Eight Years In One Sentence

A Bush speechwriter dishes on the last days in the White House.  This anecdote comes from the death throes of the McCain campaign, but it has a broader, timeless quality revealing Bush to be deep and introspective (Get Brooksie!):

At one point, [President Bush] looked off into space and said to no one in particular, “What is this—a cruel hoax?”

Even he was wondering!

OK, more background:

The president, who had quite a good political mind, was clearly not impressed with the McCain operation. I was once in the Oval Office when the president was told a campaign event in Phoenix he was to attend with McCain suddenly had to be closed to the press. The president didn’t understand why when the whole purpose of holding the event had been to show Bush and McCain together so the press would stop asking why the two wouldn’t be seen together. If the event was closed to the press, the whole thing didn’t make sense.

“If he doesn’t want me to go, fine,” the president said. “I’ve got better things to do.”

Eventually, someone informed the president that the reason the event was closed was that McCain was having trouble getting a crowd. Bush was incredulous—and to the point. “He can’t get 500 people to show up for an event in his hometown?” he asked. No one said anything, and we went on to another topic. But the president couldn’t let the matter drop. “He couldn’t get 500 people? I could get that many people to turn out in Crawford.” He shook his head. “This is a five-spiral crash, boys.”

We tried to move on to something else. But the president wouldn’t let go. He was stuck on the Phoenix event. At one point, he looked off into space and said to no one in particular, “What is this—a cruel hoax?”

Bush could be an unexpected wet blanket:

I was about to be engulfed by a tidal wave of Palin euphoria when someone—someone I didn’t expect—planted my feet back on the ground. After Palin’s selection was announced, the same people who demanded I acknowledge the brilliance of McCain’s choice expected the president to join them in their high-fiving tizzy. It was clear, though, that the president, ever the skilled politician, had concerns about the choice of Palin, which he called “interesting.” That was the equivalent of calling a fireworks display “satisfactory.”

“I’m trying to remember if I’ve met her before. I’m sure I must have.” His eyes twinkled, then he asked, “What is she, the governor of Guam?”

Everyone in the room seemed to look at him in horror, their mouths agape. When Ed told him that conservatives were greeting the choice enthusiastically, he replied, “Look, I’m a team player, I’m on board.” He thought about it for a minute. “She’s interesting,” he said again. “You know, just wait a few days until the bloom is off the rose.” Then he made a very smart assessment.

“This woman is being put into a position she is not even remotely prepared for,” he said. “She hasn’t spent one day on the national level. Neither has her family. Let’s wait and see how she looks five days out.”

Folks will have waves of nostalgia (or nausea) as they remember the collapse of Lehman a year ago and read about the crafting of an Administration response:

“We’re buying low and selling high,” [President Bush] kept saying.

The problem was that his proposal didn’t work like that. One of the president’s staff members anxiously pulled a few of us aside. “The president is misunderstanding this proposal,” he warned. “He has the wrong idea in his head.” As it turned out, the plan wasn’t to buy low and sell high. In some cases, in fact, Secretary Paulson wanted to pay more than the securities were likely worth in order to put more money into the markets as soon as possible. This was not how the president’s proposal had been advertised to the public or the Congress. It wasn’t that the president didn’t understand what his administration wanted to do. It was that the treasury secretary didn’t seem to know, changed his mind, had misled the president, or some combination of the three.

Bush had the same questions a lot of others did:

After finally getting the speech draft turned around and sent back to the teleprompter technicians, we trudged back to the Family Theater, where the president rehearsed. In the theater, the president was clearly confused about how the government would buy these securities. He repeated his belief that the government was going to “buy low and sell high,” and he still didn’t understand why we hadn’t put that into the speech like he’d asked us to. When it was explained to him that his concept of the bailout proposal wasn’t correct, the president was momentarily speechless. He threw up his hands in frustration.

“Why did I sign on to this proposal if I don’t understand what it does?” he asked.

Why ask why? 

