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I'm quite tired today. So tired I don't feel much like reading, not to mention writing. So instead of a long diatribe, just a few tidbits:

1. Reading this article leaves one with the impression that Charles Krauthammer is the smartest dumb person alive.

2. Daschle says King George's claim that Congress authorized illegal wiretaps in the post 9/11 resolution granting the King the right to prosecute the war on terror is false. No shocker there.

3. Good week to be a Dem: Talk about outmaneuvering the GOP. The Dems knew they couldn't stop cuts in Medicare, Medicaid, and student loans, but they did stop the Alaskan Drilling initiative and they did stop the Patriot Act. Not only that, and the tactician in me just loves this, Nancy Pelosi and the rest of the Senate Dems totally screwed over the House. After passing the budget, the House closed up and everyone left town. But, Pelosi forced changes in the budget that have to be approved by the House. So, either the House comes back into town two days before Christmas, or they wait until January to pass the budget.

It gets better.

The GOP doesn't want to bring the House back into session right away because they're hoping for a quick resolution to the DeLay scandal. Opening the House up again could spark a leadership battle that would divide the Republicans and be very messy. Thus, the House is scheduled to remain closed until the end of January. Now the GOP is stuck - either come through with the promised cuts and risk a divisive battle or wait until the end of January and lose the momentum of "victory".

Further complicating things is that the initial House budget only passed by six votes. Guess how many Democrats missed the vote? That's right. Six. Ten Republicans missed the vote as well, while nine voted againt the budget cuts. This is all very messy but one thing seems clear. By forcing a vote in 2006 - in the all important election season - the Democrats have created a situation in which it will be exceedingly difficult for the Republicans to get the budget passed in it's current form and, when it does pass, the GOP will be forced to answer tough questions to Senior Citizens about why they cut their benefits.

Not good times for the GOP.

4. Whatever happened to the Red/Orange/Yellow "terror" alerts? Funny how immediately after King George wins reelection we stop hearing daily changes in the threat level. I'm not going all Michael Moore on anyone, I'm just saying...

5. Speaking of the election, some may recall the story about Wally O'Dell, CEO of Diebold, Inc, the company that provided electronic voting machines to dozens of states and was famously quoted as telling King George that he would "deliver the election". Well, guess what? Jimmy Carter was right. All of those concerns about not being able to trace election results, hacking into voting machines and changing results, you know...election fraud...have proven true. A Tallahassee, Florida election official watched results hacked before his very eyes and decertified Diebold. And it's spreading. Florida, California, St. Louis, and maybe North Carolina are all decertifying Diebold. And good old Wally? He's out at Diebold. The national media has yet to pick up on this story. So, about that Kerry Administration...