Somebody measure the drapes in Karl Rove’s office. It didn’t take long for Georgie’s vexation at his party’s sorry showing in the midterm elections to manifest. First Rumsfeld was gone and now Ken Mehlman has gotten the ax. Yes, the Republican National Committee’s chair is outta there at the end of the year.
And while rumors abound about both men — Mehlman being pretty much known to be gay and Rumsfeld’s head supposedly on the chopping block for at least a week before his “resignation” was “accepted” — no one’s pointing a finger at the guy who was really in charge of all the losing strategies. Yes, I’m talking about Turd Blossom himself, Karl Rove.
Karl has shown the pressure lately. After Florida Governor candidate, now Governor-elect, Charlie Crist failed to attend a rally with the President in his honor just before the election, Karl was feeling it. One moment of Rovian pique was even immortalized by Crist’s campaign workers at a victory party.
…dozens of campaign staff then arrived wearing black T-shirts that said “Ask George LeMieux.”
…Asked [earlier] by CNN why Crist wouldn’t appear with the president at an election eve rally in Pensacola, a miffed Rove snapped that the reporter should ask George LeMieux.
LeMieux was Crist’s campaign manager.
Mehlman was hand-picked and cultivated by Rove, so his failure and subsequent exit can’t be good news for Karl.
A protege of Bush’s top political adviser, Karl Rove, Mehlman became RNC chairman after managing Bush’s re-election campaign in 2004, when the president won re-election and Republicans expanded their majorities in the House and the Senate…Before that campaign, he served as White House political director under Rove.
Bush’s comment to reporters post-election speaks volumes about his current feelings toward the man who more than likely took a fall for Bush in the Valerie Plame affair.
Bush also got in a dig at his trusted top political adviser, Karl Rove. Rove is widely credited with Bush’s presidential victories in 2000 and 2004 and GOP gains in the 2002 congressional elections. As recently as last week, Rove predicted Republicans would retain both House and Senate.
“I obviously was working harder in the campaign than he was,” said Bush…
Ha ha, funny. Unless you’re Karl Rove, and then there’s a big sweat stain spreading under both your arms. People contrast George with his little brother, Jeb, finding the elder sibling more affable, down to earth, etc. (Not me, of course, but people.) Jeb has always made it abundantly clear he’s a conniving, nasty, petulant asshole who will take you out if you cross him. But I think this trait, inherited from Mom’s side of the family, is present in all the offspring.
And Karl Rove should be putting his affairs in order.
Rove is just ‘off his feed’ because he has noticed that the universe has righted the world and some of his conservative Christian friends fell off.
I think Rove is safe. He knows too much and could be quite dangerous out there in the public sector. He knows where all the bodies are buried (it’s a metaphor-no real bodies, you know). Hard to believe but with Rove gone, things could get worse for the Republicans. I predict he’ll be gone with the rest of the administration in 2008 and not before. I for one will be happy to see all of them go after the next election!!!
Karl Rove isn’t smart, he’s just willing to cheat in the open. He knows he has a media that won’t do their job, and inform the weary masses.
I don’t think Monkeyboy will get rid of Turd Blossom.
I do think that everything they do is orchestrated, even failure. As happy as I am at the turn of events, I still distrust the people that cannot be trusted. Did they “let” the Democrats win?
Bernard Weiner cites interesting suspicions about why the election fix didn’t fix the Repugs:
ROVE ASLEEP AT THE WHEEL? How to explain why the vote-counting seemed to be free of the kind of massive manipulation and fraud we’ve come to expect from Rove and his dirty-tricks minions? Yes, there were reprehensible and illegal attempts all across the country to keep hundreds of thousands of Democratic voters from exercising their franchise, but, at least at first glance, those seemed statistically mild compared to what could have happened.
It seems likely, one theory goes, that the White House knew early that they would be facing a Democratic tsunami from coast to coast and concluded that it would be too risky to try to fix the vote in so many voting jurisdictions; the chances of being caught-out were simply too great.
Besides, even if the Democrats took control of Congress, that wasn’t entirely a bad thing in the long run view of Rove and Cheney. The Democratic-controlled Congress, this theory goes, would have to suffer a good share of the blame if Iraq continues as a disastrous running sore in 2008, plus the Dems could be used as handy scapegoats if and when the economy slides into a bad recession next year.