There is an epilogue:

The proposal the president announced to the nation that night would be soundly rejected by the House of Representatives. An eventual compromise was reached a week later.

Comments

[bgates]

OK, here's what I don't get:
If Bush was (per this article) adamantly opposed to what he thought conservatism was - and (per this article) he thought it was Gary Bauer;
and if he wanted to remake the Republican party;
-why wouldn't his administration have any pushback at all ever to the "Christianist" nonsense?
-why even mention gay marriage, ever?
-if he's not a libertarian, and he's not a fiscal conservative, and he's not a social conservative, then wtf is he? Did he and McCain both end up in the wrong party through the accident of family connections?

[peter]

My opinion is that what he disliked most about McCain is that he reminded him of himself -- an old man with few principles other than to get himself elected. Had he had the ability to put together three sentences in clear English about why the country went to war during the last three years of his administration, a dog catcher could have defeated Obama.

[Charlie (Colorado)]

Had he had the ability to put together three sentences in clear English about why the country went to war during the last three years of his administration, a dog catcher could have defeated Obama.

And yet he beat the Democrats over and over again, right up to the last.

Remember to read all political memoirs as having the one-sentence summary of "if only they'd have listened to me!"

[Charlie (Colorado)]

I also suspect, since that's what the plan appeared to be supposed to do analytically, that Bush knew they were trying to buy at a premium to the depressed market in order to add liquidity, with the expectation that the eventual result would be higher yet.

I'd love to know what was in Paulson's head after the fact.

[bishop]

Seems another Ridgeism, already contradicted
by a better source, on the last statement, in the LUN:

[Charlie (Colorado)]

Okay, third comment and I'm running out to lunch: it's far better to make your own analysis of a deal than to believe what someone else tells you about it.

[clarice]

They ought to shoot speechwriters or cut out their tongues when their boss retires, dies or loses.

[bgates]

Bishop, that "governor of Guam" crack sounds like the kind of hyperbole I've been known to indulge in from time to time right on this here blog - I don't think Bush didn't know who she was, I thought he meant to say that Palin was from somewhere (forgive me, daddy) a bit obscure, and nobody had really heard of her before.

Which, we can't all be Bushes, Kennedys, and Gores, can we?

[bishop]

As it turns out, having let their major competitor, go by the wayside, Paulson, scrounged up a slush fund, for projects
other than the toxic securities they were
directed to. A con job, in short order.

[matt]

At the origin of the TARP program, it was the goal to buy the distressed assets at significant discounts. Then it was found that the assets had been fractionated to a point where it became very confusing exactly what the government would be buying.

As originally intended, Bush's point was correct except it didn't work out that way.

[matt]

by the way, did you see that Reichsfuehrer Louise Slaughter is now restricting members free speech on the floor after her own diatribes? LUN

[royf]

September 15, 2009
First on the Ticker: Bush, Palin aide disputes book claims
Posted: September 15th, 2009 02:22 PM ET

From CNN Political Producer Peter Hamby

Snip

But Jason Recher, who served as special assistant to President Bush and as a traveling aide to Palin during the campaign, said the former President was well aware of Palin — especially since the two met in person in Alaska just three weeks before Palin was added to the Republican ticket.

During a stopover in Fairbanks on the way to the Beijing Olympics last August, Recher said Bush met with Palin and even made a knowing reference to her rising reputation in the Republican Party.

"The president was fully aware of who Sarah Palin was," Recher told CNN. "Even so much that when he greeted the governor and Todd in Fairbanks during a re-fueling stop on the way to the Beijing Olympics, he threw open his arms and said "Madam Vice President!'"

"He was very aware of her rising-star status and who she was and everything about her, even down to the fact that she recently had given birth to Trig," Recher said.

After Palin became the vice presidential nominee, Recher said the White House loaned out both he and Laura Bush's photographer Shealah Craighead to the McCain campaign to help staff Palin and her family.

