Man of Steele

Well, the Republican National Committee picked former Maryland lieutenant governor Michael Steel, pictured below, to be their new chairman:


[You may recall that Mr. Steele lied about having Oreos thrown at him at a function]

While he's a bright guy, with better legal credentials than I have, he is also, what's the word I'm looking for...oh, right, HE'S CRAZY. He compared stem cell research to Nazi experiments in concentration camps.

But while odd, he's not as reprehensible as his rival for the job, Chip Saltsman (who sent out the mailings with the "Barack the Magic Negro" ditty, incompetent like outgoing chair Mike Duncan, or as corrupt and racist as former chair Haley Barbour. He also doesn't have the unique problem of former chair Ken Mehlman, pictured below:

[Don't believe me? Click here]

After all, it's difficult to be the head of a party built on gay-bashing when you are...Ken Mehlman.

But back to Mr. Steele. If I was searching for new Republican leadership, I'm sure that an anti-science hard-core Bushie is where I'd turn...Right.

Your Future Correspondent

Hello from 2012.

Well-informed political observes thought that after their crushing defeat in 2008 that the Republican party might leave demagoguery and discredited supply-side economics behind. Those well-informed observers couldn't have been more wrong. After tacking even further to the right and playing the role of obstructionists in Congress, the voters in 2010 turned out every Republican member of Congress that were up for election, and most of those that weren't. In fact, approximately 40 states elected their THIRD Democratic senator. The courts are still sorting that one out.

In a last desperate attempt, the GOP nominated two, well, pieces of the same old crap, in 2012. Heading up the ticket was formerly imprisoned Alaska governor and new mom and great-grandmother Sarah Palin, with Mittens "Mittens" Romney filling out the ticket. The excitement was palpable at their rallies

culminating with their dramatic speeches st the party's convention before packed houses.

In November 2012, the Democrats carried all but one state, along with the District of Columbia, all 162 foreign countries that somehow registered to vote and all but one of the planets (the Republicans carried Utah and Mars, the "red" planet.") It was an overwhelming victory for the Obama-Kuchinich ticket.

In an earlier interview, given just after the repeal of the constitutional limits on presidential terms, President Obama discussed his decision to replace Vice President Biden on the ticket. He said, "Well, sure, Dennis is an annoying little dweeb, and I can post him up in one-on-one hoops all day long. But in terms of dweebs, with Joe, that's pretty much a wash. The key--their wives. Who would you rather have around you, some education wonk talking learning theory all the time or a hot redhead with a tongue stud?"

Reporting live from the future, now back to you in the studio.

Another Blago tribute from the Brits

While I find the words of Shelley below describing the forgotten wreckage of a ruler with delusions of grandeur compelling, perhaps the elegant words of a British romantic poet are out of place when discussing now former Gov. Cognitive Dissonance Hairclubformen. SO, given that his real first name is not Rod, but Milorad, I thought the song about the fellow here might better serve the occasion:

Milorad, Milorad
Riding through the land!
Milorad, Milorad, without a merry band
He steals from the poor
and gives to the rich
... Stupid bitch!

(Apologies to the non-Python fans for this tremendous waste of time.)

Blago-mandias, King of Kings

The senate is posturing and speaking now, but "unconfirmed sources" are leaking that the vote to boot will be unanimous.Continuing his theater of the absurd, he spewed forth an incomprehensible stream of consciousness denial of EVERYTHING. Bye. [Note: It was of course unanimous. Just think, in one fortnight, no more Bush or Blago!]

And of course, a politically-connected firm received several hundred thousand dollars of tollway money to put up these:

As Shelley wrote:

Tell that its sculptor well those passions read
Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things,
The hand that mocked them and the heart that fed.
And on the pedestal these words appear:
`My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings:
Look on my works, ye mighty, and despair!'
Nothing beside remains.
Round the decay
Of that colossal wreck,
boundless and bare,
The lone and level sands stretch far away.

Kabul-sh*t

One thing that has been on my mind lately is this unspoken assumption that Afghanistan is somehow a "good" war that can be "won" by tossing a couple more brigades that way.

Let us not forget that it wasn't Reagan's runaway defense spending here that brought the Soviet Union down. There were myriad factors, from corruption and internal rot to economic stagnation and WAAY too much vodka and too little productivity.

However, if there was one thing that sent the USSR to history's graveyard, it was its debacle in Afghanistan, an endless war in a hostile environment against foes from too many factions to count.

The "country" is a hellhole that produces three products for export--heroin, concrete and terrorists. What is the endgame here? Or do we share the fate of the USSR in this God-forsaken land?

"I Won."

President Obama needs to remember those words in dealing with the congressional Republicans. He won. They lost--big time.

I applaud the president's willingness to go the extra mile (one more trip to the Hill to meet with minority leadership and he matches Bush's eight-year total.) His willingness to listen after eight years of "**** you" from the White House is certainly refreshing. However, negotiating with a party whose response is to petulantly take their ball and go home is pointless.

The Republicans had control of all aspects of government, and clearly demonstrated that they can't govern. Dick Cheney said that Reagan taught us that "deficits don't matter." No, Reagan taught us that Republican economic policies don't work. He taught us that tax cuts for the rich are nothing more than a scam that would embarrass Bernie Madoff.

In 2001, the Republicans received the keys to the car. It wasn't a brand new vehicle fresh off the assembly line, no new car smell, but it was a steady reliable car in good operating condition. They got liquored up and took it out and wrapped it around a tree.

Pray tell, WHY would we want driving tips from them?

RIP John Updike

A great American author has died. In these video interviews with the NYT, Updike reflects on his craft, fellow writers, and characters. In a second segment he gives us a fascinating glimpse at how his most famous character, Rabbit Angstrom, would view President Obama.

Re: Peter's "Buh Bye, George" post below

Here's the definitive farewell site with its fine and appropriate title.

A note on Blago and impeachment

I've heard some well-informed and well-intentioned people misspeak about the impeachment of Gov. Blagojevich, pictured below



For example, Bill Press said on his show this morning that Blago had not been CONVICTED of any crime, is it fair to impeach him?

YES, a thousand times YES.

[NOTE: ENTERING LAWYER MODE BELOW]

For one thing, the rather awful Illinois constitution allows impeachment for "cause." No one knows what "cause" means, but let's assume for sake of discussion that the more developed "high crimes and misdemeanors" standard from the feds applied. The concept is the same. I would recommend to you the House Judiciary Committee report prepared in 1974 in anticipation of the Nixon impeachment, which obviously was short-circuited by his resignation. As that report makes clear, impeachment is a POLITICAL matter, not a criminal one. In fact, in the federal constitution specifically provides that removal from office/disqualification is the ONLY penalty.

