So, what else is new?

Bush's presidency judged a FAILURE (AP via Yahoo!):

For the first time, more people say George W. Bush's presidency will be judged as unsuccessful than say it will be seen as a success, a poll finds.

Forty-one percent of respondents said Bush's presidency will be seen as unsuccessful in the long run, while 26 percent said the opposite. Thirty-five percent said it was too early to tell, according to the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press.

In January, 36 percent said successful and 27 percent said unsuccessful.

The increasing pessimism about Bush's long-term prospects comes at a time when many polls have found the public increasingly is negative about Bush's performance and the direction of the country.

Could such numbers explain why Bush's much-touted video conference with soldiers in Iraq was actually STAGED? (New York Times):

On the screen today could be seen 10 soldiers of the army's 42d Infantry Division, based in Tikrit. They sat stiffly in three tight rows, joined by an Iraqi officer, apparently atop a building, under a blue-gray sky.

While the president asked the troops a half-dozen questions, appearing to do so extemporaneously, the troops evidently had prepared their answers. The format did not lend itself to more frank exchanges.

The event seemed designed both to bolster the troops' morale - "You've got tremendous support here at home," Mr. Bush said, before repeating that point later - and to underscore the determination of the United States in its mission in Iraq, as well as the importance it places on the referendum.While insurgents sought to "shake our will," Mr. Bush said, "I'm going to assure you this: that so long as I'm the president, we're never going to back down, we're never going to give in, we'll never accept anything less than total victory."

Mr. President, Why are you so afraid of the fucking truth?

Hm. Enough talk about weak, spineless Democrats. Somebody step up to the plate and face the truth. I don't care if it's John McCain in 2008. If he will be honest, that would already be an improvement... and plus, he'd have cleaned up SOME of this mess before a Democrat takes over in 2012. No, just kidding. We need to step away from this destructive neoconservatism. We need a swashbuckling Democrat (or even an able Republican/Other) to look us in the eye and honestly tell us that it will be all right, that "all we have to fear is fear itself." Yes, that's right... America is held captive by fear. And we need LEADERS that will lead the way (Daily Kos).

You know what? Even Newt Gingrich would be an improvement. (AP via Yahoo!)

"My hope is that five or six candidates are going to jump up, steal all of my ideas, and I will be able to relax and go golf," he said.

The former Georgia congressman said if nobody picks up on the ideas and the country thinks they are significant, a campaign is possible. But he added that's "so far down the road and so much less important than my two grandchildren."

Vice President Al Gore, where are you? Senator John Edwards, where are you? General Wesley Clark... actually, you're here and we're eternally grateful. Step up to the plate. Oh yeah, and LEAD, for Chrissakes...

Well, only until Monte turns 35, when he will set things right:

take the midwest, beat it over the head with a heavy stick, and then leave them alone in a room with ted kennedy

Oh man, I love this boy.