Recher said Bush and Palin had a warm relationship and talked multiple times throughout the campaign, including after a large campaign rally near Orlando in September and after the Vice Presidential debate in October.

Snip

Link

[Sue]

A liberal on Hannity's radio program just asked him when conservatives say they are going to take back their country she wants to know who conservatives are taking it from. Hannity, of course, answered her straight, from the liberals who are overspending, yadayada. All I could think of was liberals screaming for 8 years they were going to take back their country. I guess she wasn't one of them. Hopefully...

[JM Hanes]

I've finally put my DC Tea Party Slide Show up.

Unless you have a fast connection, it may be agonizingly slow to load and cycle (although even JOM was slow on the hotel wifi). I don't think the problem is on my end, because I set it up the way I always do, but I'll try to fix it when I get home, if it is. Unless you want to look at each photo for a reeeeeally long time, I suggest doing something else for 5 or 10 miniutes (alas!) and then watch it run. You could think of the first picture as a screen saver. Or you could wait till tomorrow. I'll add captions when I figure out how to do it.

If you can actually manage to get through it, let me know if the pix seem too dark or washed out. I was working on my 12" LCD laptop in room that could not have been getting more sun, so I gave up trying to figure out what they would look like online. I thought of leaving out the one that looks so much like the AP photo, but shoot, I took it, so there it is. I put in the porta-potty shots just for you-know-who-you-are.

I'm off to the airport. See ya later!

[Sue]

JMH,

Wait, don't go...it says sorry can't find anything.

[hit and run]

I'm afraid JMH loaded the pics/set as 'private' and forgot to switch to 'public'. Or something.

The set simply isn't on her http://www.flickr.com/photos/28987170@N02/>flickr page.

Someone have her paged at Dulles.

[american]

“Why did I sign on to this proposal if I don’t understand what it does?” he asked.

There's your "one sentence".
I had a moment of silence for the brave veterans of the Iraq War after reading that.
He didn't understand that either.

[Extraneus]

I don't know if the new ACORN video was discussed on another thread, but I just saw it and I'm suspicious that this woman appears to be making stuff up as she goes.

[Extraneus]

Italics off?

[SWarren]

Bishop,
Thanks for the link. It's just another case of a former underling making up carp to sell a book. I'm of the same mind as Clarice.
The last two paragraphs tell it all:
Recher, who traveled with President Bush nearly every day for the final three years of his presidency, questioned just how plugged-in Latimer was at the White House.

"I think that most people that used to work at the White House would be hard pressed to pick him out of a lineup," Recher said. "Nobody knows who he is. When people heard he was writing a book the most common reaction has been, 'Who?'"

[Gregory Koster]

Dear Clarice: Yeah, the incentive to murder former speechwriters is strong. But tell them they can write what they like, they just can't publish it for 25 years. History has its claims. This particular hog deserves a roasting.

[centralcal]

Extraneus - she's a kook!

Back to the topic - Dana Perino at NRO is calling foul on the Bush speechwriter book.

LUN

[Sara (Pal2Pal)]

The big point of these ACORN videos so far is how in every case the ACORN workers never bat an eye at the proposal for a brothel employing child prostitutes who are brought in illegally from a foreign country. It is like this is an everyday occurrence like telling a coworker you stopped to buy a soda on the way to work.

Not one of them seems the least concerned about child abuse, child prostitution, illegal immigration, white slavery, or that a candidate plans to finance his campaign this way. Just business as usual is what it looks like.

[DAVOD]

Dana Perino just called bullshit on the comment that Bush didn't know Palin.

[Ignatz]

Along the lines of what matt said, numerous economists and talking heads repeatedly asserted that the TARP plan would result in large profits for the government when Paulson and Bernanke first announced their intention of buying the assets from the banks. The theory was buy them cheap and hold them either to maturity or until housing prices had recovered; IOW, buy low sell high.
I have a lot of problems with Bush, but the fact that he understood this thing in its intital form just as most everyone else did and as it was presented by Paulson isn't one of them.

