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Opening The Files: 10/15/06

Another busy week. It started out with a bang (literally) when North Korea tested a nuke. And the fallout (no pun intended) has made for some interesting commentary.

Even though Wednesday was to be the first time since the test that we would get to hear the President's opinion on the matter at length, Bush seemed desperate to change the subject. When he finally did get around to talking about North Korea, he made vague warnings of 'serious repercussions' but ruled out a military response. Makes you wonder what happened to that whole 'no options off the table' policy.

And following the lead of Senator John McCain, Bush blamed the Clinton administration for the failure to stop the Koreans.

The ever worsening chaos in Iraq was also a topic of discussion. Little of what Bush said was new, aside from his intolerable statement about what Iraqi's can 'tolerate'. He mentioned that the US remains flexible to change but that the we would "not leave before the job is done." And as if to drive that point home, we also learned the same day that the Army plans to keep troops in Iraq as far out as 2010.

Bush mentioned that he was looking forward to what James Baker (whom he lovingly referred to as Jimmy) had to say about what to do in Iraq. Considering what's being reported, somehow I doubt he will like what he hears.

Matthew Rothschild thinks Bush is in Fantasy Land when it comes to North Korea. But pixie dust longer seems to be adequate for Iraq, so it's all about oil now.

Larry Johnson says that, just like Osama, Kim Jong-Il seems to have a soft spot for the Decider. He also points us to a discussion about how North Korea's test will now make a military confrontation more likely...with Iran.

Georgia10 says there is no 'victory' or 'defeat' in Iraq, only an end.

Helen Thomas says that Christmas has come early for the White House now that Jimmy has come in to pull Bush's chestnuts out of the fire.

Confidencer-in-Chief and The Unacceptables

According to a US News article, the Bush administration is so confident that the GOP will prevail this November that they have no plans for the alternative.
The Washington Post, meanwhile, noticed that President Bush has been using the word 'unacceptable' to describe his stance on a lot of issues. No doubt a Democratically controlled Congress is one of the things Bush finds unacceptable.

Carpetbagger wonders if Bush will get the blame should the GOP fail to hold onto Congress. According to The Heretik, it may be hard to tell which party is which once the blame game starts.

Jane Hamsher points us to some links showing us how the Bushies seem to have an aversion to planning post anything.

Why is Bush so confident about the outcome of the elections? Billmon has a short post that might explain why.

DK wonders if Bush's unacceptable rhetoric really makes him a hardliner. You know what they say about actions and words.

And finally, Kevin Drum noticed the last paragraph of that WaPo piece that says Bush is trying hard to get people to listen to him. What was it I said yesterday about flapping gums?

(Filed at State of the Day)

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