As the report makes clear, going back to the English origins of "high crimes and misdemeanors," these actions arise from charges of official power or trust. Impeachment and removal is appropriate even if there is no criminal conviction.

And here is why I don't watch talking heads...

I found myself watching "Morning Joe" this A.M. The local news was blaring ALL BLAGO ALL THE TIME and the sports outlets were trying their damnest to hype an unhypeable Super Bowl. So I went to MSNBC, hoping for a break from the banal. Instead I was treated to stupidity - and "Joe" wasn't even there!! Instead it was Mica-with-the-unpronounceable-last-name (but she is middle-aged-newsy hot) and an assortment of constipated aging men and Tucker Carlson look-alikes. I listened for about a half hour. I was treated to BLAGO (but for only a few minutes) and TARP (they don't understand it) and SUPER BOWL (incestuous promotion via the NBC family) and then the story which made me run to this blog. It was a "health" story and in a nutshell: fast food is really bad for you but it's cheaper to buy McDonald's than making it yourself. And they went on and on about how America eats too much fast food but it's so damned easy and inexpensive, who can blame America for doing so... Now these supposedly smart people couldn't see how absolutely WRONG they are. Here is a lesson I teach to junior high school students and they get it in a heartbeat.

A family of four goes to McDonald's. Mom and Dad each buy a "Big Mac Value Meal" for $4.00 and the kids each get a $3.00 happy meal. The "food" purchased consists of the following:

3/4 of a pound of beef (each Big Mac has 2 patties, each weighing .125 pounds, and each happy meal burger weighs the same .125 pounds... so there are 6 patties X .125 = .75 pounds)

5 buns (each hamburger gets one bun, while the 2 Big Macs share 3 buns)

~ 1/2 pound of french fries

~ 56 ounces of soda

2 slices of cheese, and nominal amounts of lettuce, pickles, ketchup, onion, and "special sauce"

TOTAL FAST FOOD COST: $15.40 (includes 10% sales tax)


Now let's go to the store:

1.5 lb package of 80% lean meat (the same quality of McDonald's hamburger meat) $4.00

8 pack of hamburger buns - $2.25

4 liters of soda - $3.50

1 lb - french fries - 1.25

Head of lettuce - $1.00

1 lb onions - $.50

.125 lb of deli sliced american cheese - $.50

16 oz. bottle of ketchup - $1.00

24 oz jar of pickles - $2.25

TOTAL COST $16.50 (including 2.5% tax)

I may be a bit off on the individual items, but the costs really nearly EXACTLY the same... Here's the difference: I bought enough for TWO dinners at the store (and I will have plenty of lettuce left over to make a salad). Now there is the time factor - it's a lot faster/easier to just go to McDonald's than it is to shop/prepare a meal. However, the fact is that fast food saps the family budget unnecessarily, and this nonsense about how cheap it is belies the fact that this is really about laziness and marketing.

However, I need to thank the good people at MSNBC... now I remember why I stopped watching...

When we have a REAL attorney general...

Eric Holder will be confirmed this week after the Republicans' silly little delay game. Finally, an honest prosecutor, who may well investigate and prosecute many from the Bush administration, including

The president

The vice president

Harriet Miers

Alberto Gonzalez

and most of all, Karl Rove.

Sorry for my absence

Gizzmo, the dog I didn't want (Daughter worked at a pet store and fell in love with the furball pup, who now runs my life)


pulled through Round 1 of emergency treatment for intestinal blockage, etc, but has round 2 of surgery for bladder stones as soon as stable.

Denial's not just a river in Illinois

CHICAGO – Illinois' embattled but defiant governor turned to the history books to describe the emotional strain on him and his family, comparing his arrest last month to Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor.

"Dec. 9 to my family, to us, to me, is what Pearl Harbor Day was to the United States," Gov. Rod Blagojevich told The Associated Press in an interview Thursday. "It was a complete surprise, completely unexpected. And just like the United States prevailed in that, we'll prevail in this."

In Case this went Unnoticed

Few remarked on the poignant history and poetic relevance of Aretha Franklin's beautiful rendition of "My Country 'Tis of Thee." Except perhaps for Queen Latifah, who mentioned Marian Anderson briefly the day before amid the din of a star-studded concert at the Lincoln Memorial.

In 1939, the great African American opera singer Marian Anderson was barred by the racist "Daughters of the American Revolution" from giving a concert at the DAR hall. First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt immediately cancelled her membership with the DAR and invited Anderson to perform at the Lincoln Memorial.

In 2009, Aretha Franklin sang before millions of people, come to celebrate our first African American president. With the Lincoln Memorial shimmering in the distance, as if floating above a sea of humanity, the symbolism of the occasion could not be more beautifully drawn: We hold these truths to be self-evident a step closer across the generations. And a song.

Quote of the day

From one of the executive orders President Obama signed today:

From this day forward, unless the Attorney General with appropriate consultation provides further guidance, officers, employees, and other agents of the United States Government may, in conducting interrogations, act in reliance upon Army Field Manual 2 22.3, but may not, in conducting interrogations, rely upon any interpretation of the law governing interrogation -- including interpretations of Federal criminal laws, the Convention Against Torture, Common Article 3, Army Field Manual 2 22.3, and its predecessor document, Army Field Manual 34 52 issued by the Department of Justice between September 11, 2001, and January 20, 2009.

In other words, former President Bush - Go Jump in a Woodchipper!

Buh bye, George

It was such a joy to see George Bush leave forever (unless for his trial). And guess what, now that he no longer needs the phony "ranch" to be a phony "cowboy," he heads to Dallas?

I wonder how many nights Laura, pictured below, stays under the same roof?

Ted in Duress?

Apparently Ted Kennedy was taken out after a seizure?

Memo to Ben Franklin

Ben, thanks for your insight. You wrote that "[t]hey who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety."

The PRESIDENT today echoed your sentiment, when he said that "we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals."

Memo to the Chief Justice

Learn your damn lines.

Thanks.

On the Bush administration's "accomplishments" below.

I was talking about this with a friend at work, and he had an interesting perspective. He saw nothing good from the Bush years except for one transformational aspect--the fact that Bush was so loathsome, was a failure on such a cosmic level, that he actually made possible the rise of Obama. If he had not sucked so very royally, then America might not have been able to embrace such a dramatic step. Because he was the Bob Beamon of worst presidents ever, not only breaking, but smashing the former record, Bush made this day possible. Without the absolute debacle of George Bush, the Democrats may well nominate a mediocre white candidate who loses to a mediocre Republican candidate. George made today happen, in effect.