[SWarren]

Extraneous,
I'm suspicious that this woman appears to be making stuff up as she goes.

My impression too. She seems the gushy type who says things just to impress. I mean who blathers about murdering her husband?

[Jane]

OT: Does anyone else think that the Presidebts off the record remark about Kanye is (gasp) racist? Didn't you just hear him say "Jackass boy" in their head?

[Janet]

Matt Latimer huh?....well, I've gotten to where I believe exactly NOTHING these ex-politicos say. What's in it for him?

[MayBee]

ha ha ha, jane! genius.

[bgates]

"the ACORN workers never bat an eye"

They don't even seem to strain to come up with a plan. Oh, underage illegal immigrant sex slaves? Yes, that's in the manual under "U".

[centralcal]

heh, bgates!

Clarice is going to on Blog Talk Radio with Dan Riehl tonite. I'll be on the drive home so will probably miss it.

Erik E. at Red State is all PRO-Latimer and all ANTI-Perino. Says Latimer is a "true" conservative. I dunno. I like Perino.

[centralcal]

The link to the radio show is LUN. (Rick Moran, Stacy McCain, Dan Riehl and Clarice Feldman at 8 pm ET)

[Jane]

ha ha ha, jane! genius.

~~~

I shall twitter it!

[JM Hanes]

Shoot, my plane is boarding and I couldn't figure out how to turn the pix public, if that's the problem. But here's a link to the manual version, just in case it might work. DC Tea Party

[PD]

I like Perino, but she needs to read Latimer's words more closely. She says:

And I don't think he's ever even said the word "keister." C'mon.

But this is what Latimer wrote:

The president, like me, didn’t seem to be in love with any of the available options. He always believed Hillary Clinton would be the Democratic nominee. “Wait till her fat keister is sitting at this desk,” he once said (except he didn’t say “keister”).

[SWarren]

"the ACORN workers never bat an eye"
Well she did bat an eye when Hannah told her she wanted to help the girls get educated so that they could stand on their own. The woman said something to the effect "What do you mean educate, if they get educated, then they don't need you anymore."
Kinda like keeping the poor blacks on the plantation?

[Pofarmer]

If Charlies hanging around, the transit stats are up.

http://www.wmata.com/rail/disruption_reports/archived_service_reports.cfm

Must say I'm a little dissapointed.

[Sara (Pal2Pal)]

"What do you mean educate, if they get educated, then they don't need you anymore."

Wow, I missed that. That's terrible. And now in San Bernardino they are suggesting calling the brothel a school to explain all the children there. Sick.

[Janet]

These Acorn sting operations remind me of the Mona Lisa Project, and their sting operations with Planned Parenthood. Same type of undercover reporting. They(PP) would council the "underage girl" not to list the name /age of her older "boyfriend" - thereby covering up statutory rape. PP gets our tax dollars too.

[Janet]

((But this is what Latimer wrote:

The president, like me, didn’t seem to be in love with any of the available options. He always believed Hillary Clinton would be the Democratic nominee. “Wait till her fat keister is sitting at this desk,” he once said (except he didn’t say “keister”).))

I do not believe this statement. W never once struck me as that crude. He had plenty of reason to be crude, but he was not. He was painfully gracious when all those around him were thugs.

I am sick to my core of Bush bashing, and Obama fawning.

[clarice]

Yes, Janet is does.
The ACORN worker featured in this last video seems sociopathic..But let's me honest, they all seemed that way to me and what is the chance that an organization spread around the country could just have practices so bad that inadvertently they hire a cast of such people?

[clarice]

Po--does that list include private buses-? There were many and they dropped the folks off near the site and picked them up, too. I seem to recall hearing some huge number of private chartered buses.

[tea anyone]

The number of chartered buses was reported earlier as 4500.

[Porchlight]

She seems like a nutjob all right. But if you google her - her name is Tresa Kaelke - she is a well-known ACORN organizer in her area. If she's this nuts, her co-workers and boss must have known about it, right? So why is she still working there?

