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03/08/2007: "Twisting In The Breeze"

It would appear that Scooter Libby has entered his final act as the latest political fall guy, as he has been convicted of lying to a grand jury in the Valerie Plame-Wilson fiasco and awaits sentencing. Facts aside - since we'll never know what they are anyway - this whole episode plays out like some kind of bad Shakespearian tragedy.

On one side, Dick Cheney - arrogance personified - whose years of unfettered power have made him forget he's not the president - or perhaps he simply doesn't care. His willingness to throw Scooter under the wheels of the Vice-Presidential bus and watch as it rolled over him smacks of cowardice.

On the other side, Joe Wilson, an anonymous ambassador whose wife apparently wore the pants in the family until he decided to publicly stab the administration in the back over its Iraq policy. He can barely contain his glee at the way Cheney took the bait and reacted by childishly outing his wife's CIA cover. Now he's the toast of the talk show circuit, someone people want to listen to - and pay to listen to. He's struck gold, and is grabbing it with both hands.

Then there's the Democratic-run congress, which watches the administration blunder once again and smells blood. There's political hay to be made, and they all have brand-new pitchforks. "What did they know and when did they know it" - those familiar words from the Nixon era waft down from Capitol Hill once again as a new generation of politicians look to make a reputation for themselves.

I was too young to appreciate all the subtleties of the Watergate era, but I can't believe that the relationships between politicians then could have been any worse than it is now. Everyone's looking for someone to take down, and in the end, we all lose. All this effort that could be used to solve the real problems of our generation is instead wasted on hearings and coverups and press conferences.

And people wonder why the average American holds politicians in such low esteem ...