WaxWorks
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Wednesday, January 22, 2003
Interesting rumors about a potential Supreme Court vacancy. And not great news for Democrats. I've long maintained that Alberto Gonzales would likely be the best that Democrats could hope for in a Bush Supreme Court nominee, in that he has shown moderate views on abortion (voting on the Texas Supreme Court to strike down some restrictions on minor access) and might be moderate on affirmative action. Unfortunately, conservatives have apparently made the same analysis and have been pressuring the Bush White House to move to a more conservative nominee. Apparently, it depends who resigns. If it's Rehnquist, then Gonzales is less likely because it would tilt the Court to the left since he is seen as more moderate than Rehnquist. If O'Connor leaves first, however, Gonzales is a possibility since replacing the more moderate O'Connor wouldn't make the Court any more liberal, the thinking goes. If it is Stevens (who I think isn't leaving alive during Bush's term after Bush v. Gore), the thinking goes that Gonzales is a sure thing.
I think it also may depend where Bush is politically -- two months ago, Bush was looking a lot stronger than he is today and I think he had the power to push through whomever he wanted, regardless of who retires. Now, perhaps less so. Although one thing about Bush is that he always seems to act like he has more political capital than he really does, which is a bluff that often works for him. Just think of the 2001 Tax Act after the divided election. As Drudge says, developing . . .
It turns out that the "genuine leadership" letter writing campaign isn't the only one that has gone on. Another blog has found at least two other instances where, as they describe it, aliens have taken over and caused these transmissions. The other two occurred in September 2002, where somehow, multiple people wrote the VERY SAME letter to the editor urging Democrats to "disclose their agenda" about what they would do about repealing the Bush tax cuts. The other occurred in December 2002, where multiple people wrote the VERY SAME letter to the editor thanking voters for their good judgment in supporting Republicans and President Bush.
Imagine where Bush's already dropping approval rating would be without this coordinated campaign?
Have you read or heard somewhere recently that "President Bush is offering genuine leadership" or that he has put forth a "bold economic plan" ? Have you wondered what those people were talking about, but after hearing it so often, even you started to believe it as true? Well, the explanation for this may be the result of an orchestrated fake letter writing campaign organized by the Republican party. It appears that, mysteriously, all across the country, letters to the editor are appearing using the EXACT SAME LANGUAGE to describe President Bush as "offering genuine leadership" in the conflict with Iraq.
Now, either there has been a giant mind-meld or something fishy is going on here. It couldn't be the result of poll numbers showing that not only is Bush's approval rating sinking, but so is public support for a war with Iraq? Nah, because we know that this White House doesn't follow polls in deciding policy.
Tuesday, January 21, 2003
Once again, Krugman is right on. He perfectly attacks the standard Bush Administration "defense" of his tax plan of providing an "average" tax relief of X dollars to middle and lower income families:
A liberal and a conservative were sitting in a bar. Then Bill Gates walked in. "Hey, we're rich!" shouted the conservative. "The average person in this bar is now worth more than a billion!" "That's silly," replied the liberal. "Bill Gates raises the average, but that doesn't make you or me any richer." "Hah!" said the conservative, "I see you're still practicing the discredited politics of class warfare."
After hearing Bush's statement about affirmative action and the Lott affair, this is an informative article about Bush reviving a tradition that even his father had the good sense to stop -- placing a wreath on Jefferson Davis' grave.
