The next-to-last paragraph of this essay should be recited by every person NOT mesmerized by Dubya, at every opportunity and to any willing audience. The complete contrast between the relentless Clinton witchhunt and the utter lack of ANY effort by Congress or the GOP to hold this President truly accountable for ANYTHING is mind-boggling.

*sigh*

Maybe our long national nightmare will start to fade away next Tuesday night. God, let's hope so. How much more can this nation and world TAKE from this crowd?

Future citizens will revile us as weak and shiftless if we do NOT impeach Bush--the fraud...the liar!

Vote Democrat '06

Impeach Bush '07

He told my son this week how things had never been better in Iraq, about what a fraud Amnesty International is, about how Michael J. Fox was smart to apologize for being wrong on the stem cell issue. I don't know anyone who is not hurting right now in this country because of this president and his administration. Thanks Garrison, you are like the guy in Invasion of the Body Snatchers who won't go to sleep.

"A pathetic admission of defeat for one who has owned all three branches of government for the past six years -- did he seek power so that he could attain self-knowledge?"

could this just be that Bush is a slow learner?

I guess it would be too much to expect Garrison to understand the law. Here's the Congressional Authorization for war:

http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2002/10/20021002-2.html

Now, after reading that, Garrison could consult the Constitution and note that after Congress authroizes war, it's legal.

Yes, I realize that's a hard concept for a published author - especially one who allegedly understands English - to understand, but there it is.

Before the next article, maybe Garrison could try learning just a small bit about how the system works. After that, he could try political reality. If you think impeachment backfired in 1998, you'll love watching the back blast in 2007.

Love how this one sort of slips up on you.

Yes, lets make him King.

If we don't school these jerks this time out, I swear I am leaving the country and going to Canada, where rational people live. I am not doing as much as I might, but then I have issues. Gave more money than I can afford, wish I could give more. Please work your butts off for the Dem turnout.

"Garrison could consult the Constitution and note that after Congress authroizes war, it's legal."

Yes, for sure, after Congress authorizes war, there we have it.

However, when the Current Occupant (who was never legally elected, IMO) has lied about the reasons for invasion and occupation, with no real plans for what happens next, criticism is valid.

And the present situation wasn't all that hard to predict. It's been years since I had a Secret clearance, but I didn't need one to know before the invasion what was going to happen. I read the open literature, unlike the Current Occupant. I knew for sure that Saddam/Iraq had nothing to do with the attacks of 9/11. I knew that he did not present any significant threat to the USA. And I knew that, as we were ramping up for the invasion, we had no significant plans for the occupation and "reconstruction" of Iraq. And I will never forgive any Congress-critter for voting in favor of letting Shrub do whatever-the-hell he wanted to do.

Outstanding.

The Constitution grants Congress the power to declare war, not the power to grant the president the power to make war. Congress has not declared war; rather Congress has illegally abdicated its Constitutional responsibility, allowing the executive to usurp powers not granted or intended by the Constitution.

After you consult, that is, actually read, the Constitution, then perhaps you will understand the law of the land. That may be a difficult proposition for a hard-right-leaning party loyalist, but give it a try, won't you, because you may learn how the system is designed to work. Hint: America was founded on liberal principles.

As for political reality, a hefty majority of Americans know and acknowledge the illegality and atrocity of the Iraq war and how the Bush Administration lied repeatedly to get us into it. Impeachment has never in our history been more appropriate than it is right now.

Garrison Keillor knows what he's talking about and he gives eloquent voice to the deeply held sentiments of the majority of Americans. I, for one, greatly appreciate his writing. The fact that he is a midwesterner instead of hailing from some bastion of coastal liberalism (as I do) only serves to place his words in sharper relief, the better for good people everywhere to see the truth in them. I pray to God that they do.

What do we end up with? Dynamite Dick Cheney as the new Occupant? The Old Scout seems not to think five minutes into the future. Perhaps we could have a special election and Dynamite Dick goes down in flames, but then what? Will the Democrats step forth with someone able to save us or will we end up with Ms.Clinton, our very own cornpone Evita? A gentle reminder: her husband set the stage in 1996 for the Patriot Act.

Bush’s quote, "They can say what they want about me, but at least I know who I am, and I know who my friends are." is old hat, something that he has been saying for years.

From a psychoanalytical point of view, the repeated use of the quote seems to imply that he is hurt by what people say about him and he is upset because he has no one with whom he can share that feeling. Because of this he must become resolute in other matters, displaying a righteousness and independence that puts him above the fray – he doesn’t’ need friends. (Note: he states he knows who his friends are, he does not state that any of these friends exist.)

Bush can most clearly be seen by looking into the future, to the time after he has left office. He will be relatively young for an ex-president. His resume will be almost without peer. Will he be a leading speaker, exposing wisdom about current world events? Will he become a corporate leader, responsible for making decisions that change industries? Will he use his prestige to advance charitable causes? Will he become an academic, sharing his wisdom with the younger generations? Will he become a sage, inviting the young and old to discuss secular and spiritual issues at his Texas ranch?

Most likely Bush does know who he is. Most likely he knows he will be used, with his thoughts and words dismissed and snickered at when he is not present. He will become wealthy and he will have a troupe of sycophants, and he will still recite the quote mentioned above. He will be a sad, lonely man.