The President Is Not Smiling

[deadparrot]

My first rule as a writer is to resist clichés, those worn but familiar phrases that creep into your prose and muddy the meaning. Sometimes, however, a cliché is too accurate to reject. In the matter of the White House staff shake-up, George W. Bush is, well, rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic.

Andrew Card is out, Josh Bolten is in. Washington is atwitter at this fresh start for the embattled presidency. Will the new guy take my calls? Reporters try to remember if they ever wrote anything nasty about him. And can't you see Osama pulling on his chin whiskers?

Not to worry. It's only an office shuffle. The new chief of staff brings nothing new to running the country since, as budget director, he has been there all along, contributing to the President's troubles. This diversion is a three-day story at most, before reality-based reality intrudes and overwhelms.

The President is cratering. Reality is intensifying, every day it seems. I imagine the Oval Office briefing where Card and the President bring Bolten up to speed on the latest upsets:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/thenation/20060410greider

[Demit]

1. An inbred administration, sadly predictable results.

[sui generis]

2. ditto re tawdry titanic triteness

:P

But you can't get mad at the shit for smelling. It's the one who left the steamer (hey, Titanic was a steamer too come to think of it) there who deserves the blame.

And the media has been told that Pretzeldent Dumbya is really shakin' things up, and so there is reduced focus on other media-worthy issues.

The real criteria is, "do you think that changing out Andy Card will change your approval ratings, Mr. Bush?"

Or perhaps the real question is "Mr. Card, burnt out a little?"

Deck chairs.

[savemefromdumbya]

3. Will the Titanic withstand anymore cat. 4/5 hurricanes?

I think the hurricanes of 2006 will definitely wipe out the Bush administration not to mention the coming indictments and Bush's old pal Abramoff?

[Oceansaway]

4. i hope your right !