My bad analogy was that W was the botulism-laden piece of meat that makes one a vegetarian.

God Bless America!

IT IS DONE!

Hail, indeed, to the Chief.

Step One

Replace Dick Cheney with Joe Biden. Check.

That's a hell of a trade, right there.

A Stirring of Emotions

This quote from Robert Kennedy seems appropriate on this beautiful day.

Few will have the greatness to bend history itself, but each of us can work to change a small portion of events, and in the total of all those acts will be written the history of this generation. It is from numberless diverse acts of courage and belief that human history is shaped. Each time a man stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope, and crossing each other from a million different centers of energy and daring, those ripples build a current that can sweep down the mightiest walls of oppression and resistance.

Robert Francis Kennedy

A warped, frustrated old man...

So Darth Cheney strained his back "lifting boxes." RIIIGHT. I believe he has people for that? I'm sure he was prostrating himself before his Dark Lord over his last official meal of Cream o' Wheat and kittens.

But anyway, the image of Cheney below


provides the perfect contrast to the young, strong and vibrant new president.

At least we won't have to see Dick again (please please please) until his trial.

Historical ramblings below

I have been pondering the significance of tomorrow for quite some time now. I am somewhat reluctant to join in the wave of hope and hyperbole, the myriad dreams that cannot help but go unfulfilled, but yet I cannot escape the sense that we are watching truly historic forces at play here. This is one of those rare moments in history where the republic may well invent itself.

There are very few such moments. You can count them on one hand.

The first obviously is our revolutionary founding, making something from nothing. Our revolutionary history is greatly misunderstood, I believe, and its heritage not fully appreciated. That comes in part from our romanticization of the "founding fathers" as well as from their own self-contradictions. They spoke of self-sacrifice, but for the most part were wealthy men. The most blatant problem, of course, was accurately penned by the wit of Dr. Samuel Johnson, who was amused that he heard the "loudest yelps for liberty among the drivers of negroes.”

Yes, they were conflicted and contradictory, but we should know the heritage they left us, of commonwealth and republic. Both basically mean the same thing, the "common good." For a rather old, but still brilliant exposition of this notion, see Bernard Bailyn's Idealogical Origins of the American Revolution. Revolution came from corruption. A once-sacrosant British constitution had been undermined by faction, greed and corruption. The antithesis of corruption was virtue. Virtuous citizens were not rapaciously acquisitive. No, they sacrificed for the common good, the res publica. The argument for revolution was that England was hopelessly corrupt, and to preserve the rights of Englishmen, separation was necessary.

Thomas Jefferson expressed this sentiment well, when he described the Louisiana Purchase as an "Empire for Liberty." He envisioned the purchase as the source of land for generations of yeoman farmers to come.

Unfortunately, res publica crashed into westward expansion, and self-sacrifice and virtue dissolved into acquisitive capitalism. However, transformation was not done.

The American Civil War, where millions of dollars of "property" in humanity became valueless, and the promise of the Declaration, postponed by an ambivalent and somewhat cowardly revolutionary generation, was set on its way to fulfillment. Abraham Lincoln, on January 1, 1863, committed the full force of federal arms to fundamentally reshaping American society.

It is 1933, and America confronts fear itself. FDR, an aristocrat who came into office wedded to a balanced budget, realizes the nature of the moment and commits government to doing something that had not been done to date. Government, in FDR's New Deal, existed to do POSITIVE GOOD in society.

And now, Barack Obama confronts the same challenge, the challenge to stand in his place as we re-invent America. He needs to seize and direct those elements of all the earlier seismic changes. The notions of the public good, virtue, self-sacrifice, the citizenry and personhood of all, and government as a transformational force, must all be celebrated as the defining values of what the new America will become.

Yes we can.

Twenty four

One day to go. I really am having trouble wrapping my wind around the idea that as of tomorrow at this time, they'll be gone.

Can you think of ONE accomplishment of the Bush administration?

Seriously. Just one thing they didn't screw up? I honestly can't.

I am a nerd, a total geek. Like our friend Lula, I also like to play in the kitchen.

It will just be the family, but tomorrow night I'm hosting a "state dinner" to celebrate this historic inauguration. All the dishes come from previous WH state dinners. I'm printing out the following menu, and downloaded (legally) Hail to the Chief, and great inaugural speeches for background music.

Inaugural Dinner
The White House

New England Lobster Bisque

Salade of Warm Pear and Bleu Cheese
with
Baby Greens

Medallions of Duck
with
Roasted Baby Beets

Crepes
with Vanilla Custard

Inauguration Concert, pt 2

I've always thought Garth Brooks' "We Shall Be Free" would make an awfully good song for a DNC event. It didn't make the connection, but Garth singing it at the concert today was pretty sweet.

Inauguration

There's going to be a lot of hoopla this week, but there are some moments that just look cool. Bruce Springsteen playing on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in front of a throng filling the mall and surrounding the reflecting pool is one of them.

Although there was just a moment proving that not all skills are inherited. Martin Luther King III just introduced a clip of JFK's inaugural speech as his "Office of Oath."

Sneaking out of the lurk

Life has gotten entirely too busy. I will return with more blather soon.

For now, it's enough to note that at 7 this morning (Central Time), while we were immersed in supra-Arctic cold, we passed into the last 100 hours of the Bush Administration. As of this writing, he only has 96 hours and 16 minutes of hell to wreak on all of us.

Thank heaven for small favors

Sure, it's the end of war crimes, domestic felonies and disastrous policies, etc., but let us not forget the little things.

We will henceforth be spared the whiny, smirking invocation of

September THE Eleventh!!!

The Final Bush Press Conference

Oh my God.

Rambling, evasive, disoriented.

Just go away. Now.

Before you leave us with any more gems like "HELICOPTER DRIVERS."

I feel like I owe a post

Although admittedly, I have been enjoying football, riotous cooking (some of the holiday confit of duck with marsala and wild mushrooms, over eggplant and zucchini) and yes, even the snow this weekend. My scattered thoughts?

Sure I am so proud that my state government opens SNL. Thanks Rod. Thanks Roland. And this Wednesday? Blago opens the new Senate session, and officiates at the swearing in ceremony. Their first order of business-IMPEACHMENT!!

