sharks vs. tuna:

CNN journalist, Michael Ware spent several years covering the Iraq war at great personal risk. So I understood his astonishment when presidential hopeful John McCain said, recently, that things had improved sufficiently so that there were neighborhoods in Baghdad where Westerners could safely walk the streets.

McCain then showed just what kind of president he'd make by going to Baghdad a few days ago, and walking down the street! The fact that he was accompanied by a troop escort, helicopters, and humvees and wore a bulletproof vest and combat helmet, notwithstanding. I'm reminded of an old Pete Seger song from the Vietnam era anti war movement: "We're waist deep in the Big Muddy, and the old fool says push on!" McCain's public meltdown is painful to watch. I'm almost embarrassed for him. Attorneygate: .

It's not so much that I really care about those eight U.S. Attorneys, or even that they got fired at mid-term. (In fact, less than a dozen U.S. Attorneys have been fired in the past 25 years for reasons of misconduct, according to the Congressional Research Service; one for biting a stripper!) All U. S. Attorneys are presidential appointments, serving at the President's pleasure. So all eight were Republicans who'd demonstrated their loyalty to this president in some fashion. Actually, the firings represent a type of political cannibalism. What all this means to me is that finally, we get rid of Alberto Gonzales, the man who defended NSA wiretaps, who said the Geneva Conventions were obsolete. In fact, during his watch, the U.S. redefined illegal torture and the application (or its lack!) of habeas corpus.

Just keep in mind, while Alberto Gonzales' interpretations of the law and of Executive powers have had far-reaching consequences, like Scooter Libby, he's really small fish. In the panoply of wrong doers spawned by the unchecked power of this administration, he's very nearly a bit player. A tool. As this scenario plays out, it reminds me of a scene from The Godfather Part II :" The family's got a lot of buffers!"

(Copyright, 2007)