I'm sitting here infuriated, as is all too common, by the actions of the POTUS. But I'm also thinking we may be seeing the true beginning of the end for his presidency.
Bush was spending his vaunted political capital like a drunken sailor earlier this year, and like the sailor, he got very little out of it.
Now he's opened up another battlefront. Does he have the resources to defend it?
Here's the bottom line: The Bush White House is as weak as it's ever been. Rather than seeing the Roberts nomination as a way to distract the public away from the Rove affair, it may turn out the other way around. Perhaps the Rove affair will draw Republican resources away from the Roberts fight.
We might be able to see wins on both fronts.
A few more thoughts:
Who would normally be calling the shots at the White House as they try to get their nominee approved? Why, Rove, of course. But he's probably going to be a bit busier than usual for a while, and he may find fewer phone calls being returned than he's used to.
A few others might also be a bit tied up. Cheney, for instance.
And right now, the Democrats definitely seem to have more momentum and more unity than they've had in a very long time.
We've seen some major victories this year. To be sure, none of them are final, but each of them make the Democratic side more of a force to be reckoned with. Another one or two major victories, and a major indictment or two, may be all that stands between now and official lame-duckhood.
I'm not giddy; like I said, I'm furious about this nomination. But I think the future may be much brighter than it looks.