I'm going to be in DC early February. My dive room is $600 per night for the inauguration!

Lincoln in 1860. OK, seven states seceded sucks. FDR? National systemic collapse. But given our position in the world, has any incoming president inherited a worse situation?

And on the outgoing [p]resident?

One of the best takes I've seen on Bush comes from Bob Woodward. Admittedly, Woodward is a pompous self-important blowhole (and when it comes to pompous self-important blowholes, I know of whence I speak) but he knows his stuff.

He portrays Bush as a less pleasant Chance the Gardener from Being There. Bush is a (mean) childlike buffoon who is completely detached from reality. According to Woodward, Bush actually believes that he is a "war president" who is "commanding" troops in a "war" against an "enemy" who can be defeated. He is petty, jealous and combative, but is in no sense actually making or directing policy, an empty suit pair of footy pajamas used by those around him with him not having a clue.

Blago Impeached, no mandamus

The Illinois House voted all but unanimously (one lone holdout) to impeach Blago. The measure now moves to the Senate.

And now you see why I'm not a betting man. The Illinois Supreme Court denied the mandamus motion filed by Burris, saying that the Sec of State violated no legal duty. The essence of the court's order was that Illinois law does not impose a duty on the Secretary of State to sign or affix the state seal to the document. According to the court, the Secretary of State's ONLY duty is to "register the appointment," which he did. The court basically concluded (even though they have no authority over the same) that Senate rules cannot trump state law or the 17th Amendment, cannot make Illinois do anything further. Therefore, back to DC.

And our senior senator is not acquitting himself well lately.

Brothers and Sisters, may I have an amen???

Budget deficits are bad, hallelujah! May I have an amen!

AMEN!

Out of control spending has to stop, brothers and sisters! May I have an amen!

AMEN!

Well well well. After eight giggling years of gleefully enabling Der Chimpenfuhrer to run up a ONE TRILLION DOLLAR DEFICIT, Congressional Republicans have seen the light. Now that Democrats are in charge, we must be RESPONSIBLE. We need to think about the TAXPAYER! We need to worry about MAIN STREET!

PULL-EAZE. Yeah, I'll have a double scoop of hypocrisy with extra sleaze, please?

And take Harry Reid and Jay Rockefeller with you

See below.

Memo to Sen. Feinstein

The Hon. Dianne Feinstein
331 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington DC 20510

Dear. Sen. Feinstein:

I have been amused at your recent petulance concerning the appointment of a fine candidate, Leon Panetta, to head up the CIA. I would have appreciated your concern if you had not been a willing enabler of the Bush administration's abuses on illegal wiretapping and torture. In this humble correspondent's view, any Democrat who regularly referred to the illegal eavesdropping as a "terrorist surveillance plan" deserved to be treated with even less regard than that shown you by the president-elect.

So, Sen. Feinstein, Happy New Year and

You can tell you went to a small college....

When they get excited about this:

Jon Stewart Mentions DePauw's Kresge Auditorium on TV's Daily Show

January 5, 2009, Greencastle, Ind. — "Who will be the Obama administration's First Dog?," asked Jon Stewart on Comedy Central's The Daily Show. "Tonight we get our first glimpse at the candidates as millions were glued to their television sets for the CNN Puppendential Debate, broadcast live from DePauw University's Kresge Auditorium."

The humorous segment, which aired tonight, featured CNN's Anderson Cooper "interviewing" the canine "candidates." DePauw was not seen in the piece, and it's not clear why the program decided to use Kresge Auditorium as the "site" of the mock debate.

A video clip of the complete segment is available at the program's Web site. A short edited video can be found here: [Download Video: "Edited Daily Show Clip" - 3002kb]

More on "As the Burris Turns"

A Slate piece picked up on my argument below. I still think it is highly likely that he will serve, but there is a colorable constitutional argument the Senate could use to preclude him from being sworn in (and it is NOT the approach taken by Harry Reid, who is a major-league buffoon.) Reid is arguing the technicality of the certification, which is effectively mooted if/when the Illinois Supreme Court grants the mandamus motion. The Sec of State's certification is PURELY ministerial and is probably not even a legal requirement. He is acting as a notary, just authenticating that this is the document the governor signed. Otherwise would add an impermissible "with the advice and consent of the Sec of State" proviso to the appointment provision.

A serious, albeit an unlikely challenge, could be made to the substance of the legality of the appointment. Under Art 1 Sec 5 of the constitution, senators are not bound by what is going on outside in the prosecutorial process.

And in terms of making asses of oneself, insert "Sen. Cornyn" here.

It's not a slam dunk, but there may be an angle...

Re: Carlos' post below:

It is a very murky question concerning the Senate's power to refuse to seat the nominee under the Article I Section 5 provision that each house shall be the judge of its own members. The Adam Clayton Powell case is informative and conclusive, but not absolutely controlling in my view, as it MAY be distinguishable on the facts.

For those not in their dotage like I am, ACP was a controversial House member from Harlem. He was embroiled in a scandal involving misuse of funds and payroll padding. He was, however, duly re-elected, and the House refused to seat him. The court basically held that the judging of its members clause does not allow the imposition of qualifications beyond those described in Article I (and Burris OBVIOUSLY meets those bare-bones requirements)

The plan of attack is to go under the same section, but not the qualification of the members. Rather, it is the part referring to the Senate judging the ELECTION. The argument would be that unlike Powell, whose ELECTION was not in doubt legally, the senate could argue that the SELECTION of Burris did not comply with the law because of the bribery scandal taint, i.e., we cannot determine if he was properly named pending the outcome of the investigation.

It's not a slam dunk, but it would at least tie things up a long time.

The Dem caucus and leadership could of course make his life miserable--give him a broom closet office, deny committee appointments and seniority, etc. but that would just make them look small and petty.

Burris is not a felon but he is a hack. One more embarrassing moment for Illinois.

Blago Appoints Burris to Obama's Senate Seat

Why is Blago doing this?

Because HE CAN. Aside from the fact that this is a tainted appointment and that Roland Burris will never be seated by the U.S. Senate, while Burris may be personally "clean," he is 71 and is retired from elective politics after a long string of defeats (public repudiation, really). So, the inevitable perception is that Burris will be nothing more than a willing, or unwilling, placeholder for whoever is legitimately elected to Obama's vacated Senate seat. Which raises the LEGITIMACY issue all over again.

Bottom line: the appointment may be ILLEGITIMATE but it is CONSTITUTIONAL.

Accepting the appointment, Burris set himself up as the only person standing between economic chaos and peace and prosperity! Talk about hubris ...

