I BET BUSH GETS SOME SLIMEBAG INTO THE ATTORNEY GENERAL'S CHAIR BEFORE HE DOES ANYTHING TO HELP NEW ORLEANS

On the second anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, the Bush Regime may have no real plan to rebuild New Orleans, but they probably do have a plan to insert the incompetent knave who was in charge of homeland security at the time, into the Attorney General's job. Even before the news had leaked out that Gonzales was finally resigning, there were rumors that Chertoff would be the next Attorney General. Right-wing propaganda sites like Drudge and the Politico started the day claiming that Bush was going to make a recess appointment to avoid having the Regime's overwhelming criminality broadcast all over TV during confirmation hearings. Both the GOP-connected sites removed the recess appointment posts within minutes, apparently having gotten word from their superiors at the propaganda ministry that that wasn't today's message. (If you're wondering why Gonzales resigned today, instead of last week or last month or two months ago, Sidney Blumenthal makes a great case in Why Did Gonzales Resign? that "without Karl Rove around to give him his orders, and with the investigations closing in, 'Fredo' had nowhere to turn.")

If Bush doesn't do the recess appointment thing-- and he crossed his heart and hoped to die in front of Harry Reid that he wouldn't do that this time-- he could just try to get Chertoff through the way normal presidents do. (Best of luck with that, Bushie.) Or he could appoint a quasi-respected Republican senator. Senators always confirm other senators. Bush may have trouble finding one as corrupt and malleable as he would want, although John Cornyn would fit the bill. Or he could just leave Paul Clement in as Interim or Acting A.G. until the clock runs out. I guess for the next few days the traditional media will be able to talk about who'll be the next in line instead of Michael Vick finding Jesus or Owen Wilson's attempted suicide.

Almost all of the remainder of this most hated of all lame ducks' term will be about letting clocks run out-- including the disgrace of the inaction on New Orleans.