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Blood in the water

2005.07.18 — Government | Politics | by BB Rodriguez

Karl Rove with Flat Stanley

Karl Rove (middle) and Communications Director Dan Barlett (right) sit with the real mastermind behind the Wilson-Plame smear campaign: Flat Stanley (left)

The White House press corps has been used and abused by this administration since its earliest days. The Bush 2 team has been secretive, underhanded, and vindictive toward reporters and pretty much anyone else who crossed the administration. The press corps is like a hungry pack of sharks, and the Bushies have for years managed to avoid swimming in open waters with them.

Now it's clear that the man behind much of the petty vengeance and smear campaigning is Karl Rove, and the press corps smells blood in the water and wants to savage Rove like the hungry sharks they are.

At last, they've begun to think, they can be free of this administration's tyranny. Already, they've begun beating the living shit out of Scotty McClellan, a man who took the short bus to press secretary school yet who they've virtually lived in fear of since Ari Fleischer got tired of lying skillfully.

But will Bush fire Rove? Not likely. Bush is nothing if not loyal... and willfully ignorant of public opinion.

But will Bush fire Rove? Not likely. Bush is nothing if not loyal... and willfully ignorant of public opinion. He hasn't fired Donald Rumsfeld, and his failures have been much more public. He didn't fire CIA Director George Tenet for giving him bad intelligence about WMDs—he gave him a Medal of Freedom. He didn't fire National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice for failing keep the nation secure or advise him properly about its insecurity—he promoted her to secretary of State.

[T]he president has already promoted Rove in spite of Rove's gaffe....

In fact, the president has already promoted Rove in spite of Rove's gaffe (which, let's face it, the president must have known about all along). In February, he made Rove his deputy chief of staff.

Now it appears that Dick Cheney aide Lewis Libby was also involved. Will he be promoted? Given a medal? Well, there's an opening on the Supreme Court.... Or maybe he'll be anointed as Dick Cheney's successor if (when?) the veep retires for health reasons.

 

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