Burris: "How much was it, $14,000? I gotta check my records (his law firm's), I didn't think we had that much to give to the governor."

Meanwhile, the Illinois legislature's impeachment proceedings, such as they are, have become a platform for Blago's competent lawyer, Ed Genson, to become the star of the show and cast aspersions on the entire process, as any counsel should do, with his "fighting shadows" and other media-friendly sound bites.

The Illinois impeachment committee look like a gathering of fools, sitting there with their paper name tags, while Genson holds court. There are no articles of impeachment, there are no witnesses called, there's no sense of direction, and U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald indicated that the legislature is interfering with his investigation.

What are they deliberating about? With each passing day they look more and more like a foolish kangaroo court. The legislature couldn't even move quickly enough to enact legislation removing the Senate appointment power from the governor. Perhaps the tittilating release of the actual tapes, dangled as a possibility by Fitzgerald, may save the legislature from further embarrassment.

Blagojevich said he acted after the legislature FAILED to act on a special election to have the people decide. How appropriate. Congressman Bobby Rush defended the Burris appointment, saying "my prayers have been answered" that the governor would appoint an African American to the U.S. Senate. "Separate, if you will, the appointee from the appointor." He said Jesse White, Sec. of State, acted "prematurely" in stating he would not certify the Senate appointment.

Is it just me, or do Illinois politics look more like something out of a banana republic, circa 1950s? Corruption, pay-offs, buy-outs, dictatorial executive, rubber stamp legislature, corruption, outrageous political maneuvers, corruption ... Panis et Circenses, or to put it more parochially, pass the popcorn.

See below, re: conspiracy theories

So we have less than a month of Bushocracy left to endure. Israel grossly over-responds in criminal fashion to attacks from within Lebanon. Hmmm, one last chance at "glory" for Der Chimpenfuhrer as they use Israeli surrogates to provoke the conflict with Iran they've been seeking? Crazy I know, but just how crazy?

Fiddling While Rome Burns

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip - Israeli warplanes rained more than 100 tons of bombs on security sites in Hamas-ruled Gaza Saturday and early Sunday, killing at least 230 people in one of the Mideast conflict's bloodiest assaults in decades. The government said the open-ended campaign was aimed at stopping rocket attacks that have traumatized southern Israel.
The U.N. Security Council held emergency consultations Saturday night and early Sunday and debated whether to adopt a statement urging Israel to halt its military operations "without delay."

Again, I have always supported Israel's right to exist and defend itself, but since the days of Sharon, they have acted as an outlaw state. The summer war against Lebanon was Bushian in its illegality and in its poor execution. What Americans miss so often is how important this issue is in the eyes of seemingly the rest of the world but us. This goes a long way toward explaining the radicalization of young Arabs and other Muslims.

The shoe thrower in Iraq and the Gaza debacle are the exclamation points on these years of Bush failure. He came into office, looked at the volatile mix of explosive forces that was the Middle East, and asked "Condi, what the hell does vola--vola-volltilititty mean--oh hell, I've got brush to clear."

Inaction would have been criminal, but inaction and indifference would have been a rosy dream compared to what he did do. The invasion of Iraq was not only an affront to human decency and the sensibilities of people throughout the region, but the not-even-veiled neocon rationale to "re-engineer" the region to make it more "Israel-friendly" could not have been more ill-conceived and damaging. In addition, our totally one-sided "whatever Israel wants to do is fine with us" approach has destroyed any hope of having credibility as an honest broker in the region. The blame is not all Israel's, but they have cooperated in the Bush network of failure and escalation.

[Editor's Note: To American Jews and supporters of Israel, the warm fuzzy embrace that the fundamentalist neocons give to Israel is part of their desire to see their twisted view of prophecy fulfilled to bring about the rapture and have the blasphemous Israelites who reject Jesus be tossed in the lake of fire. Have a nice day.]

Shoes, bombs, death and failure. THAT is the Bush legacy.

Movie recommendation

We just got back from seeing Frost/Nixon. VERY enjoyable.

Frank Langella is tremendous as Nixon.

Frank made his name on stage and in a mediocre film as Dracula. I was thinking about his characters, Dracula and Nixon. Of course, one was an evil soulless bloodthirsty monster--while the other was just a vampire.

The End Times

We had 15 inches of snow, then -5 degrees, and today--a tropical storm. Seriously. It is 65 degrees warmer than last weekend, with 60-plus MPH winds.

To the climate change naysayers--"global warming" is often misunderstood, and people confuse climate with weather. A pattern of climate change can and does produce extremes of weather, both warm and cold, wet and dry.

Are we really tightwads?

I read a commentary from the NY Times over the weekend that's been bothering me. Nick Kristof does a pretty good analysis of Arthur Brook's book "Who Really Cares," which says, basically that conservatives in general give more to charity than liberals.

"The upshot is that Democrats, who speak passionately about the hungry and homeless, personally fork over less money to charity than Republicans - the ones who try to cut health insurance for children."

Is that true? Do we only show compassion towards the less fortunate when it is in the form of generous government spending, and not from individual contributions? In essence, are we the cheapskates??

I hate to be one-uped by Republicans, and I know that they give alot of money to churches, and he did find that religious liberals are as generous as religious conservatives, but Brooks apparently also found that "if measuring by the percentage of income given, conservatives are more generous than liberals even to secular causes."

What? Do conservatives, in general have more to give? Do we really just talk the talk, instead of putting our money where our mouth is?

Any thoughts?

On the Beach

What if we could vote for president based on who looks best on the beach ...?

And do these guys even pass the CREEP test ...?

"I AM NOT A CROOK." (See, if the president does it it's not a crime.)

"Hear, hear ..."

"Hehehe...Yuck!"

On Rick Warren...

I've been kicking this one around, and my position on it changes about as often as the amount of snow in my driveway. The take at this precise moment is:

It was a stroke of political genious. Obama looks large, conciliatory and magnanimous. It will also

a) energize civil rights activists and
b) show the Saddlebackers, et al. as the bigoted freakshow that they are

All at no cost to the president-elect.

Brilliant.

I don't know if there'll be snow....

Burl Ives sang the line above in "A Holly Jolly Christmas."




I know. There'll be snow. LOTS of snow.

Holly jolly this.

Alex, may I have conspiracy theories for $1000?

Mike Connell died in a plane crash on Thursday?

Mike Connell? Who?

Well, he was one of the key figures in the 2004 Ohio vote rigging scandal. He was on the verge of testifying and died "mysteriously" in the crash of his small airplane. How convenient.

