Great Job, AG!
After Attorney General Alberto Gonzales completed his recent testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee, the president announced that the testimony increased his confidence in the AG. That produced an audible gasp around Congress and the rest of the nation. Even diehard Republicans thought the AG’s performance was abysmal and more than a few said so publicly.
When the White House deputy press secretary was asked if the president watched or listened to the testimony, she said, “No, he didn’t.” Ah, ha! That explains the president’s increased confidence level. The AG’s testimony is most impressive when it hasn’t been watched or heard.
After all, if the AG kept his job after that performance then the rest of us have to have increased confidence in him as well – because the guy’s invincible. He yanked a grenade off his belt, pulled the pin, threw the pin at the committee, dropped the grenade between his legs, and then fell on it just as it exploded – and then he stood up, walked away and returned to his office with the full support of The Decider-in-Chief.
That, my fellow Americans, is an amazing feat.
This is the same man who cancelled two weeks of appointments so that he could be adequately prepared to say, “I don’t remember” an astounding 74 times in one day of testimony – 45 times by halftime. He wasn’t certain in which month he fired a wad of U.S. Attorneys; he certainly couldn’t remember which week much less which day. Heck, who can recall things like that after a four-month eternity?
Frankly, I can’t believe the AG fires a wad all that often, so you’d think he could recall the shot. You’d also think that when the AG acts as a one-man firing squad that it would have been entered on his calendar and that sometime in the two weeks of preparation he might have gone over that calendar to refresh his recollection. But then I’ve never helped anyone in the Bush administration prepare for testifying under oath, so what do I know.
At least we can take comfort in one thing. After that grenade exploded, it’s doubtful that this AG will ever again fire a wad, and that may be reason enough to keep him in his office for the next 20 months. He may be too wounded to hurt anybody else.
posted by Jonathan @ 4/29/2007 09:38:00 AM
1 comments
1 Comments:
This comment is in response to both this post and the post on "Progress:"
I've had a lot of trouble understanding the motivation behind the Bush administration on some of these issues, especially when they seem to stand alone or when evidence is mounting against them. Is George Bush a liar? Is he stupid? Doe he have poor advisors? I do think he is incredibly stubborn and arrogant at times.
Then I watched Bill Moyers interview Jon Stewart and heard the following, and it made sense to me:
(From PBS transcript)
JON STEWART: Yeah, it's kind of astonishing. I used to have a real disconnect, I think, with the administration, I couldn't figure out what was going on. I think it's suddenly become clear to me. They would rather us believe them to be wildly incompetent and inarticulate than to let us know anything about how they operate. And so, they do Constitutionally-mandated things most of the time, but they don't — they fulfill the letter of their obligation to checks and balances, but not the intent.
For instance, Alberto Gonzales, and you've been watching the hearings. He is either a perjurer, or a low-functioning pinhead. And he allowed himself to be portrayed in those hearings as a low-functioning pinhead, rather than give the Congressional Committee charged with oversight, any information as to his decision-making process at the Department of Justice.
And I used to think, "They're doing this based on a certain arrogance." And now, I realize that it's because they believe there is one accountability moment for a President, and that is the four year election. And once you get that election, you're done.
BILL MOYERS: They're right, are they not?
JON STEWART: They're completely not right. The election moment is merely the American public saying, "We'd rather you be President than that guy." That's it. The next four years, though, you still have to abide by the oversight process that is there to prevent this kind of bizarre sort of cult-like atmosphere that falls along. I mean, I accept that kind of veil of secrecy around Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes, but I don't accept that around our government.
I agree, and it makes me want to march with a placard saying I am tired of my President looking like an ass in front of the rest of world. (But don’t be looking for me on the corner of Stockdale and California any time soon!)
Post a Comment
<< Home