Bush's imploding presidency

[emad]

By Robert Kuttner | October 29, 2005

WITH THE indictment of Lewis Libby and possible indictment of Karl Rove, President Bush faces a fateful choice. Bush can adopt a bunker mentality and try to appease his base of social ultra-conservatives and military hawks who have brought him such grief. Or he can reach out to the broad mainstream, as he pretended to do when he ran as a ''uniter, not a divider" in 2000.

Who would have predicted that the Bush machine would implode so spectacularly, on so many fronts simultaneously? It is worth pausing a moment to take stock of it all:

The vice president's chief aide is indicted on perjury and obstruction charges that potentially implicate Cheney, since he told Libby of CIA agent Valerie Plame Wilson's position. This investigation will inexorably lead to even more damning evidence that the case for taking America to war in Iraq was based on deliberately faked information.

The religious right humiliates Bush on the Harriet Miers nomination. This will leave Bush furious at his usual allies, weakened politically, and Democrats and moderate Republicans in Congress more determined to prevent the far right from dictating the next nominee.

http://www.boston.com/news/globe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2005/10/29/bushs_imploding_presidency/

[pberq]

1. Nominated - this puts it all together n/t

[emad]

2. "ideological hubris" and "corruption taken to an extreme":

SNIP:
"Some of this stunning political collapse reflects ideological hubris; some of it is ordinary corruption taken to an extreme".

Looking forward to the publication of more information about OPEC's role in concealing the Saudis' 'proven oil reserves' fantasy that triggered the Iraq war.

[Amonester]

3. Recommend.

"We will be left with the legacy of their destructive policies for years, if not decades."