The Song Remains the Same

U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales has announced his resignation, joining a long line of rats abandoning the sinking ship of the Bush Administration. Progressives are delirious over Gonzales’ announcement. Lefty discussion groups are offering the literary equivalent of high fives to each other for their persistence in calling for Gonzales to leave office.

Gonzales was certainly not the brightest Attorney General we’ve had, but I have to wonder if his departure really means much. It’s true that the chairs in this administration are moving around again- Presidential aide Karl Rove, and Press Secretary Tony Snow also announced their intent to move on from so-called public service- but essentially, the policies remain the same.

Although the Senate has pledged to probe the Justice Department’s firing of eight US Attorneys, without Gonzales, there really isn’t anyone’s head to put in the chopping block. Allegations have been made that Rove ordered the hit on the attorneys, but Rove is gone too. Unless both are compelled to testify about possible criminal wrongdoing on the part of the Bush Administration (fat chance) in this matter, Rove and Gonzales’ resignations may actually serve to stymie the investigation.

Meanwhile, the more heinous and some say illegal actions of the administration including the rendering and torture of terror suspects and electronic eavesdropping of American citizens with supposed connections into the murky world of terrorism go on unabated. As most of you already know, the Senate was so offended by Bush’s wiretap scheme they voted to make it the law of the land. If you’re counting on Bush’s new pick for attorney general to clean up the mess left behind by Gonzales, don’t hold your breath. Bush will choose another Republican puppet he knows will dance as he pulls his strings.

If we really want action, it’s going to take a Congress who isn’t so afraid of a president who some progressives characterize as a moron. The fact is Bush holds the keys to the magic kingdom of pork barrel, which often employs people in Congressional districts where good-paying jobs have become all too rare. Piss Bush off, and he’ll veto your spending bill. Bush understands Congress can’t manage an override, so in order to keep their constituents fat, dumb, happy, and at least partially employed, your au currant representatives in Washington continue to play Bush’s game. As long as Congress snoozes through the screams of the waterboarded and the harangue of civil libertarians, it just doesn’t matter which Bush minion carries out the policy.

So farewell, Alberto- don’t let the door hit your ass on the way out. Even though you’ll be gone soon, you won’t have the extra baggage of the policies you helped create to lug with you. That burden is strapped to the backs of the American people, where it will stay until the door hits the ass of your boss on his way out of office.