The Blame Jane Game

Speaking of the war, some more bad poll numbers:

"Most Americans don't believe the United States will succeed in winning the war in Iraq or establishing a stable democracy there, according to a USA Today /CNN/Gallup Poll.

"But an ambivalent public also says sending troops to Iraq wasn't a mistake, a sign that most people aren't yet ready to give up on the war. . . .

"For the first time, a majority of Americans, 51%, say the Bush administration deliberately misled the public about whether Iraq had weapons of mass destruction -- the central justification given for invading. . . . By 58%-37%, a majority say the United States won't be able to establish a stable democratic government in Iraq, similar to the results when the question was asked in April 2004."

On the John Roberts front, the administration has reached new heights of audacity in dealing with the press. Check out this sentence from yesterday's WashPost on the White House agreeing to turn over some but not all documents demanded by the Dems:

"The officials disclosed the new policy under ground rules requiring anonymity and an embargo until midnight, too late for Democratic reaction."

Now they're dictating when the story can run and who can be called for comment? Incredible.

Here are some of the paper trail stories, starting with the New York Times :

"As a young lawyer in the Justice Department at the beginning of Ronald Reagan's presidency, John G. Roberts advocated judicial restraint on the issues of the day, many of which are still topical, documents released Tuesday by the National Archives show.

"He defended, for instance, the constitutionality of proposed legislation to restrict the ability of federal courts to order busing to desegregate schools.

"On other civil rights issues, he encouraged a cautious approach by courts and federal agencies in enforcing laws against discrimination.

"Mr. Roberts also argued that Congress had the constitutional power 'to divest the lower federal courts of jurisdiction over school prayer cases.'"