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Sunday, December 19, 2004

The Hruska Century?

The Moose congratulates the President for redeeming mediocrities.

The late Senator Roman Hruska (R-NE) anticipated the Presidency of George W. Bush. Senator Hruska gained immortality with an observation he made in response to President Nixon's nomination of G. Harold Carswell to the Supreme Court. Hruska defended the controversial choice this way,

"Even if he was mediocre, there are a lot of mediocre judges and people and lawyers," Hruska declared. "They are entitled to a little representation, aren't they, and a little chance? We can't have all Brandeises and Cardozos and Frankfurters and stuff like that there."

That comment came to the Moose's mind with the announcement that W. is Time's Person of the Year. The President has done so much, with so little.

George W. Bush is an inarticulate, incurious, unaccomplished man who has been re-elected to the most powerful office in the world despite relatively low approval ratings. He is the blameless beneficiary of South Carolina and swift boat slime while he casts himself as a compassionate conservative. His primary domestic acomplishments are turning surpluses into deficits and redistributing wealth to the comfortable.

He is the Mr. Magoo of American politics who has presided over a war that was based on a premise that was wrong and a post-war period that has proven to be disastrous. He eschews all responsibility and admits no wrong.

He is America's chief beneficiary of the soft bigotry of low expectations.

George W. Bush is Time's Person of the Year. He is the Hruska Mediocrity of the Century.
-- Posted at 9:34 AM | Link to this post | Email this post