It seems to me that the wage congress should make should be the mean or average, of what the average citizen earns. Their job I thought, was and is to represent our and the nation's best interest. For that matter, CEO pay should be indexed to average worker pay. That current ratio in American corporations is WAY out of whack compared to European counterparts.

I guess I'm just a socialist though.

Yes, very good in fact. We haven't had a leader like this (let alone someone who writes his own speeches) for far too long. I wish though, that right at the start he would have respectfully asked, "People, I'm going to ask tonight that you hold your applause. I'm going to suggest to you that we are in no position to shower praises on me or ourselves. We have hard work and difficult choices ahead of us. So for tonight at least, let's be serious. Let's put our full attentions into it, and let's save our accolades for when we've taken care of business."

But hey, you can't have everything.

I'd rather "not need" Joe Lieberman.

Yes, the stool made him look short, but so did that bright red tie that hung down to his crotch. Handlers?

I voted for Darcy Burner last time and will do so again. However, her opponent is NOT a "scuzzbag". He's a decent guy even though I don't agree with him on much. In his freshman term he bucked all those sanctimonius Republican asses on the Terry Schaivo thing. He sticks with the red otherwise, so doesn't get my vote, but he IS adecent guy.

In a country where large percentages of the population can't identify the three branches of government, by can speculate knowingly about whether Angelina and Brad are going to make it, the only surprise in this article is that anyone's surprised at all. If it was truly about substance over spin, camaign finance would be a non-issue.

I have to admit, Ms. Walsh makes me think. Particularly that back of the bus line. However, when I reflect on the negative feelings Ms. Clinton has seemed to engender, I suspect that for most people it has more to do with a poorly diguised, say anything thirst for power than anything approaching sexism. Add to this the arrogance of her early campaign (parallels of Howard Dean's Time article in the fall of '03 when he was the font runner scratching his head about why the others didn't just get in line behind him) and you've got a recipe for resentment that's got nothing to do with gender. Dont get me wrong - I know it's out there just as racism is for Mr. Obama. I just don't think it's the dominant factor.

Thanks for this article. In spite of practicing zen, Lieberman has made my skin crawl for years. Biden's ripping of him in the Wall Street Journal made me cheer, but this article was the intelligent excoriation that allowed me to sit back down, and quietly say, "Yes."

One correction to this article: NO ONE in the Pacific Northwest likes the Steelers. Another nail.

Comments that speculate on who President Bush "should" dump ignore one of the most prevalent and fatal flaws of the current administration: lockstep agreement and total loyalty.

Say what you will about the pros and cons of the wars in Iraq, Afghanistan, and against terror, the environment, civil rights, and the Supreme Court, The Bush/Cheney (Rove, Rice, Rumsfeld, et al) administration has been marked by a sustained culture of "if you're not with us, you're against us". On issue after issue they've had preconceived ideas about what they believed to be true. These ideas persist in spite of ample evidence to the contrary. In fact, the culture propogated within the cabinet discourages discussing evidence that doesn't meet their conclusions. Cabinet members, congressmen, and pundits who support these views are supported and rewarded. Those who don't, well, I guess they get the opposite treatment. This attitude has been reflected to the world as well, and the Bush administration has set America up as the go it alone world power.

In the face of this culture, it is impossible for the President to withdraw support for loyal compadres. The closest we can hope for are the sacrificial lambs that have come thus far - hardly anyone who impacts the way things are, or the way decisions are made. If someone like Karl Rove does "change positions", it certainly means no substantive change to their membership in the club, nor their impact on the maintenance of the club.

When history judges this administration, I hope it doesn't merely focus on Iraq or the environment. A culture of secrecy and lockstep agreement will never yield the best policy for all. I believe the true lessons for Americans lie in the importance of assembling the brightest minds on both sides of the political spectrum, engaging in spirited debate, and then in the end, implementing the policies that are best for America in both the short AND long term.