More tortuous rhetoric

Mr. Cheney's the spokesman we'd pick
Claiming "charges of torture won't stick."
Some think it a goof.
We say it's the proof
That conservatives didn't know Dick!

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The Old Faithful of Nonsense
By Eugene Robinson, The Washington Post, 5/12/09

If the shoo fits...

A reporter, expressing his mood,
Made a gesture to Bush that was rude.
Though he took it in jest,
He has been such a pest
It seems fitting, somehow, he got "shoed."

All I can say, after reviewing the video, is "What a lame duck!"

Bush Trip To Iraq Has Sole, Reporter Throws Shoes
Morining Edition, NPR, 12/15/08

Palin Comparison - Low expectations?

You betcha!

Folksy wisdom is kinda amusin';
But there isn't a chance we're excusin'
All the pale platitudes
About "kids," "moms" 'n "dudes;"
Or the notion "she won by not losin'."

Seems like the last time the American public allowed their low expectations of a candidate to influence their judgment in the debates, they got exactly what was expected; for eight long years! Let's hope we don't get fooled again.

Need I say that I was not impressed by Sarah Palin's bobbing and weaving to avoid answering questions? If you're going to employ a rope-a-dope strategy you better have the talent to deliver the knockout punch; and you better not be the dope. Joe Biden is certainly no dope. He presented authentic, thoughtful and articulate plans for how he and Barack Obama intend to bring about change and he clearly elucidated the differences between their ticket and the opposition. Sarah Palin's scripted performance, on the other hand, sounded like a broken record; stuck on "maverick, maverick, maverick" and offering assurances of change with no real substantive plan. She never delineated a difference between the McCain/Palin approach and that of the current Bush/Cheney administration.

After listening to Geraldine Ferraro comment on the debate last night, I remain surprised that talented, competent and experienced women are not showing more outrage at the Republican choice for VP. It's not that she is a woman but that she is a featherweight in a world of heavyweights. Why not choose Condoleeza Rice, for example, or any number of experienced conservative women who don't have a direct connection with the current administration? Are women so desperate for a female in the White House that they are willing to settle for less than the best they have to offer? Hillary must have been spittin' nails watching last night's bout. Eight years ago I said to a colleague that one would like to believe that their president is smarter than them, at least in the complex realm of world politics. I guess that holds true for my vice-presidential expectations as well.

In Debate, G.O.P. Ticket Survives a Test
News Analysis by Adam Nagourney
The New York Times, 10/30/8

Sex and drugs and crude behavior

Republicans- Here’s a cheap thrill:
Think of MMS failing to bill,
Then let out a moan
In your breathiest tone
“Skip the royalties; drill, baby, drill!”

Thanks to Cowtown Pattie for inspiring me to write this one. And as long as we're on the topic of off-shore drilling, here's what Scientific American has to say about its dubious value.

Report Says Oil Agency Ran Amok
Interior Dept. Inquiry Finds Sex, Corruption
By Derek Kravitz and Mary Pat Flaherty
The Washington Post, 9/11/08

It's about f**king time!

Seems al-Maliki sides with Barack
With regard to our troops in Iraq.
That for Bush and his war,
Like a pimp with his whore,
Withdrawal should be on the clock!

Iraq Wants Withdrawal Timetable In U.S. Pact
By Ernesto Londoño and Dan Eggen
The Washington Post, 7/8/08

4K? Not OK!

It’s exactly five years, 1st of May,
I recall hearing Dubbaya say
That our mission was done
With the war shortly won.
Now we’re mourning the loss of 4K.

So it isn’t the billions we pay,
Lack of victory, or the delay;
But the breach of our trust.
When a war is unjust
Even one death is never OK.

U.S. toll in Iraq reaches 4,000
By Alexandra Zavis, Los Angeles Times, 3/24/08

A word to the wise

I guess it's a sign of our time
When the linguists are partners in crime
With Chief Monger of Fear.
Yes, their "Word of the Year,"
Just like President Bush, is subprime.

'Subprime' Is Linguists' Word of Year
By Sophia Tareen, Associated Press, 1/5/08

Cold realities

Mr. Bush has a plan, that is bold,
To halt global warming, we're told.
The Kyoto accord
Is completely ignored
To insure that the plan leaves us cold!

