These are strange times we live in.

In the wake of the Democrats' victory in the midterms, I was happy and eager to help our new Congressional majorities get to work solving the problems of our day. So like a rational person, I considered the various things I thought could, and potentially would, be solved over the next two years.

In the process I began to notice that the things which seemed most important to me were not necessarily the things which seemed most important to others in this community. That led to some soul-searching, and I realized today: this just isn't me.

One of our bigger mandates this past Tuesday was to reform the budget. We've got to root out the corruption in the spending process and get down to some fundamental changes.

We need big-time reform.

Our troops won't come home for a while, but make no mistake - the American people have spoken, and they want no more of this.

Not because Bush would do this out of any sense of decency, respect for the voice of the people, or cognizance of how much he's fucked up. Don't think I'm saying that. But rather, this is the case because Republicans will not allow the war in Iraq to drag them down again in 2008.

This could be something, it could be nothing. Blount claims it is not related to tonight's election results, but rather a 2008 bid for office....

I ain't buying it!

History will mark this as the moment sanity began to flow back into the halls of power.

To publish this kind of scathing critique in all four US Military Times magazines, on the eve of the most important election in modern American history, will go down as the boldest statement our military has ever made.

Make no mistake - this is as close to a coup as we have ever seen in this nation.

The Rev. Ted Haggard, who stepped down as head of the 30 million-member National Association of Evangelicals on Thursday after allegations that include having gay sex, has confessed to some of the allegations, a fellow pastor said in an e-mail to church members.
 

Methinks this just got a whooooole lot bigger...

This hustle involves EVERY SINGLE REPUBLICAN, from George Bush to Chris Shays and back again, and it could add up into the trillions of dollars when all is said and done:

"Vote for us, and we'll lower your taxes."

The NY Times is running an article about a Federal investigation into Hugo Chavez's links to a maker of voting machines.  If you're like me, your bullshit detector is about to explode from reading this article.

More below the flip...

It used to be a feeling I had. Then I saw a few Republicans suggest that a change might be necessary... soon after that the potential results of Baker's ISG were leaked. And now today our top generals said we'd be out in less than 18 months, while Bush is no longer "staying the course." It all adds up to one thing:

On November 8, Republicans will officially declare that the US is withdrawing from Iraq.

My friends, it is time to TAKE THE GLOVES OFF.

There is only one response to this PR blitz. There CAN BE only one response to this.

Republicans will NOT go into the 2008 elections with the Iraqi anvil still weighing them down.

"Stay the Course" was always nothing more than a campaign slogan to them, and they'll drop it as soon as the votes are counted next month.

With four weeks to go before election day, they're already showing their teeth - and it ain't pretty.

Follow me below, if you can stomach it...

As I diaried several weeks ago, we are about to see a VERY abrupt about-face from Republicans on Iraq. Of course it has nothing to do with what's best for America, or even Iraq - it only has to do with what's best for Republicans in 2008.

We're all very excited about the political fallout from this weekend's GOP House Leadership scandal. And rightly so - that these people trusted a pedophile to chair a committee which is supposed to protect exploited children requires the nation to take very sober stock of the Republican Party's integrity and competence at a crucial moment in the midterm election cycle.

But we've got to keep our heads about us. It's easy to get carried away (especially since the direct fallout from this could be several more Republican resignations in the coming days), but we have to remain focused on the task at hand.

And it's a task that's all the more jeopordized now that Republicans literally have NOTHING to lose.

But we've got to keep our heads about us. It's easy to get carried away (especially since the direct fallout from this could be several more Republican resignations in the coming days), but we have to remain focused on the task at hand.

And it's a task that's all the more jeopordized now that Republicans literally have NOTHING to lose.

Now use that hand and smack yourself in the face.

George Bush is swiftly rolling out the case for why Democrats are giving the kind of support to terrorists that would seem to qualify them as "enemy combattants."

THE NIE IS A LOSER FOR THE BUSH ADMINISTRATION.

They've got one tiny section that they think supports their position, but we have the advantage because we can rip them to shreds with it faster than you can say "collateral damage."  

Now, before you get to lighting the torches and wielding the pitchforks, let me explain myself...

Follow me below the jump - and suspend your disbelief. Trust me, this is worth it for some perspective on what could have been.