BUSH INVITES DEMOCRATS TO "DISCUSSION" ABOUT SUPPLEMENTAL BUDGET: POINTLESS

"We're at war... ."--President George W. Bush today.

"It's pretty hard for a president to get ratings this low in general, and then to be in the position where you basically don't budge — that's been reserved for some of the least popular presidents during the worst times of the last 60 years." --Jeffrey Jones, Gallup Poll. (USATODAY, 04.10.2007)

wArSHINtuHN--Except we're not really at war. It's a phony-war, with no real sacrifices from every social-stratum, no majority-support, and no legitimate legal-basis. In fact, we're not at war, but our troops are caught in the middle of an Iraqi civil war, and with us as the major-irritant. It's not a war, but an occupation--there's a difference. It's a war like the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939), and will have provided a training-ground for the forces that will likely be arrayed against us after this colossal mistake by a segment of the American public, and the political classes.

OK, it really appears that the generalissimo has lost it. It's official. You invite your political-opposition to "talk-about the Iraq budget," yet you say preemptively that you won't budge on your position at all. What exactly was the logic in the formulation of these pseudo-statements? Correct, there is none with someone who has no real experience in real politics (i.e.: the art of compromise and cooperation). Of course, it was stated in-front of that organization of serial American suckers, the American Legion:

"At this meeting, the leaders in Congress can report on progress on getting an emergency spending bill to my desk," Bush said. "We can discuss the way forward on a bill that is a clean bill, a bill that funds our troops without artificial timetables for withdrawal and without handcuffing our generals on the ground. I'm hopeful we'll see some results soon from the Congress."Democratic leaders said they're ready to sit down and talk with Bush. But Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said Tuesday that Bush must agree to "take a seat at the table of negotiation, of compromise, of direction change." (AP, 04.10.2007)

He just doesn't seem to get the fact that nobody agrees with him and Cheney on the "unitary Executive" theory, or that they've lost what little credibility and influence they once had. Over is over. There is no-longer a GOP-majority in both houses of Congress. Over. 2/3rd's of the American public hates this war and wants it done this-year. Over. The Bush administration's crimes are being exposed and investigated. Over.

Like all of the flag-waving morons, Bush and Co. are still living--basking--in the glow of the immediate-aftermath of the events of September 11th, 2001. This makes these parts of the public cowardly and simple--like the president they "elected" in 2000 and 2004. This is the fallout of the authoritarian mind, the people who were beaten (emotionally, physically, or both) by their parents. Go to almost any country in the world right-now, and ordinary people will tell you that they think Americans are violent, crazy, and simple. They have ample-proof from the years flowing-from WWII.

Think I'm crazy? Another story from AP today states-clearly that the approval rating of Congress is UP. The president's is not, and will not rise substantially at any point in the rest of his second term. It will never happen. It's still in the mid-thirties, and is likely to plunge as hearings and investigations continue to uncover his administration's crimes. The inevitable disintegration of the occupation of Iraq will also hurt, as will the rising-cost of gasoline. On approval ratings:

In January 1999, for example, just after his impeachment by the House of Representatives, President Bill Clinton's job approval rating was 65 percent. In January 1987, President Ronald Reagan's was 52 percent. In 1967, President Lyndon Johnson received a 47 percent approval rating, even as debate about the Vietnam War raged. The war in Iraq remains the most important problem facing the country, cited by 33 percent of Americans, far more than mentioned the next top issues, the economy and jobs (8 percent) and health care (7 percent).

(cbsnews.com, 01.22.2007)

Bush's lowest has been at 28%. This is only four-points away from Nixon's lowest rating of 24% at the end, before his resignation. So, why the insistence that he's still got credibility? Why any insistence on anything? Amazingly, Bush's approval ratings are up by a few-points, though this could easily be explained with the 3-point margin for error (plus or minus).

USA TODAY: http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2007-04-08-bush-approval-rating_N.htm
AP Today: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070410/ap_on_go_pr_wh/us_iraq

CBS on Bush's approval ratings, 01.22.2007: http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/01/22/opinion/polls/main2384943.shtml