Tricky Rod?

So, it turns out that the White House isn't the only government institution filled with devotees of one Richard Nixon:

While going to school at Northwestern University, Blagojevich idolized Nixon, according to friends, frequently defending him during the Watergate scandal. According to a long-time Blagojevich friend, the future governor often found inspiration in Nixon's "me against the world" sensibility. Blagojevich particularly loved the fact that Nixon bounced back after the "you won't have Dick Nixon to kick around anymore" speech after losing the race for California governor in 1962.

Blagojevich dismissed Nixon's corruption as par for the political course, asserting (like many Nixon defenders) that the Kennedys did far worse things than anything that happened in Watergate.

Sigh.

A random unpleasant thought

As people become more desperate in George Bush's depression, how many will join the military because they have no other options and be killed or maimed on Bush's bloody altar?

Drew Peterson is ENGAGED

So, another one of our state's embarrassments, wife-killing cop Drew Peterson, is engaged. ENGAGED. Some 23-year old girl actually agreed to marry a man who in all likelihood killed his last two wives.

But I have an idea...

Let's be proactive.

Let's plan ahead and get the happy couple those "traditional" anniversary presents.

Year 1 is paper:



Year 2 is cotton:



For #3, we have leather:

Anniversary #4 is flowers



and

Finally, for the 5th anniversary, we give the gift of wood.

I had some thoughts last night

But given the fact that it took me THREE HOURS to get home last night (a door-to-door distance of eight miles) through the storm, thoughts had to wait.

Worst commute in more than 10 years Yeccch.

If the Shoe Fits: More Tributes and Tokens of Affection

A sign that, perhaps, things have gone astray

The governor ... had no immediate reaction to the impeachment committee, spokesman Lucio Guerrero said after Madigan's announcement.

"Impeachment talk's nothing new for this governor," Guerrero said. "They've been talking about it for a long time."

Indeed, Madigan said Monday his staff has been reviewing the legal possibilities for impeachment for about a year. His office produced a memo earlier this year outlining all the arguments legislative candidates could make in favor of impeachment.

The George Bush Presidential Library

We have obtained an exclusive sneak peek at the library that will forever enshrine the legacy of George W. Bush and celebrate his "accomplishments."

Here is the main building:

and the books and papers collection:


The library has hired an experienced professional director


And includes fascinating exhibits of life in the White House:


Tributes and tokens of affection from around the world are displayed:

Of course, don't miss the lovely grounds:

Many former Bush administration members are expected to contribute to the library from their present positions:

And of course they have a full-service Bush-style snack bar!


Don't forget some refreshing coke!

The Perfect Storm: Corruption, Bailout, and Civil War

Well, whaddya know. Despite the Blago stain of corruption, statistically Illinois is not number 1, or 2, or 3, or 4.

In USA Today’s ranking, based on public corruption convictions per 100,000 residents, Illinois came in at number 18. But critics argued the study was flawed for including sparsely populated states such as North Dakota, Alaska, and Montana, which skewed the results.

USA Today’s ranking:

(1) North Dakota, (2) Louisiana, (3) Alaska, (4) Mississippi, (5) Montana, (6) Kentucky, (7) Alabama, (8) Delaware and South Dakota (tie), (9) New Jersey and Ohio (tie), and (10) Pennsylvania and Florida (tie), with (11) Hawaii, Virginia, West Virginia, Tennessee, and Illinois (virtual tie). Note: By virtual tie, I mean Illinois and Virginia scored 3.9 convictions per 100,000 residents while West Virginia scored 4.1, and the others came in with 4.

A more solid ranking published in 2007 by Corporate Crime Reporter using Department of Justice statistics, including only the 35 most populous states that compiled all federal corruption convictions by state over a decade (from 1997 to 2006), the TOP TEN most corrupt states are (drum roll):

(1) Louisiana, (2) Mississippi, (3) Kentucky, (4) Alabama, (5) Ohio, (6) Illinois, (7) Pennsylvania, (8) Florida, (9) New Jersey, and (10) New York. Tennessee, Bob Corker’s state, gets dishonorable mention as number 11.

Corporate Crime Reporter’s metrics, by way of the Justice Department, are considered to be accurate rankings of state corruption, given the source and statistics compiled over a 10-year period. The only caveat is that the latest data is from 2006 (2007 numbers should be out shortly); it’s likely that Illinois will move up, though still doubtful the state will top out as number one based on a single year’s data.

If one looks at the really corrupt states in both rankings, some interesting patterns begin to emerge. For comparison purposes, I have bolded the most corrupt states recently in the news, and Illinois in italics. What do the highly ranked most corrupt bolded states have in common?

1. They’re Deep South red states
2. They’re “right-to-work” (a euphemism for legalized union-busting) states
3. They’re home to a burgeoning foreign auto industry
4. They’re represented by a Republican Senate clique that killed the Big 3 bailout

Blame the worker.

Bob Corker, multimillionaire senator from Tennessee, home to carpetbaggers Nissan, Kia, and Volkswagen, played the cynical role of imposing unacceptable conditions on the UAW, after an agreement was reached in which the union made multiple concessions and givebacks. The sniveling Corker did the dirty work for perpetually sneering Richard Shelby, senator from Alabama, home to carpetbaggers Mercedes, Toyota, Honda, Hyundai – Shelby sneeringly called the U.S. auto industry a “dinosaur” – and slimy Republican leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, home to carpetbagger Toyota.

Blame the worker.

Unless he or she is white collar and works for AIG et al, in which case the sacred financial money speculators get a bailout of more than $300 billion, no questions asked. But heaven forbid they should be blue collar union members from Detroit, Michigan: throw them out like so much industrial waste or use them as bargaining chips in a high stakes game of strip your life away poker. Remove any vestige of a decent retirement income and benefits – oh, those horrendous “Legacy” costs. So what if you’ve worked your entire life in a Big 3 plant. Does that entitle you to a decent retirement with earned benefits? Not in this economy; not in this country. Not on your life. So says Corker, the multimillionaire.

Blame the worker.

Michael Moore said, folks in the Midwest industrial states are well aware of this hateful prejudice. As he put it, those who shower before going to work get a bailout, but those who have to shower after work get shafted. Michigan governor Jennifer Granholme reacted to the repulsive conduct of the Southern senators by saying it was “un-American.” When your neighbor’s house is on fire, you don’t hesitate to help. And by the way, Michigan, a union state home to the Big 3 and heart of America’s industrial base, is one of those good governance states that is nowhere near the top echelon of the most corrupt.

