IT ISN'T JUST McCAIN'S WIFE WHO'S CALLING THE SHOTS-- KERI THOMPSON RUNS THE SHOW OVER AT FRED THOMPSON'S NON-CAMPAIGN

Thompson laughed when the press speculated that his young spouse was just a trophy wife. Thompson, 64, is prematurely old and somewhat feeble, at least mentally. Jeri's the brains and the strength behind what is certainly a family endeavor, probably as much so as Hillary's campaign, Edwards' campaign and McCain's campaign. In the wake of all the reshuffling and the firings and walk-outs and the look of turmoil in Thompson's campaign, "Republicans are still trying to determine who is really calling the shots and how much power is held by Mrs. Thompson."

“It’s now become an open joke among people in the consultant community and political
movers and shakers that the senator’s wife is really running the campaign,” said Tony Fabrizio, a Republican pollster and strategist. “The spouse needs to be an integral part of the campaign but it is never a good thing when the spouse runs the campaign because the spouse is never objective.”

Bush, on the other hand, trusts neither Cheney nor Laura to run his affairs. Hoping to groom David BetrayUs to run for the presidency against Hillary in 2012-- when pardons may be greatly needed-- Bush, according to Frank Rich, has made it clearer and clearer that the general is the "main man" who he trusts to give him "candid advice."

Come September, he will be the man who will give the president and the country their orders about the war.

And so another constitutional principle can be added to the long list of those junked by this administration: the quaint notion that our uniformed officers are supposed to report to civilian leadership. In a de facto military coup, the commander in chief is now reporting to the commander in Iraq. We must “wait to see what David has to say,” Mr. Bush says.

Or has Karl Rove already written everyone's lines for them?