It's the Politics, Stupid
Read, and then we'll talk. From the Washington Post:
Until of course it's not.
It's about politics. It's always about politics. Karl Rove knows the bottom line is not on a spreadsheet, but at the ballot box. Where was Karl Rove when Bush went off half-cocked and drew the veto line in the sand? If he had been paying attention he could have saved his boss a whole bunch of trouble. Thankfully, he was not paying attention and the American people got to see GWB for what he really is. A crony among cronies who was appointed president to ensure the business interests of his pals are taken care of first and foremost, while the American people take a back seat (if they are even in the car at all).
Feel free to read the rest of the David Ignatius piece, but really I would advise against it. It's full of crap like this:
Officials here heard late Thursday that Karl Rove had decided to pull the plug. President Bush's political adviser was said to have conveyed to a top manager of Dubai Ports World in Washington that the White House couldn't hold out any longer against congressional pressure to kill the Arab company's plan to acquire freight terminals at six U.S. ports. The initial response of one Dubai executive was: "Who's Karl Rove?" But in the end, political leaders here recognized that it was time to fold a losing hand.So, the port deal was all about encouraging business relationships. The deal was about fostering trust with our Arab allies. It was about playing nice with a key Arab nation who is helping us fight the war on terror. It was the most important business deal of our time.
Until of course it's not.
It's about politics. It's always about politics. Karl Rove knows the bottom line is not on a spreadsheet, but at the ballot box. Where was Karl Rove when Bush went off half-cocked and drew the veto line in the sand? If he had been paying attention he could have saved his boss a whole bunch of trouble. Thankfully, he was not paying attention and the American people got to see GWB for what he really is. A crony among cronies who was appointed president to ensure the business interests of his pals are taken care of first and foremost, while the American people take a back seat (if they are even in the car at all).
Feel free to read the rest of the David Ignatius piece, but really I would advise against it. It's full of crap like this:
I suspect America will pay a steep price for Congress's rejection of this deal. It sent a message that for all the U.S. rhetoric about free trade and partnerships with allies, America is basically hostile to Arab investment. And it shouldn't be surprising if Arab investors respond in kind. One could blame it all on craven members of Congress, if the opinion polls didn't show that Americans are overwhelmingly against the deal -- and suspicious of Muslims in general. Those poll numbers tell us that America hasn't gotten over Sept. 11, 2001.If America hasn't gotten over Sept. 11 it's because George Bush has not allowed us to. David Ignatius, you are an ass.
posted at 2:47 PM PERMALINK
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