"...what the Bush crew wants and has always wanted: power with no accountability, as well as the power to destroy anyone who dares to disagree, let alone challenge."

But this isn't really news. This is humanity. Anyone who strives for power, strives for exactly this kind of power. Absolute power. Even those committed to doing only good think their way of doing good is the only way of doing good and therefore they should be left alone to do good their way without interference (goodie-goodies start at the top of the slippery slope, unlike Bush/Cheney, who were already well on their way down it when they came into office). The end result of unchecked power is always the same, though.

That's why we have oversight. That's why the congress that failed to provide oversight should be taken out and flogged. They are the true villains in the piece.

viewerservices@msnbc.com

She should be given total, blanket immunity immediately. She is a small fish.

What if this is a trial balloon, introducing the idea of someone taking the Fifth, to test the public's reaction. If it isn't too violent, then perhaps they'll stick their toe further into the water and have Sampson do the same. If that doesn't result in street riots, then can Gonzales and Rove be far behind?

It isn't going to work, of course, but can you imagine the fevered planning and strategizing that's going on right now, as it finally dawns that the administration is going to have to mount an actual campaign of damage control? No more brushing things aside and getting a rubber stamp from the congress and the press.

With the posters who question whether GG should be spending his time, mental energy and cyber-ink throwing spitwads at other online media. When someone publishes an outrageous lie that requires careful and informed refutation, great. There's no one better than Glenn at it. But this post is more like making poo-poo noises at the other team.

Timothy Griffin admitted that he spent time prior to the '04 election in a room full of people and computers whose only job was to parse what John Kerry said for the tiniest inconsistency that could be turned into a "story" and fed to the media. And hey, look what happened to George Allen in one unguarded moment. We all know this is how the game is played. There's no need to point out that it's a dirty business, or rail that the other guy is a big shithead. From his point of view, we're the shitheads. The only real thing of value is truth and accuracy. Glenn Greenwald is a treasured source of both, but I don't look to him for the making of rude noises at the other guys' bloggers.

And right now, Tony Blair is doing his best to help, as are the crazy-as-batshit Iranians (is it possible they want us in the region so badly that they're willing to have us invade them?). In this age of GPS and spy-in-the-sky satellites, it's inconceivable that there would be any real mystery about where those sailors were when the Iranians picked them up. Yet, the Iranians continue to hold them, Blair makes threatening noises and the U.S. Navy flexes its muscles in a show of power. Gulf of Tonkin, anyone? Remember the Maine? Does anyone think GWB wouldn't like to expand the occupation of Iraq into a full-on Middle-Eastern war? Am I paranoid?

Maybe I shouldn't have called the Iranians crazy -- though antagonizing a pair of well-armed warmongers like Bush and Blair seems a bit self-destructive. If Blair knows his sailors were where they shouldn't have been and instead of saying, "My bad," and asking nicely that they be returned, he's making threats, then I do worry.

Laughed out loud. I live in LA and everyone always picks on us, but at least this was FUNNY!

This is leading up to a medical announcement of some kind re McCain. He's clearly not well in the head. Hopefully it's not anything dangerous, just some loose wiring. But he's clearly deteriorating mentally. After all he's been through, I hope there's a way for him to fade quietly out without too much embarrassment, away from the public eye.

I'm all for Fredo stepping aside, though it would have been fun to see Bush pressured into firing him. But only as long as his ouster -- self-inflicted or otherwise -- doesn't "put a cap" on the purge scandal. I still want to know what Monica Goodling is so afraid of; I still want to know what Kyle Sampson has to say; I still want to know what the States Attorneys who didn't get fired have been up to, to keep themselves in the administration's good graces.

purge [purj] verb (past purged, past participle purged, present participle purg·ing, 3rd person present singular purg·es)

1. transitive verb get rid of opponents: to remove opponents or people considered undesirable from a state or organization

Follow the money is still a valid directive. Bush has enriched his friends in the Military Industrial Complex and will bask in their gratitude in the years following his presidency. He doesn't give a shit whethere he's popular with the rest of us.