The Wright Angle
May 21, 2007

A little of this, a little of that

By Scott Wright

I was scouring the Internet looking for an idea for this week's column and finding plenty, when I remembered it has been awhile since I attempted one of those potpourri-type articles that our own Bob Ingram fires off so expertly each and every week.

So instead of sticking to my usual routine of electronically emitting 1,500 words on a single topic of interest (to me, at least, if not to our readers), I thought I'd try Mr. Ingram's approach. With apologies to Bob for my feeble attempt at mimicry, here goes.


Gonzo has got to go
I know, I know. That's not exactly a revelation. Pretty much the entire country has figured out that Attorney General Alberto Gonzales is a moronic, lying Bush flunky more concerned with covering his own ass than prosecuting the laws of the land.

Back in March, I wrote a column gushing with glee over the guilty verdict in the Scooter Libby trial. Near the end of that article, I wrote the following: "The next big scandal on the radar, one we'd probably never have heard about if Republicans still controlled the Congress, could be the possibly illegal firing of several prosecuting attorneys for politically-expedient reasons ... If you value your constitutional liberties you should have your fingers crossed that (Alberto Gonzales) will be the next Bush administration official called to the carpet."

Yahtzee!

First of all, I'm no sage. Anyone who watches the Sunday morning political shows, as I do (Hear that ladies? The line forms at the door!) could have figured out what a fool the attorney general really is, at least professionally. I mean, I'm sure Gonzales, who hails from Texas, can probably rope a steer, saddle a horse and stir up a swell Southwestern omelet. Apparently, though, he called in sick to work at the ranch on manure-shoveling day, because his efforts in that department a few weeks ago in front of the United States Congress, well ... stunk.

Over the course of two days, in separate appearances before both House and Senate committees, the man who is supposed to be running the Justice Department admitted -- over and over and over again -- that he doesn't have a damn clue what's going on at the Justice Department.

In between those dismal showings, Gonzales changed his story about exactly who authorized the firing of eight U.S. attorneys (the number is at nine now, and rising) about a half-dozen times. Last week, after Gonzales' top deputy, James Comey, resigned in disgust over the way illegal Bush administration wire taps were forced on the Justice Department, Gonzo conveniently shifted the blame for the attorney firings to Comey and in the process contradicted statements he had already made to Congress.

I think "shameless" is the word you're looking for.

Sen. Chuck Hagel got it right in a press release his office disseminated after he heard Comey's truthful testimony : "The American people deserve an attorney general, the chief law enforcement officer of our country, whose honesty and capability are beyond question. Attorney General Gonzales can no longer meet this standard. He has failed this country. He has lost the moral authority to lead ... In the interest of the American people, Alberto Gonzales should resign."

Amen, senator. On Thursday, several of Hagel's Republican colleagues went pubic with calls for Gonzales to hit the road before he does any more damage to the Justice Department and the country. If Gonzales has a brain in his head he'll have his desk cleared out by the time you read this column.

So don't count on it.


Bridge builder busted?
Remember the Alaska bridge-to-nowhere project that the Republican-controlled Congress funded (to the tune of around $300 million) back in 2004? That entire boondoggle was engineered by Republican Sen. Ted Stevens, the state's senior man in Washington.

If you were wondering whether or not all the negative publicity and accusations of impropriety that were directed at Stevens and his dubious bridge project were justified, I offer this tidbit as evidence that they were, indeed.

Earlier this month, ABC News investigative correspondent Brian Ross reported on his blog at www.abcnews.go.com that the FBI is expanding probes into public corruption in Alaska, some of which apparently includes Stevens.

The senator's son is already under investigation by the feds and two Alaskan oil services company executives, who have previously donated heavily to Stevens, have already signed plea deals and agreed to cooperate with prosecutors investigating a bribery scheme in the state Legislature.

Looks like we may have another crooked politician in the District of Columbia, folks. Imagine that.


Hypocritical White House
Since March 2003, when George W. Bush dragged the United States into the unnecessary, seemingly never-ending war we're still fighting in Iraq, administration officials in general and Vice President Dick Cheney in particular have taken every opportunity to rip into opponents of the conflict, accusing them of being unsupportive of American troops fighting for freedom abroad.

Naturally, any sane, logical person -- which by definition excludes the people I just mentioned -- realizes that a war protester does not a troop disparager make. Opposition to war and apathy for soldiers are not automatically mutually inclusive traits. Actually, I imagine that combination encompasses only a scant few Americans.

It certainly does not include me or anyone else I know who thinks the war in Iraq is a total freaking disaster. In fact, according to the latest poll numbers I've seen on the Internet, there are more and more of us who think that way every day. (I knew folks would come around sooner or later.)

Anyway, doesn't it seem odd that after years of disparaging as troop-haters anyone who opposed the war in Iraq, the media began reporting last week that the White House is now strongly opposed to a troop pay raise recently proposed by House Democrats? Sure seems odd to me.

President Bush asked for a 3 percent pay raise for the troops, which would equal private sector raises, according to a May 18 report on the Raw Story website.

The raise, which would have gone into effect on Jan. 1, 2008, was increased by the House Armed Services Committee to 3.5 percent. For reasons I cannot fathom, the Bush administration hit the roof, actually releasing a statement declaring that they "strongly opposed" both the 3.5 percent raise and subsequent follow-on raises, calling them "unnecessary."

Wrong again, W. Wow, but that dipstick is consistent in his idiocy. It was the war in Iraq that was "unnecessary."

It sure seems strange to me that Dubya doesn't mind sending hundreds of thousands of young men and women to fight and die so that Halliburton can make a mint, but then doesn't want to share, just a little bit, with the people he's sent over there to do all the work.