It’s all a complex, fascinating political ballet, as the various factions and parties and individuals struggle for the brass rings of power.
>conniving, nasty, petulant asshole who will take you out if you cross him. But I think this trait, inherited from Mom’s side of the family
I agree with Janie. The Chinese are eventually going to demand some fiscal responsibility and force the good ol’ U.S. of A to raise taxes to fund the enormous interest on all that dough Georgie borrowed. Who better than the hapless Dems for that job? Hey, they’ll get to blame Pelosi and Reid for “saddling America with new taxes”.
This isjust my opinion and I have no concree evidence to back it up,of course, but I think Rove is a little lite in his loafers. Jeff Gannon visited the White House about 200 times, 160 of thoes times was to attend Press Conferences and throw softball questions at the Press Secreary. Where was he the other 40 times? No oen will say. Rove put him in that position. He is an admitted Gay prostitute. And now Mehlman, also Gay. Could Rove be building a Pink Mafia? I think so, and I am no wild eyed conspriracy nut. Just a thinking person who has questions?
Rumpsfelt is ‘retiring,’ so the headlines read. It is beyond belief that these murderers (Rumpsy, Mehlman, and possibly TurdBlossom) can just walk away after causing so much death and destruction. Are we really going to let them get away with murder?
I have two brothers in the Marine Corp. Steven, the youngest, is currently serving in Iraq. Matthew graduated from the Naval Academy and redeployed as a Marine intelligence officer and is currently in Langley, VA. Matt is a pretty closed lip kid, but he has mentioned this current election has “changed” his next location by one letter, (i.e. Iran back to Iraq.) Needless to say I have family at stake. Maybe more neocons and religious wingnuts would have a different opinion of this administration if they were actually sacrificing. I wrote something, that I am pasting below, that almost made me feel dirty after the election went the ‘people’s’ way. I honestly sounded like a “Rovian” propaganda puppet for the Left. But, as I hear that Bush is meeting with the lame duck congress to rush through more of his fascist agenda before he has to start “bipartisanizing”, and knowing what my brother has told me, I have to say that what I wrote wasn’t radical and hateful enough. Anyway… I hope you find my run-on sentences, and semi-bad grammar amusing, yet find something in the context that rings home.
“It’s The Hypocrisy Stupid!”
There has been much talk about the Republican “base” of Evangelical voters and Christian conservatives banding their flocks together to keep Republicans in power this election. However, many of them are starting to wake up to the fact that they are being used on a grand scale. And yet there are still those who are “asleep at the pew” and ready to vote Republican on baseless moral grounds. Personal wedge issues are made the focus while morality as a whole is debased most by the politicians wearing their faith on their sleeves.
I have a question I would love to ask of all the religious wingnuts. If their mythology is true and Jesus decided to come back tomorrow, how do they think George W. Bush, his demonic administration, and Republican enablers in Congress would react? A) Would they allow a peace-loving, liberal, hippie to make peace on Earth and all men and women to be equal? OR B)Go to war with God to maintain their power, control, and fortunes? They know the answer would be (B)! So my next question would be… Doesn’t that make him the Antichrist according to their mythology??? That same mythology would also label psuedo-religious leaders like Falwell, Robertson, Dobson (and dont get me started on Pastor massage-n-meth Ted Haggard), who preach political support for their endtimes boogieman as “false prophets.” It is like really admiring the Star Wars story for it’s timeless morality tale of the battle between good and evil and then deciding to model your real life after Darth Vader’s Stormtroopers. No wonder they call it a “flock!” These people are sheep!!! Maybe more will be waking up to the fact they are being used after seeing the complete and total hypocrisy of the Republican party. It’s hard for a president to convince anyone he is pro-life when it comes to banning stem cell research while thousands are being sent to their deaths in Iraq. It is also ironic that the very party that puts forth a homophobic agenda turns out to be full of closeted homosexuals and pedophiles. It’s not what you say, it’s what you do. For real Christians and people of faith the mantra for the next election cycles should be, “It’s the hypocrisy stupid!” We have all heard the acronym, “WWJD – What would Jesus Do,” but a more suitable acronym in this age of hypocrisy would be, “WWTDTJ – What would They Do to Jesus!”