And we still have four straight instances of no one at ACORN batting an eye when the idea of importing under age sex slaves from El Salvador is broached to them. Instead, they offer multiple levels of assistance. How does ACORN spin that?

[Janet]

Conservatives need to take out ads on Univision and other Spanish channels and highlight the liberals attitude of "It's no problem to have young sex slaves from El Salvador". The depravity on the left is unbelievable.

[Sara (Pal2Pal)]

Tresa Kaelke seeming wacky:

I'm sorry to disappoint but in the 31 years I've lived in Calif., Tresa seems quite normal, relatively speaking.

[Jane]

Is 8:00 on the Rick Moran show different from 8:00 in MA?

[clarice]

Its on and I;m on it tonight.

[Sara (Pal2Pal)]

Conservatives need to take out ads on Univision and other Spanish channels and highlight the liberals attitude of "It's no problem to have young sex slaves from El Salvador". The depravity on the left is unbelievable.

This is a good point. San Bernardino, BTW, is heavily Hispanic, although mostly Mexican-American, I think.

It is a county that voted for Bush in 2004 55.4%-43.6%, but turned around and voted for Obama in 2008 52.2% - 45.9%.

[PeterUK]

Porchlight.

"She seems like a nutjob all right. But if you google her - her name is Tresa Kaelke - she is a well-known ACORN organizer in her area. If she's this nuts, her co-workers and boss must have known about it, right? So why is she still working there?"

The answer is in the question.

[DebinNC]

The CA link on ACORN's website isn't working for me. Are they busily removing all vestiges of Tresa? Are they canvassing all the branches for whitebread pimp/ho sightings?

[Fresh Air]

A 300,000+ delta on daily rides plus (4,500 times 47 people) = 511,000. Then you've got car and cab transit and some walkers from hotels. Got to be at least 750,000, don't you think? What was the inbound traffic like?

[Fresh Air]

How does ACORN spin that?

I will give you a hint. It starts with the letter "R" and ends with the letter "M."

[Pofarmer]

Po--does that list include private buses-? There were many and they dropped the folks off near the site and picked them up, too. I seem to recall hearing some huge number of private chartered buses.

No. Yes, chartered buses were estimated at 4500.

4500 x 50 equals 225,000.

Metro looks to be up about 200,000, but we were told that there were disruptions to metro. That puts the numbers at around 425,000, without counting anybody that drove, or came in at the airport and was in a hotel. All the people that called in locally drove or flew out, and came right home, so none of those numbers would have caught them. 500K looks very, very safe, and, well, I don't know about the rest.

[PD]

I see GM has a new commercial featuring the new chairman. He talks up their vehicles (unsurprising) and then says, to introduce their new guarantee, "so we're putting our money where our mouth is."

Ahem. My question to him: Is that your money, or my money?

[hit and run]

JMH, it still doesn't work...

This page is private.
Oops! You don't have permission to view this page.

[matt]

ACORN videos better than Jerry Springer. LUN

[Extraneus]

Well, at least her latest husband, Ronald Kaelke (same last name), was still alive and well as of July last year.

But with a restraining order against her.

[clarice]

Heh--Good catch! Do you suppose this is her second husband?

[bgates]

It starts with the letter "R" and ends with the letter "M."

Rahm?

[Charlie (Colorado)]

Must say I'm a little disappointed.

You go where the data takes you. If I can confirm this number of 4500 bus permits, it will be very interesting....

[Pofarmer]

Geez, I hadn't been to LGF for a while. Charles Johnson has really gong round the bend. There are racists! Racists everywhere!! And, rightwingers threatening VIOLENCE!!!!!

Good lord.

Is he related to Andrew Sullivan or something?

[Extraneus]

HotAir comment:

"Well, Pimps and Hos will be THE holloween costume this year."

[PD]

OT: Oh, this makes me proud to be a Badger. Not.

Baldwin Proposes Product Carbon Disclosure

Lets Consumers Make Smart Choices

