Congressional Democrats: Fool us 12 times…

And, we’ll come back for more! At least, that ought to be the motto.

The defense appropriations bill that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid traded away for the “I don’t want to comment on waterboarding” approval of Mike Mukasey as AG? Well, it’s the target of Bush’s first signing statement since Democrats regained the Congressional majority. His specific stated objections to the bill include:

one law Bush targeted requires him to give oversight committees notice before transferring US military equipment to United Nations peacekeepers.

Bush also challenged a new law that limits his ability to transfer funds lawmakers approved for one purpose to start a different program, as well as a law requiring him to keep in place an existing command structure for the Navy's Pacific fleet.

Folks, it’s that second one that’s critical.

Obviously, Bush is saying in advance that if Congress tries to crimp Iraq spending in anyway, he’s simply going to ignore it. Or Iran.

That said, Bush did pull in his horns a bit:

By referring only to objections voiced in past documents, Bush's new signing statement struck a less aggressive tone than those he issued during the years when his own party controlled Congress.

But, that doesn’t matter. His rejection of funding compartmentalization directly connects to Iraq, if not to any Iranian ideas he has up his sleeve. Count on it.

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Bush lies even to a professional historian

Tells Robert Draper “Self-pity is the worst thing that can happen to a presidency,” Mr. Bush told Mr. Draper, by way of saying he sought to avoid it..

Tries to avoid it? Hell, he wrote a new chapter on it.

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Scariest Headline Evah!!!

Cheney to become president…briefly

President Bush will undergo a routine colonoscopy Saturday, and will transfer power to Vice President Dick Cheney during the procedure, expected to take about two and a half hours, the chief White House spokesman said.

Tony Snow said Friday that the procedure, during which a doctor looks for any signs of cancer, will be carried out at Camp David, Maryland, and the president will be placed under anesthesia.

Bush’s last colonoscopy was in June 2002, and no abnormalities were found, Snow said.

I don't like W. at all, but I certainly hope his is not the first fatal colonoscopy in medical history.

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Breaking: Bush commutes Libby's sentence

AP just reported it. Apparently the order keeps the fine and probation in, but keeps Libby out of jail. Here's a better link to AP at the Washington Post.

So much for the idea of justice in this country.

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BREAKING: Senate Judiciary Committee subpoenas White House, Cheney, DOJ & NSA on wiretapping

[updated 3:40 p.m. CDT]

AP is reporting that the Senate Judiciary Committee has just subpoenaed the White House, Vice President Dick Cheney, the Justice Department and the National Security Council on the warrantless eavesdropping program.

The committee wants documents that might shed light on internal squabbles within the administration over the legality of the program, said a congressional official speaking on condition of anonymity because the subpoenas had not been made public.

Former Deputy Attorney General James Comey's testimony about the hospital-room pressure put on then AG John Ashcroft may well have been the straw that broke the proverbial camel's back, AP says.

[1:30 p.m. update]

John at AMERICAblog makes the interesting point that this subpoena will probably force Cheney to claim executive privilege. This will force him to drop his silly argument that the vice president is the 4th branch of government. Of course, Cheney is already shifting his stand on that goofiness.

[3:40 p.m. update]

TPM has more details on the committee's action.

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George W. Bush Raps

Tonight's funny is a year old, so it's dated, but it makes me laugh and laughing is what life is all about, dude.



Curious GWB - George Bush Raps, posted to YouTube by butter TV on June 18, 2006.

I could have picked the gangster rap.

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