SENILTY SETS IN
Carl "I know who Deep Throat is" Bernstein writes with breathtaking simplicity that Republicans should toss George W. Bush overboard because, in Carl's mind, Iraq equals Watergate. Carl complains that:

1. Bush used "ginned-up intelligence to justify war". "Ginned up" by the Clinton Adminstration, John Kerry, the United Nations, the United Kingdom, France, Russia, Germany, Egypt, Jordan, et cetera, all of whom believed that Iraq had WMD and was prepared to use them.

2. There have been "652 American deaths since presidential operatives declared "Mission Accomplished". So, terrorists kill Americans working to restore peace, order and freedom to Iraq, and Carl Bernstein's reaction is "the president must resign". Sounds like al Sadr's goal, expect this to be in the good cleric's talking points this week.

3. White House counsel suggests that the Geneva Convention is outdated in that it applies to prisoners of war and was written at a time when wars were conducted by nation-states and not paramilitary islamofacists who wear the uniform of no nation and answer to no general, monarch, president or potentate. Carl complains, but offers no argument, but surely his leftist appeasers of fascism are nodding their heads at Carl's genius in pointing this out. And Carl somehow thinks this memo regarding the Geneva Convention constitutes a decision that "the Constitution could be bent on [Bush's] watch." The Geneva Convention, maybe, but no the Constitution, or are you thinking about the Patriot Act, which John Kerry voted for (I guess, before he was going to vote against it)?

4. The Bush Administration should have held a public press conference mea culpa self-flagelation session in January upon first learning of the Abu Ghraib abuses, rather than simply launching an investigation. Surely Carl would have liked this press conference to be held at a mosque of Moqtada al Sadr's choice.

5. Bush held a "pep rally" with 35 Congressional Republicans and didn't take any questions. Gasp.

Carl complains that the Republican Party "these days is more concerned with politics and PR than principle," while at the same time arguing that a politician with whom he disagrees ought to just quit. There's a principled position unconcerned with politics or PR. Perhaps it's Carl's OWD (Obsessive Watergate Disorder), or he just came from Cannes, or he's jealous that Bob Woodward is getting all the press, but this childish rant is not even worthy of Democratic Underground. I guess that's why it appeared in USA Today.