The President Who Betrayed Us
I had another more ebullient morning-themed post well under way sometime past my bedtime last night, but when I clicked on "Save Draft" Blogger bailed out on me. That has happened before, but mercifully not often. To say it made me very unhappy would be an understatement.
This will not be that post, but it will be this self-referential post (Douglas Hofstadter: you rock). And I may salvage a few scraps, depending on recall available from increasingly fallible gray matter.
Yesterday morn was stupendous, this morn was outstanding, and there is every indication tomorrow morn will be at the very least terrific. A while back I would not have been willing to take on such a giddily Delphic role. At best I might have offered "well it is Friday!."
Back in the early '70's there was a period when Saturday morn (and other times) more or less required that I plunk this Dylan into the stereo:
Can't you hear that rooster crowin'?
Rabbit runnin' down across the road
Underneath the bridge where the water flowed through
So happy just to see you smile
Underneath this sky of blue
On this new morning, new morning
On this new morning with you
(Dylan, New Morning)
Lost post had me carrying on with this theme, including Cat Stevens' "Morning Has Broken" and the Rascals' "It's a Beautiful Morning." I was allowing for the likelihood that others might have their own "start me up" euphoria tunes. Take away the "morning" theme and Katy-bar-the-door when it comes to euphoria-inducers. Another post, some other time. ("Street-fighting Man" I hear off in the distance!) Anyway, the point is that we have every reason to be giddy over the election results. Keeping focus narrowly on the voting outcome, we should be dancing in the streets over the possibilities.
Along the same lines, for those with mellower tastes, there is this classic snippet:
What a difference a day makes
Twenty-four little hours
However. Keep that euphoria near and well-nourished, we'll definitely need it. No actual gloating, mind you. Hopefully we got our feelings of schadenfreude out and behind us on Wednesday. The point is that the would-be dynasts have already done so much damage on so many levels that what should be a New Deal or Camelot period has much more of an Augean Stable aspect to it. There is a tremendous amount of neglected O&M and actual infrastructure repair that is urgent. I'm thinking the basics of our society here: adhering to the principles embodied in the Declaration of Independence, Constitution, Bill of Rights, and International Treaties we subscribe to such as Geneva Protocols, preservation of habeas corpus, and assuring that the rights of actual people take precedence over corporations, etc., etc. Our dreaming at least in the short term is going to have to have a more pragmatic down-to-earth Reclaim Democracy quality to it.
Entertainingly, trial balloons by the administration and their mainstream media mouthpieces were so rampant the last couple days that I expect the FAA could document a pattern of delayed takeoffs and landings. One of the more obvious has to do with the call for a new spirit of bipartisanship and possibly even collegialism (the word must make folks like Rush run for the Pepto - or whatever falls out of their meds cabinet). Of course the timing is interesting here. Until just recently contrary opinions had been found (in papal fashion) to constitute treason. Any position other than the one dictated by the white house involved endorsing terrorism. The minority party was not allowed to even participate in the actual writing of bills, nor were they consulted on appointments.
From today's White House Briefing:
What a difference this election has made. It was, in some ways, a whole new President Bush who appeared before the assembled press corps for a post-election news conference yesterday afternoon.
Meet the New Bush: Owning up to all sorts of unpleasant realities; Speaking well of Democrats; Vowing to act in a bipartisan fashion while acknowledging voter skepticism on that point and pledging to overcome it with deeds; Self-deprecating, rather than bullying.
And -- oh yes -- jettisoning Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld, the quintessential symbol of his administration's obstinate refusal to acknowledge that the current strategy in Iraq is failing.
So is this New Bush to be taken at his word?
It probably depends on whether you think the president's badly eroded credibility has been restored by his admission that he lied during the campaign -- or whether that just adds to the damage.
Because possibly the most startling aspect of a consequential press conference on a incredibly tumultuous day was Bush's repeated acknowledgment that things he said when he was campaigning were either no longer operative -- or were outright deceptions.
Most notably, it was just one week earlier that Bush had told wire-service reporters in an interview that he wanted Rumsfeld (and Vice President Cheney) to remain with him until the end of his presidency.
Here's how Bush tried to explain that yesterday:
"[Associated Press reporter Terence] Hunt asked me the question one week before the campaign, and basically it was, are you going to do something about Rumsfeld and the Vice President? And my answer was, they're going to stay on. And the reason why is I didn't want to inject a major decision about this war in the final days of a campaign. And so the only way to answer that question and to get you on to another question was to give you that answer."
It is quite telling that rather than duck the question -- which Bush is more than capable of doing -- Bush chose to lie instead.
But, amazingly enough, that wasn't the only example of Bush saying he didn't really mean what he was saying in the run-up to the election. Bush repeatedly -- and casually -- asserted that many of the major elements of his stump speech were, in fact, not to be taken seriously any longer.