Starting to see a pattern here?

Blame the worker. And kill the union.

UAW President Ron Gettelfinger noted in his press conference that the "incentives" foreign auto makers received from Southern “right-to-work” states totaled more than $3 billion taxpayer dollars. It’s closer to $3.6 billion, and that’s a conservative estimate.

Gettelfinger had the quote of the week:

“They thought they could have a twofer: pierce the heart of organized labor while representing the foreign brands.”

And he zeroed in on Shelby’s state of Alabama:

"We have Hyundai Motor Company that got $252 million in incentives. Toyota there got $29 million in incentives. Honda, $158 million and Mercedes $253 million in incentives … but the state offered to train the workers, clear and improve the sites, upgrade the utilities, buy 2,500 vehicles and it is estimated that that incentive package totaled somewhere around $175,000 per employee to create those jobs there. And on top of this, that state gave this automaker a large parcel of land-around $250-$300 million dollars. That was the same price or cost to them of building a facility. So we can support our competition but we can’t support an industry that is in need? And this need was not brought about because of what the industry has done."

$175,000 per employee! Now that’s a savings we can believe in, eh Shelby?

So here’s my nightmare scenario (hoping it won’t come to pass):

This is one of those rare times of reckoning in our history.

In a political and economic perfect storm, three points on the map – Chicago, Detroit and Washington, DC – form the Bermuda Triangle of destruction, the metaphysical black hole into which entire political careers are consumed in a maelstrom of corruption, while the industrial base of this country is literally sucked into the void, dragging with it 3 million jobs. As Rome burns, Southern court jesters seize the moment to destroy the labor unions, turning their backs on the country, like the Five Horsemen of the Apocalypse, to reenact a civil war lost to the industrial might of the North, when Lincoln was president. It’s payback time. It’s about “piercing the heart of organized labor,” to vicariously reverse the history of 143 years of humiliation and defeat on the backs of union workers, and reclaim for hardened Southern souls the bitter fruits of victory, as another president from Illinois prepares to take office.

If, in a matter of days – not weeks or months – we become a third rate power, if our economy is destroyed and our standard of living dips below Kentucky’s and Alabama’s and Mississippi’s and Louisiana’s, remember these names: Richard Shelby, Bob Corker, Jim DeMint, Mitch McConnell, and Jon Kyl. For their praises will be sung in hobo campfires throughout the deepest of the Deep South, alongside the revered names of Lee, Jefferson Davis, Stonewall Jackson, and Jeb Stewart. They will be memorialized as the great Southern patriots of the Second War Between the States, who invaded the councils of Yankee government and achieved by dint of legislative obstruction what the mythical heroes of a checkered but glorious past could not accomplish by force of arms: to bring the North to its knees and destroy its industrial base.

I can almost hear echoes of their Rebel yells; if not in the courtly confines of the Senate cloak room, then perhaps in their Christmas parties where, softened up by liquor, they’ll be whooping and hollering: “The South will rise again! Damn the labor unions!”

While Rome burns.

Drove my Chevy to the levee but the levee was dry

So, the Senate Republicans, led by the repulsive Mitch McConnell, who every night snuggles up to his equally repulsive spouse, the most anti-labor Secretary of Labor in U.S. history, are hell-bent on torpedoing the American automobile industry.

They are trying to practice disaster capitalism at its worst, by destroying the economy and the nation to rebuild it in their perverted image. How any decent person can support these "Republicans," I have no idea. And I am not talking about being "conservative" or adhering to a small government fiscal restraint approach to governing. Make no mistake, these idealogues you see in action are RADICALS, bent on a profound, permanent and tragic restructuring of American society. The object is the consolidation of wealth and the elimination of the middle class.

Do they care if jobs that allow people to live in a decent house, send their kids to college and spend a week at the beach disappear into either thin air or some East Asian sweatshop? Of course not. THAT IS THEIR OBJECTIVE. The right-wing bloviators on talk radio whine about "class warfare," but they are the ones that are practicing it. Damn right we're at war, and right now we're getting destroyed.

I'm toying around with something in my delusional mind. The rich of Chicago PAID to have Fort Sheridan built here on the north shore to have a military garrison around them after the Haymarket incident (the only military installation EVER paid for with private funds.) Just wondering, how much of our bloated defense budget, besides making the staggeringly rich staggeringly richer, goes to protecting the government not from enemies but from us? To eliminate forever Jefferson's right of the people to alter or abolish the form of government instituted among them?

I really really really hope there is a Hell

Because here's a quick way to get there.

We're ****ed and a long way from home...

RR, Doc you've seen this but...we are screwed royally by this mess.

A "special election," while desirable, is also problematic. First you have to get the state legislature to pass something (and have it survive constitutional challenges, changing the rules during the game). Then of course THE GOVERNOR has to sign it. He can sit on it for sixty days before vetoing it, and then it goes back to the legislature for an override vote. From there the mechanisms have to gear up, nominating petitions, primaries, etc. We're going to the beach in Michigan before any voting happens.

And the Illinois attorney general is talking up a challenge via the state supreme court. The state supremes would be a real stretch. The court under Rule 382 can consider a motion on "the ability of the Governor to serve or resume office" but that seems pretty clearly aimed at physical/mental incapacitation, not mere soullessness.

More Blag-ing

None of us were shocked or surprised by the indictment of the governor. We've known he was dirty for a LONG time. We knew this day would come, but at least I anticipated it would be for something much more pedestrian. The usual "contribution" for a pension board appointment, an envelope for a highway contract, a job for someone's nephew, etc.

Even this jaded observer, though, was surprised that the governor was this stupid and greedy with such a high-profile matter, WHILE UNDER INVESTIGATION by the modern Elliott Ness. Stupid is as stupid does, I guess.

BUT--we could be screwed by this nonsense. Gov. Hair won't resign, and he cannot make a credible Senate appointment. Any legislative change in the process has a long startup time to clear. At a time when every vote counts, that seat could sit empty for months.

Where in the world is...

Mrs. Pete? (Katie, it's just a geography quiz!)


Guesses?

So a young man is elected governor of Illinois. Does he put up one of these?

and move here?

No, no, no, sadly. And where does the young man end up? Sadly, here.

The moral of the story? If you are elected AFTER a felon governor, all you have to do is not be a felon governor!

Good night.