David Kuo, a born-again Christian and former White House aide who wrote the book “Tempting Faith, An Inside Story of Political Seduction,” said Haggard’s situation is magnified by his and other evangelicals’ involvement in Republican politics.
“It’s religious hypocrisy with a political rocket booster,” said Kuo, who thinks politics is corrupting Christianity. “It’s tragedy enough if a pastor falls, but this is not about a pastor falling. This is about a politician falling, and the politician is bringing down Jesus with him.” WWTDTJ indeed.
The other morning I saw a News Program, I believe it was The Young Turks, but I could be wrong. In any case these guys outed Christ, before the election, as being Gay. they even posted two of the male participents pictures and their statements that they had had sex with Christ, but the MSM never picked it up. And they still haven’t. Wonder why?
Better start thinking more Rooseveltian than Rovian, Lilliputians.
I agree that Karl is a “little lite in the loafers.” His singular devotion to W is an indication. Remember, W sends flowers & candy to his college roommate every year for his birthday.. Some of W’s comments have suggested that W may also be walking on both sides of the street. Not to mention that the Repubs seem seem to have a LOT of gays suddenly popping up…. I suspect that numerous white house employees travel the “pink road;” they’re hiding in plain sight…. Why else would the WH cover up Foley & the others? Jeb clearly knew about Foley, & most likely Cheney & W did. If they didn’t, then Rove absolutely did! I wonder how often Foley & Haggard met with Rove?
Amazing amount of dissembling about who knew who & what & when….
FEAR-FACTOR MELTDOWN…THE AWFUL’GUN’OF HELL’S CHERUB (aka, “Turd Blossom”, “Karl Rove”)
is reduced to a white ‘BANG’-flag…AND BEST OF ALL:
THE CHICKEN-HAWKED
TERROR-WARRIOR
PRETENSION TO AN AMERICAN THRONE IS OVER.
BIGtime:
THE KING IS DEAD.
LONG LIVE DEMOCRACY!
And May American History
Never Again Record
Another So Driven
To Wearing A Crown.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
TWILIGHT OF THE TOADIES
MEMO TO MEDIA:
@’s Right: FIGHTIN’ WORDS!
YOUR ‘OVER-ALIGNED’ CORPORATE BOSSES (THE ‘FOURTH-ESTATE ELITE’ THAT SO GLARED AT COLBERT BUT DELIGHTED IN W’S UNDER-THE-TABLE WMD ‘SEARCH’) SHOULD NO LONGER BE TAKEN ‘SERIOUSLY’ IN THEIR GOP-PARTISAN AVERSION TO ASKING NAIL-HARD QUESTIONS OF BUSH & CO.
IF THEY DON’T YET, SOON ENOUGH THEY’LL ‘GET IT’ —THAT THE POWER THEY SO DISGRACEFULLY SUCKED UP TO HAS COLLAPSED.
REPORT THEN ACCORDINGLY!
AS A TRUE CLEAR-EYED UNFLINCHING AMERICAN. WITHOUT HAND-WRINGY, SECOND-GUESSY ‘WORD-MINCE’. FORCEFULLY TO THE PATRIOTIC POINT–LIKE KEITH OLBERMANN, FOR EXAMPLE.
SHOULD A ‘DEMOTION’ OR ‘FIRING’ BE ATTEMPTED BY ‘BOARDROOM’ BRASS, WE WILL BLOG THEM INTO ROADKILL, AND HAND THEM BY THE TAIL TO POSTERITY IN THE PERMANENT DISGRACE THEY’VE ALREADY “EARNED”.
Reply to tquigly:
Good question. Many in the Bush administration are, in my opinion, guilty of crimes against humanity: Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld, Rice, and more. I believe they deserve to be indited and tried as international war criminals and should receive no less a penalty than that received by Saddam. Indeed, even Saddam killed fewer people than this crowd is collectively responsible for.
So hopefully there will be justice for all concerned some day. Only then can the US regain the moral high ground this corrupt gang of thugs has squandered.
Rove is going to be the “House Boy” at the new Bush ranch in Paraguay, which is WAAAAY outside U.S. jurisdiction…
…..”Mehlman was hand-picked and cultivated by Rove”…….