Consider this passage in his introductory remarks:
"Amid this time of change, I have a message for those on the front lines. To our enemies: Do not be joyful. Do not confuse the workings of our democracy with a lack of will. Our nation is committed to bringing you to justice. Liberty and democracy are the source of America's strength, and liberty and democracy will lift up the hopes and desires of those you are trying to destroy.
"To the people of Iraq: Do not be fearful. As you take the difficult steps toward democracy and peace, America is going to stand with you. We know you want a better way of life, and now is the time to seize it.
"To our brave men and women in uniform: Don't be doubtful. America will always support you. Our nation is blessed to have men and women who volunteer to serve, and are willing to risk their own lives for the safety of our fellow citizens."
On the one hand, a noble and gracious and important assurance to the world of America's enduring values and determination. On other hand -- given the ferocious way that Campaigner Bush attacked Democrats as troop-hating terrorist-appeasing cowards -- an astonishing admission that he was just making that stuff up.
Said New Bush: "I truly believe that Congresswoman Pelosi and Harry Reid care just about as much -- they care about the security of this country, like I do. They see -- no leader in Washington is going to walk away from protecting the country. We have different views on how to do that, but their spirit is such that they want to protect America. That's what I believe."
Q. "Just a few days before this election, in Texas, you said that Democrats, no matter how they put it, their approach to Iraq comes down to terrorists win, America loses. What has changed today?"
Bush: "What's changed today is the election is over, and the Democrats won."
-clip-
Me personally? I would not be putting any big chips down on any squares that include words like "Benefit of a Doubt."
This is a person with a long history of habitual lying and refusal to be accountable. These seem to be some of the most basic and characteristic components of his character. I would speculate that there are in this country right now hundreds of thousands of addicts in one or another form of treatment who are no less troubled by addictive anti-social behavior than george bush. Not to mention the millions imprisoned for petty drug violations.
Until repeatedly demonstrated otherwise, we must assume that george will say and do damn near anything that might benefit him. And it should be taken as a certainty that he will violate the basic precepts of honesty and trust, lying, cheating, and committing any crime he thinks he can get away with if it is necessary to keep him from being proven to be in the wrong. And of course his rap-sheet already includes probable AWOL and violations of the Geneva Convention and the FESA prohibition against warrantless wiretaps, so he has many demons and lies he is already mentally obsessing over. We're not talking presidential kleptomania here. Our president is already from where I sit an unindicted felon, and cornered criminals with a lot of power should be considered dangerous.
We must not forget that.
Treatment, maybe. Absolution, not so fast.
This will not be that post, but it will be this self-referential post (Douglas Hofstadter: you rock). And I may salvage a few scraps, depending on recall available from increasingly fallible gray matter.
Yesterday morn was stupendous, this morn was outstanding, and there is every indication tomorrow morn will be at the very least terrific. A while back I would not have been willing to take on such a giddily Delphic role. At best I might have offered "well it is Friday!."
Back in the early '70's there was a period when Saturday morn (and other times) more or less required that I plunk this Dylan into the stereo:
Can't you hear that rooster crowin'?
Rabbit runnin' down across the road
Underneath the bridge where the water flowed through
So happy just to see you smile
Underneath this sky of blue
On this new morning, new morning
On this new morning with you
(Dylan, New Morning)
Lost post had me carrying on with this theme, including Cat Stevens' "Morning Has Broken" and the Rascals' "It's a Beautiful Morning." I was allowing for the likelihood that others might have their own "start me up" euphoria tunes. Take away the "morning" theme and Katy-bar-the-door when it comes to euphoria-inducers. Another post, some other time. ("Street-fighting Man" I hear off in the distance!) Anyway, the point is that we have every reason to be giddy over the election results. Keeping focus narrowly on the voting outcome, we should be dancing in the streets over the possibilities.
Along the same lines, for those with mellower tastes, there is this classic snippet:
What a difference a day makes
Twenty-four little hours
However. Keep that euphoria near and well-nourished, we'll definitely need it. No actual gloating, mind you. Hopefully we got our feelings of schadenfreude out and behind us on Wednesday. The point is that the would-be dynasts have already done so much damage on so many levels that what should be a New Deal or Camelot period has much more of an Augean Stable aspect to it. There is a tremendous amount of neglected O&M and actual infrastructure repair that is urgent. I'm thinking the basics of our society here: adhering to the principles embodied in the Declaration of Independence, Constitution, Bill of Rights, and International Treaties we subscribe to such as Geneva Protocols, preservation of habeas corpus, and assuring that the rights of actual people take precedence over corporations, etc., etc. Our dreaming at least in the short term is going to have to have a more pragmatic down-to-earth Reclaim Democracy quality to it.
