GOP Insiders Disappointed with Freddy Already?

From today's Evans-Novak Political Report weekly "insider" email, Bob "Plamegate" Novak reports on a growing sense of unease within the GOP establishment about the 'yet-to-be-official' Fred Thompson presidential campaign:

Far more troubling are the fears among Republicans that there is less to Thompson than meets the eye. He could still seize the nomination and prove a disappointing candidate in the general election. In appearances across the country, from New Hampshire to South Carolina, his speeches have ranged from "pretty decent" to "quite underwhelming." He has not yet had the knock-out performance he will need in order to prove that he is worthy of frontrunner status.

Who might they turn to next, if Thompson continues to "underwhelm?"

Could Thompson pay the biggest political price for the Libby Liberation? Today's Boston Globe examines Freddy's self-proclaimed role as a "leaker" in the Watergate hearings. Will the country recoil from Thompson's partisanship? If the MSM is correct and the American electorate wants to move past all this bickering, Thompson's star may fade just as quickly as it burst onto the scene this year.

Had Enough? - A simple and brilliant idea

The Libby Liberation has ignited a firestorm among the liberal netroots community. For many, it's' the last straw. Will our elected Democrats understand the depths of the outrage? Other than Rep Conyers, who has scheduled hearings for July 11 and Rep Jesse Jackson, Jr's calls for impeachment, it looks like the leaderhip is going to give the Cheney/Bush Administration another pass.

But, for the many who have simply "Had Enough," Wes Clark, Jr has proposed a brilliantly simple protest campaign. He calls for all Americans who have "Had Enough" to gather every Sunday in their hometowns as a protest against the excesses of this administration.

The noise on the left is matched by a deafening silence among many GOP politicians, who appear to understand the precarious political position the president's snubbing of the judicial system - after all, this case was still under appeal - has put them in. The Las Vegas Journal Review quoted Rep. Jon Porter (R-NV) as distancing himself from the Libby decision,

"Though the president has the power to commute a sentence or pardon someone convicted of a crime, "doing so has the potential to tarnish a legacy," Porter said.
Bush decided Libby's penalty didn't fit his crime, but Porter said that decision is best left in the courts."

I'm not sure why the widely anticipated presidential commutation was the last straw for so many. Perhaps its the sheer audacity of this decision. Or, have we just simply had enough?

Can America survive eighteen more months of the Cheney/Bush interregnum? Will the constitution and federal government be restored? How much more damage can a President with an approval rating plummeting toward the "Mendoza line" really do in a year and a half?

As Elinor Clift said on the June 29th, 2007 "McLaughlin Report",

"I mean, he's still got, what, a year-and-a-half left in office. He can do a lot more damage, unfortunately. And the situation that he is presiding over so fitfully can also grow worse. And this is basically a requiem for his presidency."

What will this requeim look like? As the WaPo reported this week, in an article, A President Besieged and Isolated, Yet at Ease, "Bush has virtually given up on winning converts while in office and instead is counting on vindication after he is dead."

No longer constrained by public opinion, Bush unleashed for the next year and a half could have additional devastating consequences for America. Already, the Bush legacy will linger for many years, if not generations. It is this generation's resonsibility to confront this Cheney/Bush abuses.

America deserves nothing less on this, its 231st birthday.

Had enough?

Nancy, May I Have a Moment?

Madame Speaker,

When does the madness stop? What line must be crossed before the Democrats decide "enough is enough?" I've been a defender of your pragmatic approach and understood why you had long ago decided to take impeachment "off the table." It's time to reconsider that decision. Libby's liberation changed everything. I agree with your denunciation of Bush's action as stated on your website:

The President’s commutation of Scooter Libby’s prison sentence does not serve justice, condones criminal conduct, and is a betrayal of trust of the American people.
The President said he would hold accountable anyone involved in the Valerie Plame leak case. By his action today, the President shows his word is not to be believed. He has abandoned all sense of fairness when it comes to justice, he has failed to uphold the rule of law, and he has failed to hold his Administration accountable.

Honestly, words are not enough. In the 2006 midterms, Americans elected Democrats because they wanted to end this Administration's blatant abuse of power. As our leader, YOU are one of the few Americans who can uphold the rule of law. It is YOUR duty to defend the Constitution. YOU must hold this Administration accountable.

If you choose to take no action, you will have betrayed the trust of those who supported you. As one of your constituents, I expect you to do the right thing.

Respectfully yours,

A formerly loyal constituent