A few thoughts on this very bad news.
The "new tone" was, perhaps, worth a try when George W. Bush went to Washington. It worked in Texas. But a year with the vipers in D.C. should have convinced the Bush White House that the only way to deal with political enemies in D.C. was in full battle mode. It never happened. The administration has publicly remained mute and unresponsive in the face endless outrageous attacks made on it by the lying press, the Dems, and the leftists. The administration never responds publicly. It just sits on its hands and lets the WH press secretary, a man who barely has the skills to be a spokesman for a small, rural school district, handle the snakes. The snakes you treated like a box of newborn kittens have now inflicted a serious wound on your presidency, Mr. President.
An administration skilled in doing battle in public might pull out of this. But this White House has never fought publicly against its political enemies. I sincerely hope that will change. The MSM now has the weapons to defeat the complete Bush domestic agenda if the White House reverts to form of not going after its political enemies publicly, including those in the press. The press and their Democrat masters will now start trying to criminalize Cheney and Bush. The chants of "corruption" and "criminal" will be loud and unceasing. It's already started. Unless this administration's customary weak response to political attacks is changed now, this will soon become a caretaker government.
Joe Wilson is one of many snakes the administration has treated like a kitten. Instead of multiple administration officials openly, forcefully, and repeatedly calling Wilson a liar, which he is, the White House played back channel games with the press (more snakes) to induce the MSM to expose Wilson. Fat chance. And that unwillingness to do public battle has led to this situation.
I feel sorry for Libby. There was no crime, yet he is charged with something that allegedly happened during the "investigation". This is an outrage against justice. Sadly, I have to point out that Martha Stewart was prosecuted and jailed for the same sort of thing by the Bush justice department. It won't be easy for the administration to argue this is unfair when it's done the same thing itself.
Who was the genius who agreed to hire Fitzgerald, maybe the most aggressive prosecutor in America, as the Special Prosecutor? Another snake in the cradle. There wasn't an inexperienced pacifist like Ken Starr available? Was Fitzgerald suggested by one of the Clinton DOJ holdovers the Bush team so foolishly failed to fire when they took over? More snakes treated as kittens.
As much as I despise Clinton, his team was always on the political offensive and usually way ahead of the curve. On domestic issues, the Bush team is always on its heels and doesn't seem to understand there even is a curve.
Bottom line: in the D.C. political wars, the White House is no place for a conscientious objector.
The political capital we worked so hard to give George W. Bush is close to being spent.
If the White House doesn't take the offensive quickly, the House and Senate could be lost. If we can't hold on to the House, expect an attempt at impeachment in 2007.
You have been fantastic in fighting the war on terror, Mr. President. Please, please start doing battle against the snakes of the MSM and the Democrat party. Fight, sir, fight.
Great analysis.
Awesome statement:
" Bottom line: in the D.C. political wars, the White House is no place for a conscientious objector."
What?! bad news for who? Not for us but for the liberals and their defeated media. They wanted Rove and they got Libby(who?) on charges not related to the leak itself. Get a grip of yourself, go have a nice dinner tonight, and enjoy your weekend. This is a devastating defeat for liberals and their media whores.
You are on the money.
I have repeatedly said that Bush's biggest failure has been his refusal to broom the clintonoids out of his administration. He should have taken Machiavelli's advice and done it thoroughly on his first day in office, and never mind how much the DNC and the MSM screamed about it. It would have been all over in one go.
Sad, but true.
Very good analysis.
I think that Fitzgerald was appointed by former Attorney General John Ashcroft.
I couldn't agree more with your reply #48. Good points!
I agree with this and with everything else you said in your post. It's my perception that President Bush practices the biblical instruction to turn the other cheek. That's fine when it comes to personal insults, but when the enemy is succeeding in damaging our foreign policy, culture, and economy, he should send out a team to counter the lies with facts, evidence, and logic.
Your post at #48 is exactly what hubby and I have been discussing for a long time now. Bush had better get tough and right now.
The sissy-pants Republicans had also better get their act together and learn to come out and hit some balls out of the park but if they won't even come out to swing how can this ever happen. My gawd, they all just sit on their hands and think behaving as gentlemen lets them off the hook. It doesn't and they need a whack on the side of the head.
We are sorely under-represented and when they (and Bush) fail to fight openly and with strength for the things we've elected them to do then we are being undermined in addition to them. It makes them look so weak and our country look weak and I despise that.
When is our own party going to stand up, stand tough and strong. I am really sick and tired of it.
Superb post, Semi Civil Servant. You've just summed up the entire Bush presidency...
Clinton would have been decimating Fitzgerald for weeks already on the partisan nature of the investigation. Clinton would be diminishing the nature of the possible crimes committed. Clinton would be decimating Wilson as a lying partisan hack. David Letterman would be doing weekly top tens on the insanity of considering Plame to be a "covert" agent commuting to Langley.
But GWB lives in the White House, not the gutter. I have no problem with either of their styles. What burns my @ass to no end on the other hand- is why do the prosecuters seem to have always given Clinturd a pass on huge crimes but yet seem to nail Republicans on the silliest, smallest, nit-pickiest little things?
You nailed all these points on the head. I totally agree. When is Bush and the Republican administration and national GOP leaders going to go on the offensive against the DimWits, Joe Wilson, and yes, Patrick Fitzgerald as well. The incredible thing is that a Republican administration, a Republican Justice dept, and Republican Congress all turned into mush when they agreed to a special prosecutor in the first place. Ashcroft recused himself (why do only Repubs recuse themselves, but never DemonRAT prosecutors or judges) then his deputy AG appointed his personal friend and crony Patrick Fitzgerald as special prosecutor. And now the for the last two years Fitzgerald has spent & wasted $22M or OUR TAXPAYER money investigating and digging for what he realized after only a month, THERE WAS NO CRIME. Only some alleged perjury acts commited by Libby after multiple grillings and testimonies.
I feel sorry for Libby, but as you said the Repubs should have been loudly accusing Wilson of being the liar he was and is, instead of trying to sneak innuendoes through the left-wing NYT and media. What a bunch of boneheads and cowards! Maybe the Repubs will finally wise up and go on offense for a change. I am sick and tired of hypocritical DimWits calling the shots and getting away with it.
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=104x5206241
.administration has publicly remained mute and unresponsive in the face endless outrageous attacks made on it by the lying press, the Dems, and the leftists.
Right! And until W realizes this, we're in for more of the same. This President drives me crazy with his capitulation to the very people who are trying to bring him down, at any cost, even if it means compromising our National Security! I'm not familiar with the law, but couldn't this whole thing have been avoided, if they had merely brought Joe Wilson up on charges, at the outset of this debacle? I don't even know if the Sedition Act is still applicable, but it reads like an outline of Wilsons actions. Joe Wilson and Valerie Lame are the REAL criminals here, and Bush could have capitalized on this, but he just doesn't seem to have it in him. Too bad.