January 25, 2007


IMPEACH BUSH


IMPEACH CHENEY

WHAT BUSH DIDN'T TALK ABOUT

When George W. Bush delivers a State of the Union speech it is much ado about nothing. The things he did talk about, such as his plan for health care and for energy independence, were ridiculous, if not outright disgusting. What he didn't talk about was more illustrative of Bush than what he said. This column by Bob Herbert is at www.welcome-to-pottersville.com:

If Mr. Bush is bothered by his fall from political grace, it wasn’t showing on Tuesday night. He seemed as relaxed as ever, smiling, signing autographs, glad-handing.

I wanted to hear him talk about the suffering of the soldiers he has put in harm’s way, and the plight of the residents of New Orleans. I wanted to hear him express a little in the way of sorrow for the many thousands who have died unnecessarily on his watch. I wanted to see him slip the surly bonds of narcissism and at least acknowledge the human wreckage that is the sum and substance of his sustained folly.

But this is a president who runs when empathy calls. While others are monitoring the casualty lists, he’s off to the gym. At least Lyndon Johnson had the decency to agonize over the losses he unleashed in Vietnam.

The State of the Union speech was boilerplate at a time when much of the country, with good reason, is boiling mad. The United States, the most powerful nation in the history of the world, seems paralyzed. It can’t extricate itself from the war in Iraq, can’t rebuild the lost city of New Orleans, can’t provide health care for all of its citizens, can’t come up with a sane energy policy in the era of global warming, can’t even develop a thriving public school system.

FAMILIARITY BREEDS CONTEMPT

The old saying is that familiarity breeds contempt, but I never liked George W. Bush, so it isn't just familiarity. But a good part of the country bought into Bush's snake oil for a very long time. Now his wall of lies is collapsing all around us. Joe Conason looks at the State of the Union address and just what a pitiful spectacle it was at news.yahoo.com:

As his presidency enters its twilight years, Bush evidently wishes he could revisit the sunny days of "compassionate conservatism," when gauzy proposals and happy talk so easily beguiled so many voters.

His problem is that we have heard all this before, and we know him too well by now.

Every year in his State of the Union address, he feigns deep concern over the same issues. He always urges independence from foreign oil, rapid development of alternative energy sources, effective use of conservation and improvement of the environment. (Remember his "switch grass" biofuel program from last year?) He always promises to make affordable health care available to more of the uninsured and their children.