[NB: This is a reworking of a post published about 5 years ago which, because of the U.S.'s singular stance on greenhouse gasses among developed nations, remains relevant today. How appropriate that I recycled it. BTW, meant to post it in December.]

Waiting for America
The Guardian, 12/15/07

Faulty intelligence?

His plan in Iran has a crimp
And his war in Iraq, he can't pimp.
Has Science now shown
What we always have known?
Can Bush be replaced by a chimp?




Chimps Exhibit Superior Memory, Outshining Humans
By Henry Fountain, The New York Times, 12/4/07

Won't get fooled again!

Presidential address preview

As his surge simply slows to a crawl,
Mr. Bush has learned nothing at all.
With his words rearranged,
His solution's unchanged:
He just says "military," with drawl!

Limited Pullout Is Middle Way on Iraq, Bush Will Say
By Sheryl Gay Stolberg and Steven Lee Myers
The New York Times, 9/13/07

We'll go no more a-Rove-ing

Leaving unfinished business, Karl Rove,
No matter how hard that he strove,
Was able to forge
A throne for "King George,"
But not deify him, by Jove!

Karl Rove, Adviser to President Bush, to Resign
By Peter Baker and Debbi Wilgoren
The Washington Post, 8/13/07

Land of Libberty?

Even sans Bush's chosen commute,
We were still on a treacherous route.
Our country's been mugged
By political thugs
And the thieves have escaped with the loot!

WASHINGTON - President Bush spared former White House aide I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby from a 2 1/2-year prison term on Monday, issuing an order that commutes his sentence

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Soft on Crime
Editorial, The New York Times, 7/3/07

Pride goeth before the G-8

Does Bush even reckon how dumb it
Is to bluster while he's at the Summit?
Does he think they'll applaud
His image abroad,
Or his ratings at home still can't plummet?

Rifts on Russia and Climate Seen at Summit
By Mark Landler and Sheryl Gay Stolberg
The New York Times, 6/6/07

A Tony departure

The Britons have had their full share
Of Iraq and Prime Minister Blair,
So he soon will step down.
But we're left with our clown
And for respite we haven't a prayer!



House Approves Revised War Bill
Two-Part Funding Faces Veto Threat
By Jonathan Weisman, The Washington Post, 5/11/07

Britain's Blair to Step Down June 27
By Danica Kirka (AP), The Guardian, 5/11/07

Mayday! Mayday!

2003 vs 2007

This bill was a head-on collision
Meant to challenge George Bush's decision
To keep us at war.
Congress evened the score,
But have they accomplished their mission?

Bush Vetoes Iraq War Bill on Day of Political Theater
By Brian Naylor, NPR All Things Considered, 5/1/07

Self-inflicted wounds

New rules of engagement apply
Now that Congress is questioning why,
When Bush went to war,
Without bullets or gore,
That Truth was the first one to die.

Panel Hears About Falsehoods in 2 Wartime Incidents
By Michael Luo, The New York Times, 4/25/07

The initial response from the White House

"Yes, A.G. can hang on as A.G.,"
Says his buddy G.W.B.,
"Though he gave the O.K.s
To fire those D.A.s,
In D.C., that is just S.O.P."

Ex-Aide Rejects Gonzales Stand Over Dismissals
By David Johnston and Eric Lipton
The New York Times, 3/30/07

Maybe it's the accent

Every time that he comes to the dais
Mr. Bush uses words that dismay us.
I keep hearing his voice
Say his leadership choice
In Iraq is a man named "Betrayus!"

(with thanks to Michael Feldman for the inspiration Oh, let's be honest; I stole his joke.)

The Bush plan and the Petraeus doctrine
By Paul Reynolds, BBC News, 1/11/07

Taking the bulimia by the horns

Mr. Bush is indulging the urge
To seek a solution in "surge."
But more troops in Bagdad
Will not end the jihad
Just as sure as a binge follows purge.

Bush Works To Rally Support for Iraq 'Surge'
By Michael Abramowitz, The Washington Post , 1/9/07

Knock, knock, knocking on Robert's door

The Senate would hold no debates
Before casting our lot with the Fates.
After Donald from Hell,
What's an easier sell
Than Heaven lies just beyond Gates?

Senate Confirms Gates as Secretary of Defense
By David S. Cloud, 12/7/06