Keep your friends close...

...and your enemies talking to the press. Because sooner or later the person you hate the most will say something so deliciously over-the top, you will be able to milk it for weeks.

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) House Minority Leader.

Now in an election year, even in mid-terms, you would think that party leaders would show a little, well- restraint, in their interviews. The last thing any party leader wants to do is give the opposition a reason to point and say, "See- they're going to tear this country apart. They're rabid animals who think only of punishing us!"

But that's damn-near what Ms. Pelosi has done.

The Republicans are sitting on some of the lowest approval ratings in recent history, and have been treading water for weeks. Staff changes at the White House, which were supposed to be invigorating and a sign of great things to come, are not having their intended effect. Bush's supporters are shifting nervously in their seats, and the clearest sign of their unease came recently, courtesy of a fundraising letter by Elizabeth Dole. The letter is inflammatory and looks paranoid at the outset:

"If Democrats take control of the Senate in '06, they will cancel the Bush tax cuts, allow liberal activist judges to run our courts and undermine all Republican efforts to win the War on Terror.

Even worse, they will call for endless congressional investigations and possibly call for the impeachment of President Bush!"

Gasp! The horror! An investigation- who would dare?!
It's a bottom-scraping political "hail-Mary" pass: if ya can't win 'em- scare 'em away from the other guys! It's laughable, right?

Right.

Right up until Ms. Pelosi more or less confirms the whole idea, that is.

Can we hold on here for a second? Maybe think before we speak? (Just a thought.)

Yes, by all means, point out that the current administration has done things that warrant investigation, 'cause, you know, they have. Wiretapping, back-room energy deals, fundraising, letting the lobbyists run rampant, gutting the Bill of Rights...., hmmm, where was I?

Ah! This is all well and good. But can we please refrain from the witch-hunt attitude that seems to be permeating the party these days? Shadenfreude is one thing if it's done in private, but some people in Washington are beginning to salivate like Pavlov's dogs at the mere thought of getting their licks in... It's unseemly, unprofessional, and I.Don't.Like.It.

It one thing when a "minor" player gets hot under the collar. It wakes up the team, makes the other guys a little nervous. But then the coach or the captain gets up and says, "He's got a good point there, folks, but let's not do anything to make things worse. There is a right way and a wrong way to do it, so let's play fair." You get to call attention to the problem, to make people look at it who would normally turn away, but you get to reassure them at the same time. "We're all good people here, just folks trying to play a game and win with honor."

There's a line here.

And if we cross it, then we are the radical monsters the Republicans want us to be.

You spin me right 'round...

Can someone in the administration define "Civil War" for us, please?
'Cause I don't think they can.
And if you're unveiling a bold new vision, don't you think it should be, well, new?
And telling us you're listening to us isn't the same as actually doing it.

Ug, the last few weeks, Georgie's been on another popularity kick, trying to appease the base and win back, well everyone who's jumped ship since the beginning of the year. And lately it's been all about Iraq, big surprise. After former PM Ayad Allawi, called the current sectarian violence "civil war," Bush, Cheney, and Rumsfeld all rushed to the press podium to refute the claim. Only it doesn't seem like anyone's really listening anymore, with casualties amongst the Iraqis still on the rise, and the new gov't's seeming inability to even form a coherent government.

Yet, the Bush camp remains hopeful, and really they can't afford to seem anything else. We are almost back to the "everything's fine, please ignore the fanatic bombers behind the curtain" sunny-days of old.

Which is in stark contrast to the image The White House is trying to portray. While we haven't had any more "mistakes were made" admissions from the top, Georgie's been trying to show he's still listening, he's still in control, and he understands our concerns.

And one has to wonder if the resignation of CoS Andrew Card will have any effect, let alone the "shake-up" everyone's been hoping for.

Here's to more waiting and watching....

Ed. 4-2-06

Head in the sand... Approval numbers, what approval numbers?

Everyone on the left side of the aisle is having a field day with the new polling data that came out this week on our favorite ostritch, Georgie. Dropping to a new low, our President's approval rating sits at a paltry mid-30's (depending on which poll you're looking at).

President Bush is polling with Nixon's numbers. That's gotta hurt.

A sign? One would hope, but then this one's been hoping for awhile and has been sorely disappointed before. I, frankly, see no reason to hope that these numbers will permeate through the sand the President has shoved his head into (down to his waist, it seems sometimes). Why?

"If I worried about polls, I wouldn't be doing my job." Bush's own words in his interview with Elizabeth Vargas on Tuesday night. (Thanks, CNN.com!)

Oh, dear. Last time I checked, Mr. President, the people being polled were the people who elected you. Elected you to do a job. Elected you to protect us, shelter us, lead us, and support us. So if we don't think you're doing your job- why do you?

Yes, over-pandering to the whims of capricious polls is a BAD IDEA. Up, down, up, down, it would be chaos and irresponsible to quiver every time the wind changes direction.

But your numbers have been falling for months, Georgie. This is not a temporary dip. Your strongest numbers used to be your truthfulness and your security numbers. They used to withstand most of the fluctuations in your approval rating with steadfast triumph. Even if we thought you an idiot, we thought you meant well, were (more or less) honest with us, and would protect us as bet you could. No more.

More than half the country no longer trusts you. More than half the country no longer trusts your handling of Iraq. More than 70% of the country thinks you're a tool for big business and could care less about those of us who work for them. (OK, not the exact wording, but you're getting my point, right? Right? Damn. I used an actual number, I think I lost him.)

Georgie, how you gonna do that job we think you can't do when we remove you from it?