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Congress v. Bush
Poll Watch
Bush is back down to 37 percent job approval in the latest Gallup poll.
Joseph Carroll reports for Gallup: "Despite many extraordinary events dominating the news over the past weeks -- including the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon and Bush's high-visibility trip to Europe -- this slight drop from the 40% approval rating measured earlier in the month is not statistically significant and falls within the margin of error between the two surveys. The current 37% rating is similar to his average approval rating of 37% for all of June."
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There's a new question on the poll: "Do you think the Bush administration has a clear and well-thought out policy on the situation in the Middle East, or not?" The results: 27 percent say he does, 67 percent say he does not.'
Plame Watch
Toni Locy writes for the Associated Press: "No one in the Bush administration has been stripped of security clearances over the leak of former CIA officer Valerie Plame's identity to reporters three years ago.
"In a letter to Sen. Frank Lautenberg, D-N.J., the CIA said it had no record of anyone in the administration who is no longer privy to the nation's most sensitive secrets because of the Plame leak.
"The CIA also revealed it has not yet completed a formal assessment of the damage to national security that may have been caused by Plame's outing in 2003. . . .
"For more than a year, Lautenberg and other Democrats have been calling on President Bush to fire presidential adviser Karl Rove and any other aides who discussed Plame's CIA status with reporters -- or, at the least, to revoke their security clearances."
Karl Rove Watch
Amy Argetsinger and Roxanne Roberts write in The Washington Post about Rove's visit to the Washington D.C. jury pool (the same day as former secretary of state Madeleine Albright!)
"The Bush strategist was in a lightweight olive-green suit, cell glued to ear, and looked like he had lost weight. He was heard telling Albright that Omaha (which just won a surprising chunk of anti-terror funds) is a target because all the phone lines cross there. In the waiting room, he passed time with homework (notes on the Iraqi prime minister's visit, a draft op-ed on American workers, a PowerPoint on Social Security reform, an article on 'Candidate Giuliani,' bullet points on Gulf Coast reconstruction). When another juror started snoring, he quipped, 'We need to get that guy some sinus surgery.' Once in the courtroom (a cocaine distribution case), Rove was quickly excused, prompting a wave of huffy our jobs are as important as his! whispers. But, explained White House spokeswoman Dana Perino, 'He knew the judge socially': Their kids graduated from high school together. Said another juror: 'Somehow I thought his next court appearance would be less mundane.' "
Note to self: A PowerPoint on Social Security reform. Interesting.
Surprise, Surprise
Libby Copeland writes in The Washington Post: "President Bush and his top officials tend to make a lot of unannounced trips these days. It has gotten to the point where it would be a surprise if the Bush administration didn't make a surprise visit every few months."
Saluting the Flag
Bush boldly signed legislation yesterday that bars condominium and homeowner associations from restricting how the American flag can be displayed.
Here's his statement : "Americans have long flown our flag at their homes as an expression of their appreciation for our freedoms and their pride in our Nation. As our brave men and women continue to fight to protect our country overseas, Congress has passed an important measure to protect our citizens' right to express their patriotism here at home without burdensome restrictions."
Murder Confession
Peter Baker writes in The Washington Post: "President Bush does not consider stem cell research using human embryos to be murder, the White House said yesterday, reversing its description of his position just days after he vetoed legislation to lift federal funding restrictions on the hotly disputed area of study.
"White House press secretary Tony Snow said yesterday that he 'overstated the president's position' during a briefing last week but said Bush rejected the bill because 'he does have objections with spending federal money on something that is morally objectionable to many Americans.' . . .
" Tim Russert , host of NBC's 'Meet the Press,' grilled White House Chief of Staff Joshua B. Bolten on Sunday about whether Bush agreed with Snow's characterization. Bolten avoided a direct answer several times and then finally said, 'I haven't spoken to him about the use of particular terminology.'
"At yesterday's briefing , Snow retracted his statement and apologized. 'I overstepped my brief there, and so I created a little trouble for Josh Bolten in the interview,' Snow said. 'And I feel bad about it.' "
Sorry, Bunnies
Here's a post from the satirical Sadly, No! blog about some bunnies who took another one of Snow's statements about stem-cell research a little too literally.