Entertainingly, trial balloons by the administration and their mainstream media mouthpieces were so rampant the last couple days that I expect the FAA could document a pattern of delayed takeoffs and landings. One of the more obvious has to do with the call for a new spirit of bipartisanship and possibly even collegialism (the word must make folks like Rush run for the Pepto - or whatever falls out of their meds cabinet). Of course the timing is interesting here. Until just recently contrary opinions had been found (in papal fashion) to constitute treason. Any position other than the one dictated by the white house involved endorsing terrorism. The minority party was not allowed to even participate in the actual writing of bills, nor were they consulted on appointments.
From today's White House Briefing:
What a difference this election has made. It was, in some ways, a whole new President Bush who appeared before the assembled press corps for a post-election news conference yesterday afternoon.
Meet the New Bush: Owning up to all sorts of unpleasant realities; Speaking well of Democrats; Vowing to act in a bipartisan fashion while acknowledging voter skepticism on that point and pledging to overcome it with deeds; Self-deprecating, rather than bullying.
And -- oh yes -- jettisoning Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld, the quintessential symbol of his administration's obstinate refusal to acknowledge that the current strategy in Iraq is failing.
So is this New Bush to be taken at his word?
It probably depends on whether you think the president's badly eroded credibility has been restored by his admission that he lied during the campaign -- or whether that just adds to the damage.
Because possibly the most startling aspect of a consequential press conference on a incredibly tumultuous day was Bush's repeated acknowledgment that things he said when he was campaigning were either no longer operative -- or were outright deceptions.
Most notably, it was just one week earlier that Bush had told wire-service reporters in an interview that he wanted Rumsfeld (and Vice President Cheney) to remain with him until the end of his presidency.
Here's how Bush tried to explain that yesterday:
"[Associated Press reporter Terence] Hunt asked me the question one week before the campaign, and basically it was, are you going to do something about Rumsfeld and the Vice President? And my answer was, they're going to stay on. And the reason why is I didn't want to inject a major decision about this war in the final days of a campaign. And so the only way to answer that question and to get you on to another question was to give you that answer."
It is quite telling that rather than duck the question -- which Bush is more than capable of doing -- Bush chose to lie instead.
But, amazingly enough, that wasn't the only example of Bush saying he didn't really mean what he was saying in the run-up to the election. Bush repeatedly -- and casually -- asserted that many of the major elements of his stump speech were, in fact, not to be taken seriously any longer.
Consider this passage in his introductory remarks:
"Amid this time of change, I have a message for those on the front lines. To our enemies: Do not be joyful. Do not confuse the workings of our democracy with a lack of will. Our nation is committed to bringing you to justice. Liberty and democracy are the source of America's strength, and liberty and democracy will lift up the hopes and desires of those you are trying to destroy.
"To the people of Iraq: Do not be fearful. As you take the difficult steps toward democracy and peace, America is going to stand with you. We know you want a better way of life, and now is the time to seize it.
"To our brave men and women in uniform: Don't be doubtful. America will always support you. Our nation is blessed to have men and women who volunteer to serve, and are willing to risk their own lives for the safety of our fellow citizens."
On the one hand, a noble and gracious and important assurance to the world of America's enduring values and determination. On other hand -- given the ferocious way that Campaigner Bush attacked Democrats as troop-hating terrorist-appeasing cowards -- an astonishing admission that he was just making that stuff up.
Said New Bush: "I truly believe that Congresswoman Pelosi and Harry Reid care just about as much -- they care about the security of this country, like I do. They see -- no leader in Washington is going to walk away from protecting the country. We have different views on how to do that, but their spirit is such that they want to protect America. That's what I believe."
Q. "Just a few days before this election, in Texas, you said that Democrats, no matter how they put it, their approach to Iraq comes down to terrorists win, America loses. What has changed today?"
Bush: "What's changed today is the election is over, and the Democrats won."
-clip-
Me personally? I would not be putting any big chips down on any squares that include words like "Benefit of a Doubt."
This is a person with a long history of habitual lying and refusal to be accountable. These seem to be some of the most basic and characteristic components of his character. I would speculate that there are in this country right now hundreds of thousands of addicts in one or another form of treatment who are no less troubled by addictive anti-social behavior than george bush. Not to mention the millions imprisoned for petty drug violations.
Until repeatedly demonstrated otherwise, we must assume that george will say and do damn near anything that might benefit him. And it should be taken as a certainty that he will violate the basic precepts of honesty and trust, lying, cheating, and committing any crime he thinks he can get away with if it is necessary to keep him from being proven to be in the wrong. And of course his rap-sheet already includes probable AWOL and violations of the Geneva Convention and the FESA prohibition against warrantless wiretaps, so he has many demons and lies he is already mentally obsessing over. We're not talking presidential kleptomania here. Our president is already from where I sit an unindicted felon, and cornered criminals with a lot of power should be considered dangerous.
We must not forget that.
Treatment, maybe. Absolution, not so fast.
posted by Sir Gumbo at 9:22 PM
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