Poo-flinging howler monkeys

Well said, Driftglass:

Understand that, in Illinois, Democrats now control the state House, state Senate, every state-wide constitutional office, the Mayoralty of Chicago, the city council of Chicago, the board controlling the second most populous county in the country (Cook), and almost the entire federal congressional delegation at a time when the DNC has been moved to Chicago, and an Illinois Senator is about to be sworn in as President.

So you'd think, hey, maybe now would not be the very best time to piss away a once-in-a-lifetime historic opportunity to consolidate Democratic gains by fucking up the state budget and generally carrying on like poo-flinging howler monkeys.

But you would be wrong.

Like our national politics (explicated brilliantly here by Glenn Greenwald), Illinois politics is freighted with dynasties full of talentless scions with monstrous egos and an overweening sense of entitlement, and so in the midst of an historic Democratic sea-change, Rod, Son of Mell and Todd (Stroger, current corrupt and inept President of the grotesquely bloated Cook County Board), Son of John (former corrupt and inept President of the grotesquely bloated Cook County Board, about which more some other day) have managed to induce such revulsion in the polity that even loyal, lifelong Dems are openly pining for the days when Republican Governor George Ryan could at least get shit done, and Republican Governor Jim Edgar bestrode the prairie like a bipartisan Colossus.

New Listing

.

HURRY!

The auction ends soon, the Feds are at the door!

One gently-used U.S. Senate seat, formerly held by household name. Serious inquiries only. Address all correspondence to "Public Official A."

Buy It Now! Price $1,000,000 cash, unmarked non-sequential small bills

Thoughts on the Blago Indictment

First off, I am ever-so-glad that retired GOP senator Peter Fitzgerald pushed to have Patrick Fitzgerald (no relation) appointed as US Attorney for the northern district of Illinois. Both Dennis Hastert and George Ryan fought against the appointment, as the US Attorney had a reputation for being independent, tenacious, and - most important - utterly beyond reproach. This man has gone after everyone of every possible politial stripe, without any thought as to that person's public position.

Second, Pat Quinn (sitting Lt. Governor) may be a pain in the ass, but he is also regarded as squeaky-clean. He just stated in a press conference that in his opinion, there is no way that Blago should appoint anyone to fill the senate vacancy. He called for Blago to voluntarily "step aside." He further stated that if Blago refuses to step aside, the IL Supreme Court can make a determination that Blago is too compromised to continue in his duties.

Third, Blago is either the most arrogant or the most idiotic politician since Nixon...

Fourth, if I was " Senate Hopeful 5" I'd be looking for a really good lawyer.

Fifth, if the indictment is true, Obama comes out of this looking even BETTER, as he refused to do anything more than be "appreciative" if Blago named his favored candidate (Valerie Jarrett).

More on Blagy

He did it all...

CHICAGO – Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich was arrested Tuesday on charges of conspiring to get financial benefits through his authority to appoint a U.S. senator to fill the vacancy left by Barack Obama's election as president.

According to a federal criminal complaint, Blagojevich also was charged with illegally threatening to withhold state assistance to Tribune Co., the owner of the Chicago Tribune, in the sale of Wrigley Field. In return for state assistance, Blagojevich allegedly wanted members of the paper's editorial board who had been critical of him fired.

Blagojevich also was charged with using his authority as governor in an attempt to squeeze out campaign contributions, prosecutors said.

Has any state ever had two govs in prison at the same time?

Source: Feds take Gov. Blagojevich into custody

A source said today that Gov. Rod Blagojevich was taken into federal custody at his North Side home this morning. The U.S. attorney's office would not confirm the information. A Blagojevich spokesman said he was unaware of the development. "Haven't heard anything -- you are first to call," Lucio Guerrero said in an e-mail.

The stunning, early morning visit by authorities to the governor's North Side home came amid revelations that federal investigators had recorded the governor with the cooperation of a longtime confidant and had begun to focus on the possibility that the process of choosing a Senate successor to President-elect Barack Obama could be tainted by pay-to-play politics.

More

What a disgrace. Stupidity should be severely punished.

My ONE rule for an auto bailout

I support action to keep the industry alive. We need to make SOMETHING here, after all.

But any company that accepts ANY federal money has to do one thing:

TELL ME HOW MUCH THE DAMN CAR COSTS.

No more haggling, no more "talking to the manager," no more "what can I do to put you in this car today," no more undercoating, etc. No more walking out feeling like I've been had. Put a price tag on it. If I want it, I'll buy it.

Otherwise--no soup for you.

George W. Bush: A Legacy of Lies

Howard Fineman of Newsweek and others have noted that introspection was never a Bush family characteristic. In W's case, I would add a lack of curiosity and a less than average intelligence. The NeoCon blank slate, noted by Peter, instilled in Bush an aversion for government, except as a means to impose absolute power by force of arms, bullying of friend and foe alike, and lining the pockets of powerful special interest friends. As Bush joked to an audience of fat cats, "you're my base."

The results are in and they're catastrophic. In the end, whether or not there was venality is irrelevant -- denial, as they say, ain't just a river in Egypt. The abuse of power, the shredding of the Constitution, the politicization of the Justice Department, the doctoring of intelligence to justify preemptive war, all or any of these are impeachable offenses. That they were never seriously considered during the past five years is not only the failure of a Congress too cowed to take on a president in times of war, Orwellian perpetual war, but also of large sectors of the media that sold out to profits over serious journalism. And ultimately too, of the people who twice elected this … whatever.

What we are seeing in these exit interviews is an astonishing and pathetic attempt to rewrite history, in search of a legacy. Isn't it ironic that the individual tapped to spin the Bush years is none other than Karl Rove? It seems oddly appropriate in a way that the revisionism of the Bush years should be assigned to Bush's chief propagandist, heading the so-called "Bush legacy project."

But it won't work. Karl Rove can't spin, scrub, and sanitize eight years of lies, incompetence, venality, and criminality. As Rachel Maddow said, there are certain inconvenient things called, in Bushspeak, "the internets and the google." Despite this administration's unprecedented secrecy -- its elevation of the national security state pushing the limits of government beyond even what Nixon attempted with "executive privilege," bizarre concepts such the "unitary executive," a pseudo-legal justification for giving the president dictatorial powers, and unrestrained abuse of the Patriot Act to spy on American citizens -- there is in all of this a substantial record to be examined. Records can be spun and interpreted, but they cannot be lied about.

George W. Bush exits (just GO, leave already!) as the worst ever president in American history. That’s my personal assessment, but I honestly doubt a consensus of historians would disagree. True to form, W and loyal sidekick Rove exit much as they entered: lying.