Isn't this LABOR Day?

The Escalation

Bush Escalates War on Congress

This week, we're seeing Bush carry out escalations on all fronts. He is asserting his authority by ordering a 15% increase in troops (or, as Jon Stewart calls it, a "gratuity"). But I think the more important escalation was what happened immediately after his escalation speech: American troops attacked an Iranian Embassy in Iraq.

What's he doing here? First, he's saying and doing explicitly the opposite of what the Iraq Study Group recommended. Instead of engaging Iran with diplomacy, he's saying he'll engage them with fire power.

Second, he's saying to Congress that he's the Commander in Chief, and it doesn't really matter what they think because they granted him broad authority. Unless Congress cuts off funding, which he knows they'll never do, he's going to continue to conduct his war any way he's sees fit.

What Bush/Cheney might really want is to escalate their War with Congress--to push them into rescinding their declaration of war against Iraq. Then we really have a constitutional crisis, as Bush wouldn't have any authority to conduct the war, yet it would go on and on (presumably) until Congress actually did shut off the flow of money or the Supreme Court stepped in somehow.

If Congress didn't stop the flow of money, and it simultaneously rescinded the declaration, then we would have a situation when Bush/Cheney are acting explicitly illegally. Not that this has really stopped them in the past. But what happens then?

I think their brinkmanship with Congress is designed specifically to find out. Would there be an impeachment? A coup? A revolt? Who knows, maybe Bush thinks that's when the Second Coming will occur.

Bush has asserted that he has absolute power to do what he wants. Just because Congress, the American voting public, common sense, and everything else is against him, why should it be any different? That, to Bush and Cheney, is what power is all about. Forget about strengthening the presidency. This is about absolute power just for them.

Webb's the Divider?

Remark By Webb Arouses Passions - washingtonpost.com

This is hard to believe. Webb is the one being criticized? He won't be able to be a "good old boy" part of the Senate club? It's about time! When has Bush been civil toward the Democrats? Once now? After six years of calling them unpatriotic? You go, Webb!

Maybe the President, and maybe even the entrenched Democrats who voted for this war will wake up to the reality of war. Bodies are being blown to bits.

It's not a parlor game.

Downrounding Outrage

Report Says Nonprofits Sold Influence to Abramoff - washingtonpost.com

Every time one scandal seems ready to completely destroy the Republicans, another one pops up to take away the media's attention. With Foley simply killing Republicans, we get more Abramoff scandal news.

In terms of outrage, Abramoff doesn't compare to Foley. "So," some may say, "they wrote some articles for Abramoff's clients. Who cares? Isn't that just PR 101?" And all of the sudden, Republicans are off the hook in terms of thinking about Foley on the top of pages--literally and figuratively.

It's an interesting strategy, and the only one Republicans seem to have available right now. Instead of doing something good and touting that, they are only in a position to do something a little less bad and try to get us to focus on that.

It just might work, I'm afraid.

Cheney'd

Cheney Back Delivering the Grim Campaign Speech - washingtonpost.com

With American military deaths and injuries in Iraq far exceeding the toll on 9/11, when are Americans going to realize we have indeed been "hit again" by the terrorists?

Maybe the reason we haven't been hit here is that they don't need such elaborate plans to kill us anymore. They just go to Iraq, get hooked up with some explosives or a gun and wait for Americans to drive by. It may not be the blockbuster of 9/11 as far as publicity goes, but it sure seems to get the job done. Terrorism has just been industrialized, commoditized. Like McDonald's: 100,000 terrorist attacks served.

Just a Comma

'Just a Comma' Becomes Part of Iraq Debate

There's one simple reason that it seems like Bush doesn't care: he doesn't care!

Bush loves blood. He feels he should cause his serfs shed it, as divine right provided to monarchs. Monarchs don't care about the average citizen. Only their own power. Why this isn't clear by now is hard to understand.