Bush's Lying Brain

In the past, if you worked in the White House and you lied under oath, big trouble was sure to follow. Well, here's hoping the future is just like the past. As Dana Milbank reports, in a new book about WH Political Director and top Bush advisor Karl Rove (Bush's Brain), Rove is quoted as taking credit for getting Bush interested in the tort reform issue. According to Rove, he even had to talk Bush into the idea of making the issue a centerpiece of his 1994 gubernatorial campaign.

This proves yet again that every policy this White House adopts is motivated solely by politics. But wait, there's more:

Rove's claim of responsibility for the tort reform issue is somewhat at odds with a deposition he gave during the tobacco lawsuit. Asked whether he discussed overhauling civil liability law with then-Gov. Bush, he replied: "I can't say that I did. But I can't say that I didn't. I do not recall. I know that tort reform was a significant part of his legislative agenda but it was not my area."

"Somewhat at odds"? Come on, Dana, call it what it is. Rove lied. He lied under oath. Now, where's Ken Starr when you need him?

Literally Incredible

Sometimes it seems that few people notice Bush's habit of saying one thing and doing another, and that's frustrating. So I took great joy today in reading Paul Krugman's latest column, Threats, Promises and Lies. It seems that a lot of leaders around the world have noticed, and that has a lot to do with the unwillingness to take Bush at face value when he talks about war with Iraq and the aftermath. Case in point:

Consider the astonishing fact that Vicente Fox, president of Mexico, appears unwilling to cast his U.N. Security Council vote in America's favor. Given Mexico's close economic ties to the United States, and Mr. Fox's onetime personal relationship with Mr. Bush, Mexico should have been more or less automatically in America's column. But the Mexican president feels betrayed. He took the politically risky step of aligning himself closely with Mr. Bush — a boost to Republican efforts to woo Hispanic voters — in return for promised reforms that would legalize the status of undocumented immigrants. The administration never acted on those reforms, and Mr. Fox is in no mood to do Mr. Bush any more favors.

So take heart, America. As it turns out, it really is true that you can't fool all the people all the time.