Hard to Port

The Bushies seem to be in quite a pickle this week as opposition mounts from both sides to their plan to give a corporation from the United Arab Emirates operating power to control six U.S. ports on the east coast. The decision, made by mid-level staffers, was unknown by even Bush himself until the controversy arose. Why the controversy? Only because the U.A.E. has been known to be rather cozy with terrorists; in fact, 2 of the 9/11 hijackers were of that origin.

So, you have a staff decision, unknown by the President and not cleared through the legally-mandated 45-day waiting period to review it, and so what does Bush do? Instead of saying, "you know, we may need to revisit this idea," he instead turns into his obstinate self and states that he will veto any attempt to block the deal. This from a guy who has yet to veto a single bill in his five years in office.

It's almost pathological, Bush's inability to admit that he, or his minions, may have made a mistake. He just can't do it. It must be some kind of Texas thing. Or maybe a deep-seated thing from childhood living with Babs. I've never been able to trust anyone who can't admit they've made a mistake. Maybe that's why I have never liked Bush and voted against him on four different occasions. Some people call Bush's quality "confidence." I call it "idiotic arrogance."