So Fred Barnes believes Bush will cut the deficit in half in 2005...

[Bush_Eats_Beef]

...because, to paraphrase what he just said on Fox's Britt Humes show, the economy is growing like wildfire, "spurred on by Bush's tax cuts" (the part in quotes IS a direct quote), and in 2005 he WILL have reached his goal.

Barnes is "executive editor of The Weekly Standard," and he is apparently crazy, psychic, or both, even though his remarks were couched in a cowardly "by all indications"...meaning "click your heels together three times and you'll be back in Kansas."



This all came about as a discussion on the dust-up between John McCain and Dennis Hastert. Hastert lashed out at McCain's statement on the "shared responsibility" of the burdens caused by the war in Iraq:

"Who?" asked Mr. Hastert as he heard Mr. McCain's name. "Where is he from? Is he a Republican?"

Then Mr. Hastert really unloaded on Mr. McCain, who sustained lifelong injuries as a prisoner of war in Vietnam.

"John McCain ought to visit our young men and women at Walter Reed and Bethesda," Mr. Hastert said. "There is the sacrifice in this country. We are trying to make sure they have the ability to fight this war, that they have the wherewithal to do it. At the same time we have to react to keep this country strong not only militarily, but economically. We have to have the flexibility to do it. That is my answer to John McCain."

...and McCain's reply:

""I fondly remember a time when real Republicans stood for fiscal responsibility. Apparently those days are long gone for some in our party."

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/05/19/politics/trail/20TRAIL-MCCAIN.html?ex=1085630400&en=ef4731bfebf82a2b&ei=5006&partner=ALTAVISTA1

Here's Evil Dick, Dubya, and Hastert:



The panel came to the conclusion that McCain is readying himself for Rummy's job after the election. Hastert's comments were semi-defended (even though the comments about Walter Reed, ESPECIALLY to McCain, were deemed highly inappropriate) because apparently the Republicans have had enough of McCain's remarks. Not going with the program apparently pisses them off so much that they never question the program.

[David Dunham]

1. I got news for Fred. Bush won't be president in 2005.

[Must_B_Free]

2. In the mean time...

he will raise it %200 :eyes:

[gratuitous]

3. Fred Barnes is dumber than a monkey

Bartcop runs the graph from time to time. Some journalistic think tank charted pundit predictions, including Fred Barnes, and stacked their predictions up against a chimpanzee (named Zippy, I believe), who would be presented with a board of events and possible outcomes. Zippy was right more often than any of them, and Barnes' record for prognostication was in the low 40 percent.

So, if Fred Barnes says it, there's an off chance it might be right. For true prognostication, however, go ask Zippy.

[kentuck]

4. But half of what ?

Half of a trillion ?

[Leilani]

5. The Right Wing

has lost all sense of right or wrong.

Imagine Hastert & Delay lecturing McCain on sacrafice, because he is against their tax cuts?

They are just furious because McCain tells the truth, & won t toe their line.

And because McCain & Kerry are friends.

[charlie]

6. 100% inflation oughta do it

and Dubya's definitely the man who could bring that about.

[Merusault]

7. Remember this.....

In 1992, Barnes predicted that Bush Sr. would win in a landslide.