A tale from Bushlandia

When the history books are written about the Bush administration, one of the consistent themes will be "wrong priorities."

There are threats to America and then there are threats to the Bush administration.

Here are a few stories from today's news cycle that illustrate clearly what the Bush administration cares most about.

In the emergency catagory goes this story. Destroying the Constitution and protecting the telecom industry from public scrutiny is vital.

Bush Calls Surveillance Bill an ‘Urgent Priority’
Using some of his toughest language in weeks, President Bush prodded Congress on Thursday to pass his preferred version of surveillance legislation, asserting that every day of delay could put the country in danger.

Mr. Bush said again that renewing the surveillance legislation is "a very urgent priority," and that it must include controversial provisions that would shield telecommunications companies from wholesale lawsuits...

NY Times

In the non-emergency catagory is the administration's commitment to doing anything serious about global warming, even under order of the US Supreme Court.

This today from the Sierra Club...

New Letter, No Action from EPA on Global Warming
EPA Continues to Ignore Supreme Court

Washington, D.C.-- With a letter sent late yesterday, the Environmental Protection Agency has missed yet another important deadline on the action the Supreme Court ordered it must take on global warming pollution in the case Massachusetts v. EPA.  EPA has continually failed to make the "endangerment finding" or offer a lawful reason for not doing so, as required by the Court.  It has also failed to issue draft regulations for global warming emissions from vehicles, something that was promised on numerous occasions by the President and other administration officials.  

The Sierra Club and eleven other environmental groups involved in the original case sent a letter to EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson on January 23, 2008 requesting that he notify plaintiffs--no later than February 27th--exactly when EPA would make the endangerment finding and issue the draft regulations.  

Yet late yesterday EPA sent a letter which reads, in part, "As a result, at this time, the Agency does not have a specific timeline for responding to the remand. However, let me assure you that developing an overall strategy for addressing the serious challenge of global climate change is a priority for the Agency, and we are taking very seriously our responsibility to develop an effective, comprehensive strategy."

Statement of David Bookbinder, Sierra Club Chief Climate Counsel

"EPA has offered no good reason for dragging its feet.  Not only has EPA ignored the highest court in the land, it has ignored deadlines set by the President and its own officials.  Just as EPA ignored the clear meaning of the Clean Air Act for nearly seven years, it has now spent a year ignoring the Supreme Court.

"After a Rose Garden photo op with the President and his Cabinet proclaiming their desire to act in response to the Court’s watershed global warming decision, the administration has walked away from its repeated public promises.  This is just the latest example of a disturbing and ever-widening gap between this administration’s rhetoric and the unfortunate reality when it comes to action on global warming.  

"Unless EPA owns up to its obligations immediately, we will be forced to take the administration back to court to ensure that it finally does what the Supreme Court has to ensure that it does what the law demands and the High Court has ordered it to do."

Oh, and by the way...

Bush: US Is Not Headed Into Recession

Bush's view of the economy was decidedly rosier than that of many economists, who say the country is nearing recession territory or may already be there. "I'm concerned about the economy," he said. "I don't think we're headed to recession. But no question, we're in a slowdown."

AP

•  What really burns my ass is...

  how our useless congress hasn't charged this asshole with any crimes.

  by born socialist on Thu Feb 28, 2008 at 09:57:56 AM PDT

  •  A crime presumes some personal gratification.

    Irritating other people may be personally gratifying, but it doesn't qualify as a crime.

    Failing to carry out one's duties is an impeachable (firing) offense, but that's for the Congress to decide.  So far, they seem to prefer keeping on a slacker to risking someone who might actually use all the powers the executive has amassed to do some harm.

    If there's one thing we should have learned during Reagan's reign, it's that the President is not a necessary component for the federal government to limp along.

    by hannah on Thu Feb 28, 2008 at 10:08:54 AM PDT

•  327

  days left until Bush is privatized.

  by greendem on Thu Feb 28, 2008 at 10:00:33 AM PDT

  •  You reminded me of...

    A point I had to keep making to one of my old roommates: Just because you say something doesn't make it true.  I have this urge to pound people over the head with that mantra sometimes.  Most egregious example in recent memory, I saw a headline on CNN.com last week: "Paulson and Bernake agree, no recession in '08."  Sure.

    Starve the corporate beast, buy local!

    by EthrDemon on Thu Feb 28, 2008 at 11:14:30 AM PDT

•  Maybe it would help to just refer to the

  "Gossip and Ogle Bill."

  I mean, what evidence do we have that watching and listening to foreigners chatter in languages nobody in the White House speaks is going to do anything?

  You know, we certainly surveilled those planes heading into the towers and we even listened to the passengers calls for help and what good did it do anyone?

  by hannah on Thu Feb 28, 2008 at 10:02:42 AM PDT

•  Killing the planet,

  the Constitution, and the economy is apparently their priority. Unfortunately, it looks like they've gotten their way with no push-back at all.

  by cotterperson on Thu Feb 28, 2008 at 10:11:34 AM PDT