I’m serious: Richard Nixon seems downright honorable and decent by the standards being set by this administration. At least his pathetic “I am not a crook!” statement seemed to show an awareness, a sort of public acknowledgement, that this issue was actually on the minds of Americans and needed to be addressed, however unconvincingly. Nixon at least seemed human at the depth of his plight.

In contrast, the Bushies more resemble something like an infestation of termites or lice. You just know that no appeal to reason, decency or historical precedent could possibly get rid of them. No public spectacle of bumbling ineptitude or sweaty evasiveness can shame them. This is not mere corruption; it’s pestilence of the highest order.

These are alien creatures who resemble and act like human beings during the daytime. At night, they gather in humid, overheated chambers beneath the National Archives building—sort of like the egg chamber in Aliens—to sap the lifeblood of the Constitution with highly specialized sucking mouthparts. It's a terrible fear I have to find myself locked in the Smithsonian at night, with my handheld Alien detector going “beep, beep, beep” as Alberto Gonzales makes his way towards me through the ventilation duct.

It’s not the 1970s anymore, and now the senior editors of the Washington Post poo-pooh, make excuses for and otherwise quash the evidence of criminal wrongdoing that their still-diligent reporters work to uncover. And where is Bob Woodward this time around? There he is on TV, but something strange is happening. Oh my God—his head is splitting apart like an over-ripe pomegranite, to reveal a hideous, slimy insect head inside! Oh my God! He’s one of them! AAAARRRRGGGGGGHHHH! Help! Mr. Cox! . . . Mr. Rodino! . . . Mr. Ervin! Can’t someone please help!

Nicely said.

I think I love you!

I never thought I'd see something as BAD as Nixon again, much less something WORSE.

Granted, Bush hasn't engaged (to our knowledge) in any clumsy break-ins of his opponents' offices or HQs. And they ARE taking Nixon's old playbook on the Imperial Presidency and adding their own new material. Not to mention the startling similarities between Cheney and Agnew (if only Cheney could be linked to an obvious, public corruption scandal, eh?).

But as you say, Nixon appears positively honorable compared to this crew. And all the outrage and ferment of the Nixon years appears to have simmered down into a long-suffering tolerance of 'business as usual in D.C.'

Maybe that was Nixon's worst crime....that he helped take away our sense of idealism and replace it with a distanced cynicism that expects the worst of politicians. If so, Bush owes him a debt of gratitude.

Seriously. Alien infestation? Lay off the LSD and join us here on planet Earth. I'm sorry if it offends your sensibilities that Democrats in Congress are putting on political shows to harass the Bush administration so that they can gain politically in the next election. Ask yourself seriously if you think that the Democrats will either be (a) more effective at fighting terrorism or (b) more serious about it. If yo uhave half a brain, you'll realize that they will likely hamstring the law enforcement apparatus of the country with PC bullshit and red tape that causes it to be completely ineffective, not to mention removing the foreign theatre where we currently have the crazies corralled up. Democrat bungling of the war on terror is what I fear at night, not psycho-babble about the devious intentions of the guys trying to keep America safe.

Quick hold on to the table, look straight ahead, breath real deep. You can get ahold of yourself.

It's just that it doesn't have much of anything to do with what I wrote....?

LOL

How could they do worse than Bush, the guy who invaded another country seemingly at random and thereby INCREASED the threat of terrorism worldwide?

Better worry about your own intake of Kool-Aid, I'd say...:)

Obviously, Speedracer, I’m having a little fun with this post. But I do find that ordinary prose is almost no longer able to capture my sense of disbelief at what the Bushies attempt to get away with. As someone I presume to be a Republican, were you not ashamed by Gonzales’s testimony before congress? If the administration’s attitude towards Congress is basically “Go fuck yourself,” then they didn’t even stand up and deliver that message with honesty and forthrightness. No, Gonzales sniveled and stammered, and as Bazelon describes, “cringed,” his way through his testimony. It wasn’t brave, it wasn’t even crafty or slick. It was inept and cowardly, like everything else about this administration.

As for your supposed fears about Democrats and their resolve to defend the country, it’s long past the point when Republicans can wave such a boogeyman flag around and have anybody take it seriously. As you’re probably aware, polls taken over more than the past year have shown that a solid majority of Americans give Democrats the edge on matters of national defense, fighting terrorism and making decisions on the Iraq war. The Bush administration’s ineptitude hasn’t just screwed up the Iraq war, they’ve lost the war here at home, too. People are just fed up with the dishonesty and the incompetency.

In general, people are fed up with the whole chickenhawk schtick—empty tough talk (“Bring ‘em on”) from a bunch of screw-ups who couldn’t accomplish anything positive even though they controlled all of Congress and the White House, and only six years ago had the entire nation at their beck and call. What do they have to show for it, and whose damned fault is it? To borrow from Churchill, never was so much wasted by so few to accomplish so little.

Thanks, Ron!

Thanks a million, dude, but can we just be friends? :)

Heck, Horus, maybe it's good general advice anyway. You know, like "buy low, sell high." :)

Oh, yeah, invading Saddam's Iraq was Waayy out in left field. He only invaded another country, constantly ignored UN mandates, and constantly violated the No-Fly zone.

Oh, yeah, Bush was waaaaay off on that one. It's much more likely that Saddam WAS helping terrorists that wanted to harm American interests than not, simply by "enemy of my enemy is my friend" logic. And you don't really see anyone pining for the "good ole days" when Saddam was in power, so it can't be that bad.

Anyway, at least all of the crazies are fighting over there and not over here. Let them blow up their own cities until they realize that these nihilists don't realize that the best interests of Muslims and Arabs in mind when they screw with America.

It's making you into a fool. Studies done by respectable organizations have consistently shown that Republicans are more trusted with national security. And how can you believe that Democrats aren't chickens when every debate these days centers around how fast the candidate promises to get us out of Iraq and lose the war?

Like I said, Speedracer, people are tired of bullshit. The level of intellectual dishonesty—and willingness of just plain lie—has become such a knee-jerk pattern with the chickenhawk contingent that they now have an almost insurmountable lack of credibility. It often seems like people are just making stuff up, like your statement about Republicans being trusted on national security. Take this series of polls by ABC News and the Washington Post over the past four years (would they qualify as “respectable organizations” in your book?), answering the question, “Who do you trust to do a better job handling the U.S. campaign against terrorism: Bush or the Democrats in Congress?"

7/21/07 Bush 31%, Democrats 55%

6/01/07 Bush 35%, Democrats 51%

4/15/07 Bush 33%, Democrats 58%

2/25/07 Bush 39%, Democrats 52%

1/19/07 Bush 40%, Democrats 52%

12/11/06 Bush 41%, Democrats 50%

1/18/04 Bush 60%, Democrats 31%

4/30/03 Bush 72%, Democrats 21%

Can you see what a dramatic shift has occurred as the pattern of dishonesty and incompetency emerged since ‘03? The Bushies had everybody in their corner after 9/11, and now they’ve seen things turned completely upside-down. And they have absolutely nobody to blame but themselves.

But by all means don’t give up your delusional rhetoric. It must be great comfort to you and the 31% minority of people who still agree with you.