Hmmmm….anyone know something they want to share with the rest of us? Was Rove Gannon’s ticket to the pressroom.
Not that there’s anything wrong with that :) Unless of course you’re the party of morality.
Bob- I’ve long thought a “pink mafia” was (ahem) firmly entrenched in the W.H., but then again, I AM a conspiracy nut, probably even wild eyed at times. Funny thing though, quite often we nuts turn out to be right (see Chile 1970’s, Iran ‘54, Watergate, Iran-Contra, Kennedys, etc., etc.). Of course, “right” is quite relative, since we rarely get the complete story for years, and the waters are always muddied by disinfo ops.
I agree with Janie’s point that a fixed election wasn’t feasible with the lead the Dems had in the polls. It will be easier for the Rethugs in ‘08 with something to run against.
Not to Worry, Karl. You will soon be able to join the Bush Family and your buddy Rumsfeld at their new base of operations in Paraguay, where they have just purchased a huge farm so all you sneaking sleazy war criminals will have a place to run off to escape prosecution. Note that there will be 20,000 US troops there to protect you, and they won’t be liable to the Paraguayan government for anything they do. Now WHY on earth would we NEED to have 20,000 US troops in Paraguay, of all out-of-the-way places? HMMMMMMMM!
WE SHOULD DO WHATEVER WE HAVE TO IN ORDER TO MAKE SURE THAT ROVE, MEHLMAN, RUMSFELD, AND the BUSH’S DO NOT FLY TO PARAGUAY!!!!
Rove has been hailed as a “genius” for the havoc he has caused in the past two decades but I would identify him more in terms of a virulent fecal parasite that managed to infect the water supply of the industrialized world. Miraculously the body of the state somehow managed to purge this microscopic worm in the very nick of time; now we must study it under sterile conditions and produce an incoculation against this sort of malefic, coprophilic organism.
Everyone has fine points.
The issue with Kraven KRove is his desire to achieve the maximum amount of personal power with the least amount of personal effort. Recall that he’s a non-college graduate working for someone who “graduated” from Harvard. Documentation-wise, KRove is an underachiever while his “boss” is an overachiever, the latter able to put airs of heirs’ superiority.
But. We know who’s really been in charge, usually KRove as the “Brain.” While they seem to be a “team,” I would suggest the reality is more one of same-sided adversaries, the kind that will support each other and the team until it’s time to ditch the competition, something we’ve seen in the 2000 primary race against McCain (not forgetting McCain’s hug which was probably a gangster “kiss of death”). The lesson has been and will be that KRove is just as liable to attack Younger George’s back as he is to be stuck hisself, once the mutually agreed upon objectives become objectionable. They both know not only where all of the “bodies” are buried but who, what, why, how, and when.
Karl would be leaving Bush no matter what the outcome of the off-year elections. His true calling is to run campaigns, not government administrations. This Bush ain’t running for anything- thank God.
Follow Rove’s slime trail and you’ll be able to detect the next wave of Republican nastiness.
The true measure of the Democratic victory will be whether he can find another job. For the sake of our republic let’s hope he and his acolytes are finished as well.
I can’t stand Rove, but I don’t think he “failed” in these elections. On the contrary, with the mammoth corruption, deceit, and downright slaughter (i.e., the invasion and occupation of Iraq) these Republigoths have unleashed, those bums should have had seats taken away from them in the NEXT congress.
What amazes me is not that the Dems took back control, but that the Repugs still have ANY seats (let alone as many as 49 in the Senate).
In other words, I still think Rove’s dangerous. Like any evil undead, the Dems have to drive a stake through his political heart and make sure this monster doesn’t come back again.
Ten Little Neocons:
1 little, 2 little, 3 little Neocons
4 little, 5 little, 6 little Neocons
7 little, 8 little, 9 little Neocons
10 little Neocons Gone.
I’ve seen that quote taken out of context all over the place. He wasn’t bitching about Rove; he was making a joke. The question was about a reading contest between Bush and Rove, and Bush said that he was behind… then “I obviously was working harder in the campain…”
I’m not disputing that Bush is unhappy with Rove; I’m in no position to know that. I’m just saying that quote is not evidence that he is.
