Despite the humiliating thrashing his boy suffered at the polls on Tuesday, Karl Rove hasn’t lost his touch for media manipulation. Minutes before Junior Bush slunk out to the podium for what should have been 45 minutes of crow-eating, the administration let it leak that Don Rumsfeld – the poster child for Bush arrogant-dismissive disease (BADD) – was out and former spook and Iran-Contra co-conspirator Robert Gates was soon to be in as Defense secretary.
It’s called a "conversation-changer" in Rove’s constantly-spinning world and change it did, while the MSM’s clueless talking-heads tried to figure out why and when and who the "decider" was for this one. A squishy consensus formed, concluding that Rumsfeld was either a fall guy for a change of policy in Iraq; a bone thrown to a restive electorate to show Bush "gets" a message that he still refuses to receive; or a planned exit that Bush should have announced before the election, rather than lying about his intentions just a week ago.
But the real reason for dear Rummy’s condescending exit (the disastrous war in Iraq is "not well understood" and too "complex" for you idiots) is likely that he didn’t want to have to answer to anyone, much less pipsqueak Democrats in more serious and focused congressional hearings. In Bob Woodward’s essential "State of Denial", Rumsfeld is portrayed as the king of bureaucratic thuggery, countenancing not power-sharing, a discouraging word or inquiry. Because of his constitutional office, Cheney will likely thumb his nose at any Congressional inquiry into his dark megalomania. Rumsfeld can’t do that; he would have to stand, defend and explain. So, like the wimp he is, he bailed.
The most disturbing aspect of the drive to mire our soldiers in Iraq is that they were sent there at the direction of a hysterical bunch of chicken hawks. Bush, Cheney, Wolfowitz, Feith – none of them served when given the chance and all rejected the advice of reality-based leaders like Colin Powell. Like drunken aristocrats smoking cigars in the drawing room with stick-pins in a map of the world, they drew overly-optimistic designs to establish an Israel/US-friendly base in the Middle East by toppling the weakest regime. U.S. soldier casualties in the thousands were expected and acceptable and tens of thousands of civilian deaths were irrelevant.
It was easy to sell with lies and easy to make the Hussein statue fall. None of them could be bothered with the aftermath, much less planning for it. Now, they are all running from their own failures. Especially Rummy, he of the big stick and sneering attitude. Come on, Rumsfeld, you’re so smart – tell us how we got here and tell us how we get out. We puny humans did not appreciate him. We will no longer benefit from his genius.
It was easy for Rumsfeld, with the support of Cheney, to run roughshod over anyone in his way in the Bush White House. He had carte blanche and free reign. When faced with the Real World after the elections of 2006, he turned tail and ran. Too old to wreak havoc anywhere else, he leaves us to clean up his broken china. No accountability for him – that game is for weak, naive fools. So long, suckers. Too bad we never realized how smart he was.
It’s called a "conversation-changer" in Rove’s constantly-spinning world and change it did, while the MSM’s clueless talking-heads tried to figure out why and when and who the "decider" was for this one. A squishy consensus formed, concluding that Rumsfeld was either a fall guy for a change of policy in Iraq; a bone thrown to a restive electorate to show Bush "gets" a message that he still refuses to receive; or a planned exit that Bush should have announced before the election, rather than lying about his intentions just a week ago.
But the real reason for dear Rummy’s condescending exit (the disastrous war in Iraq is "not well understood" and too "complex" for you idiots) is likely that he didn’t want to have to answer to anyone, much less pipsqueak Democrats in more serious and focused congressional hearings. In Bob Woodward’s essential "State of Denial", Rumsfeld is portrayed as the king of bureaucratic thuggery, countenancing not power-sharing, a discouraging word or inquiry. Because of his constitutional office, Cheney will likely thumb his nose at any Congressional inquiry into his dark megalomania. Rumsfeld can’t do that; he would have to stand, defend and explain. So, like the wimp he is, he bailed.
The most disturbing aspect of the drive to mire our soldiers in Iraq is that they were sent there at the direction of a hysterical bunch of chicken hawks. Bush, Cheney, Wolfowitz, Feith – none of them served when given the chance and all rejected the advice of reality-based leaders like Colin Powell. Like drunken aristocrats smoking cigars in the drawing room with stick-pins in a map of the world, they drew overly-optimistic designs to establish an Israel/US-friendly base in the Middle East by toppling the weakest regime. U.S. soldier casualties in the thousands were expected and acceptable and tens of thousands of civilian deaths were irrelevant.
It was easy to sell with lies and easy to make the Hussein statue fall. None of them could be bothered with the aftermath, much less planning for it. Now, they are all running from their own failures. Especially Rummy, he of the big stick and sneering attitude. Come on, Rumsfeld, you’re so smart – tell us how we got here and tell us how we get out. We puny humans did not appreciate him. We will no longer benefit from his genius.
It was easy for Rumsfeld, with the support of Cheney, to run roughshod over anyone in his way in the Bush White House. He had carte blanche and free reign. When faced with the Real World after the elections of 2006, he turned tail and ran. Too old to wreak havoc anywhere else, he leaves us to clean up his broken china. No accountability for him – that game is for weak, naive fools. So long, suckers. Too bad we never realized how smart he was.
UPDATE: Ooops. Rumsfeld is not a chicken hawk -- Eric B points out that he flew some planes in the '50s. Thanks, B. But he did direct me to a page showing Rummy meeting with Sadaam. Just so you don't forget what a chump he is/was.
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