Lame Duck Dubya

Regarding the recess appointment of John Bolton, I've noticed that Republican politicians have been saying "the President has his man," or the "this is the man the President wanted." I haven't heard any of them frame the appointment in supportive terms, nothing along the lines of "this is the man WE wanted," or "this is a victory for conservatives." Because of course, it isn't. It is yet another stain on the Bush Presidency. And as Bush forges ahead with his Radical Right agenda, members of his party have been working hard to distance themselves from his malignant decisions and poor judgement without appearing mutinous. It's an increasingly difficult task, particularly when a randomly selected person-on-the-street can't point to a single, unabashedly good thing the President has done, other than "being strong" on 911 and bombing Afghanistan. As if Al Gore would have broken down, wept and handed the country over to terrorists. Please. When the Dubya era ends, a large number of Republican politicians will be privately relieved, and with good reason.