Talking about the Homintern at the White House and the question of Rove’s connection with it, here’s something that shouldn’t be missed:
http://www.waynemadsenreport.com/2006_10151022.php
October 16, 2006 — George W. Bush’s “Svengali” Karl Rove seems very sure that the GOP will not lose control of the House and Senate in the mid-terms, even though polls indicate a huge Democratic tsunami is building that will turn control of both bodies over to the Democrats. Rove’s name has come up in the Mark Foley scandal at a time the furtive presidential counselor has been busy traveling around the country, obviously attempting to tamper with the election process at the municipal, ward, and precinct levels. Rove, who allegedly knew about Foley’s problem with underage male pages, pressured and possibly blackmailed the Florida congressman into running for re-election in 2006. Rove’s cross-currents with the GOP “Velvet Mafia,” the closeted gay network within the Republican leadership is nothing new. The editor was the first to disclose the homosexuality of Rove’s adoptive father in a June 4, 2006 article:
“WMR, June 4, 2006 — In mid-summer 2004, some time after I wrote an article for CounterPunch about the agit-prop crimes of Karl Rove and while I was speaking out against Rove on a number of radio shows, I was contacted by a credible source in Palm Springs, California who told me he was talking to one of his acquaintances who was just getting over the death of his longtime ’significant other.’ Then the Palm Spring resident dropped the big bombshell — the acquaintance’s ’significant other’ was Louis Rove, the adoptive father of Karl Rove. Louis Rove reportedly suffered from emphysema.”
Later, in their book, The Architect: Karl Rove and the Master Plan for Absolute Power, Texas journalists James Moore and Wayne Slater, confirmed that Louis Rove was gay. Rove, who was recently quoted by former White House “faith-based initiatives” coordinator David Kuo in his new book, Tempting Faith, describes the publicly anti-gay Rove as scornful of Christian fundamentalists, referring to them as “nuts” and “goofy.”
Rove and “The List”
Rove may have more to worry about from his erstwhile Religious Right allies. There is much talk in Washington about who appears on a mysterious “list” of closeted gay Republicans. This editor believes it is beyond time to relate a story about information received about Rove in 2002 from a former senior editor for the right-wing Washington Times publication consortium. During one late evening at the National Press Club, the editor stormed in clearly upset. He told me, “goddamit, Rove is b***f****** [a well-known GOP lobbyist and policymaker in DC].” I asked him if he was sure. He replied, “Yes, I can’t do anything with this story [a reference to his right-wing publisher] but you can have it if you want.” I’ve had the story since 2002 and now it is time to release it. The GOP is rife with closeted individuals whose secret preferences have clouded and continue to cloud their judgment. We have seen this clearly in the cases of Mark Foley, Jim Kolbe (prior to his coming out), Charlie Crist, and other GOP officials, including congressional staffers and officials of the Republican National Committee.
It’s okay to bash Karl Rove now, but look at the damage he has done to this country. You can’t take that back by high five and saying Karl Rove is done even though it feels good. It’s like making a public racist remark and then apologizing for it; but it is already out there.
Be pretty easy for the turd er blossum to find another willing chicken hawk to plume for 08.no shortage of sorry asses to chose from.
Bush’s brain my ass. Go check the history books to see which nazi playbook he has been using. He’s a nasty piece of work who learned how to play dirty politics. He was begged by his tutor, on his deathbed, not to use the tools he had acquired. Nonetheless, the dying wish was ignored as he pursued the politricks (politics of dirty tricks.) The universe has righted America in the nick of time, else the next move would be totalitarianism. We aren’t out of the woods as yet, as they have in place certain hooks to fold up our democracy if we dare blink. Tuesdays result was a landslide of popular opinion on this disaster of a regime. And no matter that the MSM are trying to spin it as being close, this was such an overwhelming rejection that despite the expected cheating we’ve become accustomed to with these thugs, we emerged victorious. I wonder what the 110th Senate would have looked like if all 100 seats were up for re-election this time.
I believe Rove is an over-achiever who followed the Nazi playbook. He will cultivate a new generation of political terrorists just as he is descended from Lee Atwater. He will look for a new job and stay in the game. He does know where the “bodies are buried” just like Hoover and LBJ, and he has terrified everyone else who might know. Be he is no genius. What he is: patient and persistent. The world is littered with failed geniuses, but the people who win most consistently are the patient and persistent. Bush was a foolhardy cutout for smarter players. Cheney comes to mind.
