Wrong-Plus
Ivins, Molly
Small Favors Molly Ivins Wrong-Plus "You cannot be depressed now," instructs Dan Green, the New York book agent, "because the worst is yet to come." His point is that you have to save room, sort...
...Mighty partisan...
...See the peppy purgeatthe CIA...
...Besides, at least this way we can be sure Bush will get the blame for his own mistakes...
...In the opinion of the White House, it should have been wronger, wrong-plus, as the White House was...
...Sure, right, just the kindofthing that needstobepassed without notice, discussion, or input from anybody other than the sneaky players who slipped them in...
...My, my, my, what will those Bushies think up next...
...Nextwediscover those lovely little add-onstothe must-do appropriations bill-a further erosion of abortion rights andadomes-tic gag rule on abortion and allowing Congress members and their staffstolookatany citizen's tax return...
...Of the fifteen political prosecutions he has conducted during twenty-seven years in office, twelve were Democrats, three Republican...
...Everyone thinks the CIA needs shaking up, but it's bizarre to see it done not because the CIA was wrong about weapons in Iraq, or about the cakewalk that would follow our invasion, but because the CIA wasn't wrong enough...
...With this experience comes the sure knowledge that we can not only survive adversity at the polls, we can often triumph over it-and sometimes indict it...
...The new boss Porter Goss says the CIA must support the Administration's policies-there goes the value of an intelligence service...
...I plantohold backonthe righteous indignation for a while...
...Nice move on the Tom DeLay front, eh...
...You probably heard of the Daily Mirror's: "How Can 59,054,087 People Be So DUMB...
...In Year Four of the Bush Regime, we of course pay no attention to what the rest of the world thinks of us-in fact, our diplomacy is so ept that President Bush's visit to Canada occasioned massive protests...
...In a way...
...I personally think an indi-cationofwhereweare First Amendment-wise was inthe caseofa large numberof network affiliates deciding nottoairSaving Private Ryanon Veterans Day...
...But I preferred the subtlety of The Guardian, which offered in small white letters on a black background, two words: "Oh, God...
...I personally greeted the electoral results with the Zen-like calm that comes from a lifetime of being a progressive in Texas...
...Attacked as a "crackpot," rogue, runaway partisan DA, Earle is known here at home as the guy who keeps getting reelected because everybody thinks he's doing a great job...
...It's clear Bush and Cheney don't think those who insist in looking at reality-based reality, whether spooks or hacks, should report what they find...
...Note that the censorship isnot coming from government but from corporations...
...Note should be taken of a couple of headlines in Britain (our closest ally...
...And gee, what a nice job the R's have done of sliming the prosecutor in the case of Travis County DA Ronnie Earle...
...Not even until the case is settled and the man's innocence is (presumably) proved...
...Molly Ivins, co-author of "Bushwhacked," writes in this space every month...
...So rather than a jaw-dropped, you've-got-to-be-kidding indignation, I find a certain appreciation of the Republicans' post-election outrageousness...
...Nope, Brother DeLay, a born-again Christian and poster child for Republican moral values, can now continue as House dictator despite his three reprimands from the House ethics committee and possible indictment by a Texas grand jury...
...From the executive branch, we see a shuffle of the personnel deck, with yes-men being installed everywhere...
...It's goingtobealong four years, and we don't want to risk running short next time they invade some non-threatening nation, do we...
...There's the old moral values team deciding there's no reason to remove a political leader just because he's been indicted...
...The Bush id?e fixe that loyalty is more important than brains, experience, and telling the truth is reflected in all the changes...
...His point is that you have to save room, sort of like holding back on the holiday dinner so you have room for the mince pie...
Vol. 69 • January 2005 • No. 1
