The CIA and Republican Turmoil

Well, the Republican Party is in crisis and I couldn't be happier. Those slimy bastards have dug their own grave and now the Congressional-Executive battle continues. With the resignation of former-Rep. Porter Goss from the head of the CIA (with questions being asked about his role in the Duke Cunningham Watergate prostitution scandal), the legislative and executive branches of the Republican Party are battling it out over the expected nomination of General Michael Hayden to Goss' former post. Goss burned a lot of bridges in the CIA and furthered the suspicion (not without justification, I might add) that the White House wants to sideline the CIA in favor of the Defence Intelligence Agency and the group of secret intelligence-fixing agencies under Don Rumsfeld's contol. The White House has mistrusted the CIA since it warned the Administration that the White House claims of WMD in Iraq and a tie between 9/11 and Iraq rested on shaky (if any) intelligence. However, Congress has begun to mistrust the White House because the War in Iraq (and the bunglings of said war), as well as the mismanagement of the war in Afghanistan, and the plunging poll numbers for Bush and Republicans generally. The NY Times reports today that:

Senior Republican lawmakers on Sunday criticized the probable choice of Gen. Michael V. Hayden to lead the Central Intelligence Agency, voicing concerns about his ties to a controversial eavesdropping program and about the wisdom of installing a military officer at the civilian spy agency.

All of Michael Hayden's cheerleading for the war in Iraq, which contrary to Republican claims is not going well. All the controversy spells good things for Democrats in the mid-term elections assuming they get their heads out of their ass and push for a withdrawl from Iraq so no more of our troops get killed in what is essentially target practice for the coming civil war in Iraq. But my assumption about Democrats is probably overly optimistic, but in the environs of Little Beiruit [named by George H.W. Bush] (i.e., the People's Rebublic of Portland, OR), we embrace the anti-war democrats like Earl Blumenauer (people in the 3rd district of the PR of Portland should vote to re-elect him, you have until May 16th to get your ballots in) .

Honor the dead
Heal the wounded
End the war
(from my parents' bumper sticker)

In other news, no grad school this year and I want to stay in Portland for a while, maybe go into politics instead of grad school. Anyone know if Erik Sten needs staffers?

My bands: The TNA Transparent Asphalt Highway Tourette's