Trish, I think Karl Rove’s strategy is partially responsible for the fact that his candidate is now governor-elect of Florida.
I think Bush’s trip to Pensacola and Charlie Crist’s obvious slap in the face to George has to be seen as part of the reason Crist is now Florida’s governor-elect.
Why did George go to Pensacola, an area clearly sewn up by the Republican candidates? No Republican candidate in that area needed his support.
God only knows what really went on behind the scenes, but my guess is that the whole thing was scripted (George’s visit and Charlie’s obvious loud-and-clear- in-your-face distancing himself from George) to assist Crist’s candidacy, which, at the time of George’s Pensacola visit, was still far from secure.
The word to the press from the Crist camp that he wasn’t one of George’s buddies had to help somewhat, because everyone knows that holding hands with George Bush on election day 2006 would certainly be the kiss of death.
And who would be the likely director of this successful screenplay?
Can you say Karl Rove?
To the strategic advisor for the Bush group, this was a victory in an election where it was foreordained that there weren’t going to be many Republican victories.
This ploy at least had to help a little bit, and maybe even tilted the scales. Republican governors may not be as important to Karl as purchasable congressmembers, but every little Republican in office helps.
Look at the mischief done by Florida’s Republican governors in the past (Jeb’s aiding and abetting brother George’s theft of the 2000 election, for instance).
I’d like to count Karl out too, but I think he may still be alive and well in the enemy camp.
Paraguay may be out of US jurisdiction, but the jurisdiction of the World Court. OOOOOps it appears someone miscalculated.
George Jr. cannot get rid of Rove, because “The Decider” has never really existed as a political entity without Boy Genius.
Remember, Rove “discovered” George W. and groomed him for political office, not the other way around.
The bottom line: Charlie McCarthy (the dummy) can’t fire Edgar Bergen (the ventriloquist).
Bush,Rumy,Cheney,Rice et.al probably have had it planned since they stole their way into office,that they would abscond with the spoils of the US treasury to Paraguay.They are,afterall,1st class criminals of the oligarchic variety{think Somosa who also absconded from Nicaragua with the treasury cash to Fla.},the ‘political elite class’, and their crimes,as war crimes usually are,are so far reaching and so enormous that they are not readily identifiable as crimes against humanity.They were able to pull off these crimes right in front of the whole world and now the final act left to pull off is the escape to the 93,000 acre, plus Poppy bush’s 173,000 acre adjacent ranch, in Paraguay to live out their days like the Nazi war criminals did.{Didn’t their philosophy come from the Nazi ideas of fascim?as well}I did read tho that Paraguay currently has an extradition treaty with the USA.Of course that is perhaps another small detail to attend to before their great escape.Rummy will already be there with Rovie holding the bags of cash from the disappeared BILLIONS out of the US treasury.Party on guys! and thanks for destroying the planet and the nation, off to the southern hemisphere,safe from all the ‘fall-out’ you’ve left behind.Too bad for us,as Satan and his minions exit this hemisphere,on to the next!!! Off to Paraguay. And to think,”Impeachment’s off the table.”
Our first job as a country is to make sure impeachment gets on the table. We elected these people to begin doing the will of the people for a chanc=ge and if they won’t they are no better than the thugs who have run this great nation into the ground.
Impeach? Impeachment is off the table. Didn’t you catch Nanners pledge last week or so that there will be no impeachment in “her” House? And Dean confirmed it – why the hell is “Pelosi President ‘07 Impeach Them Now” at the head of this blog? By promising not to impeach, she has just become one more betrayer of America and the rest of the world. Let’s start by impeaching the traitor Pelosi to get her out of the way so we can get the rest of the lying, murderous creeps -
The folks in the administration are indeed worried about coming indictments as well they should be. In fact, Rumsfeld, Gonzales, Yoo, and a host of others are about to be charged in Germany for war crimes so the prospect of them fleeing to a more fascist friendly environment is not out of the question. However, remember that after Somoza fled, he was taken out by one bazooka round and one can only hope the same fate awaits the Bush people.