Congresswoman Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) has proposed legislation (H.R. 3543) that would allow for product carbon disclosure to help consumers make informed choices when shopping.

[Porchlight]

Definitely Kaelke is the second husband. The first appears to be Duane Allen Berhow:

Tresa M Parten marriage records

Duane Allen Berhow (do a find on the page b/c it's long) - died Sep 28 1992

Looks like Tresa and Duane may have divorced before his death.

Okay, just cross posted it at HotAir - that's all the Googling I have in my tonight. Anyone w/access to the San Bernardino County Sun archives?

[Fresh Air]

Rahm?

RA___M.

I will sell you a vowel for $800 billion.

[SWarren]

Fresh Air,

I'm noticing a lot more of this racism charge the last few days. Did the big 9/12 DC demonstration prompt Axelrod to put the word out to play the race card? It really disgusts me. I worry about the strife that may result in this country the more this escalates.
Maybe that strife is what Axelrod wants or maybe he just thinks it will muzzle the opposition.

Carter tells Brian Williams there is a "racist" tone against Obama.
LUN

[Pofarmer]

Wish I could post a picture.

My favorite has him frothing at the mouth at the "right wing loons"

We came unarmed(this time)

In fact, it's my computer wallpaper right now.

[clarice]

SWarren, I think the more the evidence free racism card is played the more it will cost the Dems in the support of the muddle.
People were sick of it before and now they find it wrong, partisan and provocative.
Dittp attacks on the "rich".

[Extraneus]

These two, James and Hannah, are the heroes of our age. James seems to have been key to the caper, but it must have been Hannah who was able to pull it off. Surely the grizzled ACORN veterans of criminal debauchery would have doubted his fur-coated act without her, and I bet Hannah made Kaelke jealous enough to get her fantasizing out loud.

[Extraneus]

Comment from FatherofSixSons at biggovernment.com:

"Hannah,

If I am ever blessed with a daughter, I am naming her after you! God Bless you!"

Heh.

[flodigarry]

I was going to guess "Redrum"

[PD]

I don't know how you folks can deny the obvious racism among us right-wingers. I mean, the evidence is right before your eyes. Take a look at the signs from this weekend's D.C. rally, protesting:

Big government
Too high taxation
Too much spending
Intrusion into our lives
Takeover of private business
Global warming alarmism
Support for the ever-more-obviously-corrupt ACORN

It just screams "racism," no?

[Fresh Air]

SWarren--

The more the card gets used, the less effective it is. Like every Alinsky trick, it only works when people don't understand the motives behind it. I'm not really even sure what the point is anymore. They may be able to cow a few advertisers to quit Glen Beck, but which members of the public, exactly, who didn't vote for Zero or don't support his socialist policies, does the word have any power over? I submit none.

So why are they doing it? These idiots are so utterly suffused in their own sewage, they can't their necks above it to breathe. This is simply who they are, bullies who aren't used to having people fight back. They can dish it out but they can't take it.

[Sara (Pal2Pal)]

45% Of Doctors Would Consider Quitting If Congress Passes Health Care Overhaul

[clarice]

Extraneus, I read it was Hannah's idea and she used her own money to fund it. And I understand she's the daughter of a minister--I expect that should bring a lot of folks to church .

[hit and run]

He could always name #7 son Giles.

[PD]

Sara, you just know Pelosi's going to come out and accuse the doctors of trying to hold "the business of the people" hostage to their own narrow self-interests.

[PD]

And I understand she's the daughter of a minister--I expect that should bring a lot of folks to church .

Hot women have that effect, yes.

[PD]

But let's get the wording correct:

And I understand she's the racist daughter of a racist minister--I expect that should bring a lot of racist folks to racist churches.

[Charlie (Colorado)]

If I am ever blessed with a daughter, I am naming her after you! God Bless you!

I just want to see more of her in those outfits.

