>But, as he proved Wednesday, Bush is still capable of decisive surprise.

the only people who were surprised by this move seem to be the credulous press who thought Rove was a miracle worker, and had a great get out the vote machine, and have been snowed by these jerks for the last six years.

Wake up! You have been punked. And you continue to be punked by incompetents and fools.

whether Mr. Shapiro exhibits hope or merely disorientation. The latter would be understandable -- even in the last few days, I was dubious that this electoral shift could actually be pulled off. And thank goodness it happened, but Bush remains who he is.

Despite my personal prediliction to root for such stories of redemption, I don't see it here. It required a deafening clamor from friend and foe alike for Bush to make this necessary move, but he's got a loooooong way to prove that he's pulled his head from the sand.

..we learn that Bush is an admitted liar. He lied to reporters about replacing Rumsfled because of the election. He admitted this today. He said this in front of the press corps. He admitted that he lied.

The nation needs to understand that having an admitted liar as our Commander in Cheif is pretty bad. Based on his own admission, we can never believe anything this man says again (or prior) because all of his answers are a scripted placebo used to pacify the American public.

Apply this logic to the current situation in Iraq. The result is too disturbing to put in writing.

...as long as they convince him it's pre-ordained in some way. Now Bush may have some new input. If the new Defense guy approaches him the right way, and the new Defense guy has any plans, Bush may surprise us.

New Defense Guy: "How about pulling half our troops back to Afghanistan, Mr. President, and bringing half of them home? We could put the Taliban back out of business pretty fast, and rebuild the country, and still have a military presence on Iran's shoulder. And we could leave Afghanistan as your shining middle eastern democracy legacy.

Those Iraqis don't deserve you or your grand vision."

I guess that, in the age of Oprah, it is inevitable that all matters will be reduced to the level of some notable personality and their story defining our perceptions. Maybe there is some value in framing a discussion of George Bush in this manner. No doubt, there is a segment of the population that relates to the angst he must be experiencing, given all that he has been through these last six years. It's so sad. He has sacrificed so much!

Give me a break! While there maybe something to be said for giving the Oprah crowd something they can wrap their little minds around, discussing our current position in the world as though George Bush's personal legacy is anywhere in the list of top 100 things Americans should be concerned with, is ridiculous. His personal failure was inevitable by about August 6th, 2001. (That President's Daily

Briefing, "Osama Determined to Attack Within the U.S" and the four week vacation that he elected as his response) It is now irreversible.

Let's focus the discussion more directly in terms of the 300 million legacies that were entrusted to him six years ago. Most of the dramas and heartbreaks are mundane but very real. Everyday work and family life have gotten much more difficult for most of us and our prospects in the foreseeable future are materially worse. There are growing millions of talented, hard-working people that can't hold on to a decent standard of living. There are millions of adults that can't reliably maintain health insurance. The opportunity for a college education has become limited to the "upper middle class".

For those fortunate enough to experience life's real dramas only vicariously or in the abstract, the topic of George Bush's endangered personal legacy may seem compelling. For the rest of us, concern for George Bush's legacy is a waste of time and emotional energy.

So, if Cheney was the "invisible hand" keeping Rumsfeld safe until now, should we be looking at Cheny's oddly-timed hunting trip as Pontius Pilate washing his invisible hands of the whole sorry affair?

Did Cheney know that there was no longer any point protecting his old buddy? Or is something else going on? Does it mean that Cheney no loner has the same influence over Bush that he once held? With his ally gone and his stubbornly incompetent tactics damaging the presidency like so much buck-shot to the face, will he be next?

Can Bush salvage his Presidency? Can that question even be put forth seriously? This administration has been an abortion from the outset. How could it now be salvageable when it never existed except in the minds of a few deluded souls to begin with? Everyone knew, even his staunchest supporters, that Bush was a Wrong Number. They took a chance trying to jump on the gravy train of hubris as it wobbled past and they are now all as dazed and confused as their hapless, hopeless and utterly irredeemable leader.

Bush's "confession" that he had lied about his plans for Rumsfeld was no strategic move, no stroke of genius and certainly not the result of a transformation. It was simply one more piece of evidence that this man is incompetent to serve, and that he was stunned and disoriented, as though he had been smacked upside the head with a shovel - which, come to think of it, I suppose he had. Good. God willing, the pain of that blow will linger a good long time.

Sometimes it seems like some of us forget that Bush salvaging his presidency would actually be good for us as citizens of the country he leads. The Democratic intervention that is occurring and will hopefully continue to pick up steam could conceivably make him a more effective president, and we should all encourage that. Don't get me wrong, I hate the guy, too; he's an arrogant fratboy war criminal who habitually blows his nose on the Constitution while shamelessly dividing this country for political gain, but a slight rise in his competence or awareness of reality is something to be hoped for and applauded. I mean, we all gotta live here, tragically he is "in charge" and there's two more years to go. Everything that's happened over the past couple days, including his wildly entertaining performance in the press conference, points toward a less destructive Dubya.