McClellan blah-blah, Rove blah-blah

"What has been lost in all the commentary is the single largest fact about Bush's tenure -- it has been the largest reorganization of the government since Truman, the largest expansion since LBJ, and the largest sustained deficits in the post-World War II era," writes Stirling Newberry.

But he's not referring to the recent dumping of Scott McClellan or the "demotion" of Karl Rove -- which essentially means that, as a commenter notes, "Before, Rove was politics/policy. Now, he's 100% politics."

AlterNet's Onnesha Roychoudhuri commented: "while [incoming chief of staff Joshua] Bolton and the president seem intent on making the White House appear to have a 'fresh start' before the mid-term elections, the demonstrated affinity the president has for a small contingent of (often Texan) buddies seems a distinct limitation."

Characterizing the changes as being on the "nanoscale," Newberry asks:

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"In what other Presidency would the resignation or demotion of a flunky, a flack and a fak[e]r be considered of such importance? Since the political guides the policy anyway, demoting Rove is roughly of the same importance as having Alito rather than Bryers get the door as junior justice."

What's really going on according to Newberry is that the president is essentially cementing his core positions for years to come:

"More or less, they have realized that permanent occupation of Iraq is their legacy, and that they are going to bind the future to their vision by a simple two step: an anti-tax legacy that will prevent any future administration for practicing fiscal sanity, and an 80 billion dollar a year committment to defending sandboxes in Iraq."

(BOPNews)

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