraway look in his eye whenever he hears that one. Fond memories or something.

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Not today:

I'm guessing that Senator Stevens will still get his bridge to nowhere.

I saw a commercial this morning for a service that helps seniors figure out the clusterfuck that is Medicare Part D. I guess the good news is healthcare regulatory attorneys will be in high demand.

And this article on the Porn Hearings just makes me sad.

Though the fact that the porn hearings are headed by Sen. Brownback makes me laugh a little.

I'm guessing brownbacking can produce a bunch of santorum.

eta that article is full of great names. For the record, "Rodney Smolla" would NOT be a good porn name.

And an expert from BYU? Yeah, that's credible. And throw in the author who thinks I have to spend 30 minutes explaining how I've done all my chores before I can fuck my wife? Excellent use of our limited resources, Senator Brownback.

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Well the vote is the poll that really counts. But around election times poll matters because the politicians want to change their poll numbers so they can win. But right now the next election is millions of years away (in political time) so the polls are irrelevent.