[Charlie (Colorado)]

And I understand she's the daughter of a minister--I expect that should bring a lot of folks to church .

Ooh, a PK. Even better.

[Pofarmer]

If I can confirm this number of 4500 bus permits, it will be very interesting....

I've searched the interwebz to no avail. Must be an official number somewhere. Supposedly, all tour buses have to be permitted to park in D.C.

[SWarren]

"but which members of the public, exactly, who didn't vote for Zero or don't support his socialist policies, does the word have any power over? I submit none."
Well I submit that it can certainly create animosity in the minds of young blacks which can create tensions that erupt in the streets and schools. That's why I said maybe that's what axelrod wants.
Create chaos, it's in the playbook.

[SWarren]

I just think it's a dangerous game they're playing.

[Janet]

totally agree SWarren

[PD]

SWarren: A monster, once created, might prove difficult to control?

[Jim Ryan]

9/12/10 will have 3 million in DC.

The economy will be in the toilet, unemployment double digit. The Intolerable Acts will be intolerable.

[SWarren]

And I think it's pretty digusting for Jimmuh Carter to call us racists when he is such an obvious anti-semite.

[Frau Roggenbrot]

"I just want to see more of her in those outfits."

Did Caro get a photo of the Lady Liberty who was in our area? She was not as young but turned the heads of many.

[PD]

Obama administration: Cap and trade could cost families $1,761 a year

The Obama administration has privately concluded that a cap and trade law would cost American taxpayers up to $200 billion a year, the equivalent of hiking personal income taxes by about 15 percent.

Hey, that's something I can really get on board with, since I have so much spare cash laying around.

[PD]

Of course, I have complete confidence that the administration will rig it so us under-$250K/family/yr folks won't pay a dime extra.

[Janet]

Looking at 912 photos over at FreeRepublic -

Grow your own dope,
plant a Democrat.

[Janet]

...and a funny comment on one of the Acorn story threads - a new chant -

Yes we con!
Yes we con!

[Melinda Romanoff]

SWarren-

The ACORN team is versed in one subject only. How to game the system? They will pass along methods and "stories that work" through out their neighborhoods so that every one gets stuff, cash, rent for free. They will spend hours working on this, every day. And now that the lid is off as far as paying them to do nothing, and paying them more to have more children, well that little thing of childhood pregnancy is no longer a shame, nut a blessing. And they celebrate it! This is "The System" that they play. At least they're not able to double dip (Ill. And Wisc., that I know of) any more.

Acorn just institutionalizes the methodology, and takes a bunch off the top for their efforts. It all works as long as those writing the checks still feel guilty. They won't get investigated.

Well, that gig is up.

I bet James and Hannah's "piece de la resistance" is something very local, and very familiar to my former junior Senator.

I'm done ranting.

But I've been eating up these reports...

[JM Hanes]

OK, Home Sweet Home, and one more time, with permissions hopefully fixed: DC Tea Party!

[bishop]

Doesn't this feel, disturbingly like a remake of "Risky Business" the preppy would
be pimp, and companion, of sorts, thinking of the Chicago setting.

[PD]

JMH -- yep, it works. Great job!

[Fresh Air]

SWarren--

Re the "monster" comment. It just hit me what they've been doing. People like Axelgrease use the term "racism" in the same way a guard dog trainer uses the word "attack." So now I can answer my own question. Who is this stuff targeted at? The BLT attack-dog set and their fellow travelers like ACORN. The garden-variety liberals just nod their heads in agreement like the good postmodern relativists they are.

But it is a dangerous game, especially if the sheeple figure out they've been had.

[SWarren]

Melinda,
I bet James and Hannah's "piece de la resistance" is something very local, and very familiar to my former junior Senator.

Ahhhh, we can only hope something will stick to that corrupt "One". Which brings to mind what's Fitz doing with Rezko lately?