Freefall

That's the new meme, the new catchword in the media.

I'm extremely cautious over whether the Democrats can win back either house of Congress in the fall. There's too much that can happen between now and then, too many button-pushing moves that Karl Rove has planned, too many chances for the D.C. Democratic elite to snub the growing grassroots/netroots radical middle that threatens to actually bring common sense and accountability back to U.S. government.

Yet...did something happen while I was out of the country over the weekend?

Here's ABC New with "Bush Presidency Floundering":

According to a new Gallup/USA Today poll, that capital is dwindling. The poll found that the president's approval rating stood at 31 percent — a record low. His disapproval rating is 65 percent, just a point away from President Nixon's days before his resignation in 1974.

Hellooo, ABC, it's my job to compare this Administration to Richard Nixon's.

Democratic stratigist-pundit Paul Begala gets heavily quoted in the second half of the article, after Bay Buchanan lies that Nancy Pelosi keeps talking about impeachment on TV. (Pelosi doesn't, she just talks about investigations, but the GOP is hoping to scare the Dems off of that tactic because it just might get people out to vote.) Begala on the man Bush once dubbed "Boy Genius", Karl Rove:

Rove may be facing indictment in the CIA leak case, he said, and he "is the guy that brought Bush down from 91 percent to 31 percent."

I guess Bush's other appelation for Rove, "Turd Blossum", is finally starting to...bloom?

Again, with Colbert as the turning point, now none of us have to pretend to listen to this fool, as Begala closes out the article:

"The question, I think, is the fear that the guys in the White House and the gals and the White House have. I think the risk is the fear for the Republicans that the country is trying to tune out this president," Begala said. "The fear is that people are looking at this guy and saying he's a failed president."

Failed President. Think about it.

The relatively unanimous call by historians is that (in order) Abraham Lincoln (R), Franklin Roosevelt (D), George Washington (Federalist/Non-partisan), Thomas Jefferson (D-R) and Theodore Roosevelt (R) were "Great" Presidents, and we were lucky to have them.

At the bottom are James Buchanan (D - failed to prevent the Civil War -- ruined his Party) and Warren Harding (R - corrupt administration -- big oil).

Worse than Nixon?

Nixon...Nixon...Nixon. Why is former Republican Congressman Joe Scarborough putting Richard Nixon's photo in the middle of his Scarborough Country earlier this week?

Oh, it's because he's doing a report entitled, "Free Fall".

It opens with, "But first up tonight, the President in meltdown mode." Joe tells us Bush as a 45% disapproval rating among Conservatives, and that "1 in 3 Republicans want their Party to lose control of Congress."

Bush is under 50% approval with stock investors, NASCAR fans and gun owners.

Holy fuck, he's lost the NRA rank and file membership?

Joe brings up the problematic nomination of Gen. Hadyn to run the CIA (it's a civilian agency, what are they living in at the White House, 24?) and the gathering storm over Karl Rove's central involvement (mastermind?) of the Valerie Plame covert status leak.

Holy fuck, am I going to have to start watching Scarborough Country?

Joe acknowledges the old adage that a week is a lifetime in politics, but he also calls the poll numbers unprecedented, particularly the 1/3 GOP deathwish stat.

And speaking of 24 and deathwishes, I'm finally realizing the genius of this season. They're doing the cover-up, not the crime! And here's Tricky Dick again -- actor Gregory Itzin as President Logan is made up to look crazy close to President Nixon.

Even Fox is getting it right?

The climax of this week's episode was President Logan, fearing that his complicity in the cover-up of the assassination of President Dennis Haybert is about to be revealed, spends the last fifteen minutes of the show preparing to blow his own brains out -- to commit suicide.

For the record, Warren Harding was the only President ever rumored to have committed suicide while in office.

It's all getting a little heady.

I've always said that Bush wasn't stupid, he understands brass knuckle electoral politics. What he has no clue about is how to govern. He never had to. Governing involves making decisions, but in a funny way it's not actually about being "The Decider", not in a real democracy. That's only for monarchies.

There's a zeitgeist in the air. Maybe 30% or 31% of all Americans want things to stay the way they are, but the other 69% to 70%, I think they've woken up.

I think they want their government back.

That makes the big question:

Freefall through November?