BUSH IS NOW THE FROG IN THE KETTLE

-By Mags

A short time ago I wrote an article about James Baker and his imminent rescue operation to keep Jr. out of the World Court for war crimes and to save the day for the GOP in as much as he could save them from permanent doom.

A lot is being said about Jr.'s lie regarding Donald Rumsfeld's and Cheney's job security before the election. Here is my take on that. Bush did not lie about Rummy. That is obvious; why? Because if he had let Rummy go earlier, his party, and he personally, would have been seen in a positive light. He would have been seen as leading the Iraq strategy in a new direction. This would have played well in the voting booth, at least that is my conclusion.

But, Bush threw his party no such bone. And, why wouldn't he have done that if indeed it would have helped to keep control of Congress?

A few days after my commentary about Baker and Poppy rescuing the Bush cub here Steve Clemons at The Washington Note wrote a similar senario about the Bush family consigliere Baker and the plans to pull the plug on Cheney and Rummy. It is important to note that Clemons, a DC insider, also opined that Cheney would not go willingly and that Jr. would also balk at Poppy's plan to save Jr.'s bacon.

My best guess is that the outcome of the election was exactly what triggered the "resignation" of Donny Rumsfeld rather than the lie purported by Bush. Today, rumblings of charges of war crimes being filed in Germany against Rumsfeld, Gonzales, and Tenet only further substantiate the seriousness of the situation that George, Jr. finds himself in.

It was perhaps his sudden understanding that the voters were indeed ready to hold him and his administration to account for their actions that moved him to accept his daddy's best efforts to save the family name (already suffering from plenty of past dirt) and even more importantly the eventual recovery of the Republican Party. In my opinion heretofore, Rummy's resignation was not on the table.

It will be interesting in the coming days to see how George Bush handles himself in front of the cameras, to see if he continues to err in his responses to the press. Maybe Karl is no longer whispering in his ear, and perhaps daddy hasn't realized that his son will still need that prompting to remain even marginally credible in the public eye.

The Democratic Congress will begin oversight immediately. It is the results of the most benign of inquiries that will get the ball rolling on the more serious issues which involve Bush incompetence, corruption, and fraud. There is no doubt that small questions will turn into big questions. And, this time, those who testify will be put under oath.

The Abramoff issue is not finished.The Halliburton issue is just heating up, and the issue of war profiteering is about to ignite in a big way across the nation.

There are many I am sure who are just waiting to be called upon to come forward with information. There are plenty who would love to testify against this administration of abuse and greed. Subpoenas may not be necessary, the hearings themselves will provide the first ever public airing of damning information.

George desperately needs the wire tapping bill to pass to keep his fat out of the domestic fire. But, even though the right is taunting the newly elected Dems about the silliness of a move to impeach George Bush, and the centrist Dems pledge they will not impeach George Bush. It remains to be seen if the Dem led Congress can avoid impeaching George Bush. The man practically impeaches himself.

George, true to form is still kicking against any and all good judgement by resubmitting the Bolton nomination. If I were George Bush, I would not want to count on GOP leadership to back me. Afterall, when he could have listened to reason, he did not. He alone bears a great deal of responsibility for the big Democratic win on Tuesday. A fact that is is not lost on any on Capitol Hill. The fact that this may be the only Republican road back into power and credibility should not be discounted.

Cheney and Rove may be factors, but more and more Bush's own instability and incompetence is taking center stage. Even though Poppy and his minions are about to attempt a spin that will place the blame on those who surround the younger Bush, it is looking more and more like Jr. does not have the ability to tell how hot the water really is.

This very fact in and of itself might be the reason that someone somewhere perhaps someone very close to him will be called upon to declare him incapable of leading the country. If I were in George W. Bush's shoes, I would be shaking about now.