Beware of praise from Bush

That means your program/job/office is going to be cut/found redundant/closed:

24 Hours After Touting Clean Coal In SOTU, White House Drops Ambitious Clean Coal Project

Just how many times has he done this? Read this wonderfully written Molly Ivins article, so to the point:

On the few occasions when Bush does directly encounter the down-and-out, he seems to empathize. But then, in what is becoming a recurring, almost nightmare-type scenario, the minute he visits some constructive program and praises it (AmeriCorps, the Boys and Girls Club, job training), he turns around and cuts the budget for it. It's the kiss of death if the president comes to praise your program. During the presidential debate in Boston in 2000, Bush said, "First and foremost, we've got to make sure we fully fund LIHEAP [the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program], which is a way to help low-income folks, particularly here in the East, pay their high fuel bills." He then sliced $300 million out of that sucker, even as people were dying of hypothermia, or, to put it bluntly, freezing to death.

She wrote this in 2003. Bless you, Molly.



crossposted at SteveAudio

The best Molly Ivins memorial speech yet

Is by the Rude Pundit. (via Atrios)

Photo by Melanie West

Update 2/4: At the memorial service itself:

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) -- Molly Ivins was relentless in pursuing justice and defending the powerless, yet never lost her optimism and sense of fun, family and friends said Sunday at her memorial service.

In a laughter-filled service capped by a performance of "Great Balls of Fire" by blues musician Marcia Ball, hundreds of admirers clapped and cheered Ivins' words and spirit.

A best-selling author and syndicated columnist whose work appeared in more than 400 newspapers, Ivins died Wednesday at age 62 after a long battle with breast cancer.

At the First United Methodist Church on Sunday, numerous friends read from her writings and told stories of their adventures with her.

Friend Linda Lewis brought the crowd to its feet when she repeated a quip from Ivins: "The next time I tell you someone from Texas should not be president of the United States, please, pay attention."

Molly Ivins gives thanks.

"It’s time to give thanks, and I want to start off with a great, big thank you for the top American movement conservatives and all the fun we’ve had since Election Day. I know I promised not to gloat after this election was over, but I’m not talking unseemly gloating—I’m talking about moments so brilliantly hilarious the only option is to put your head down on the desk and howl."

She lists the people she's grateful for, starting with Kate O’Beirne.
"First in line is the wit of The National Review’s Kate O’Beirne, who clearly teamed up with Borat to explain the great conservative win. Her explanation is that this is a win for conservatism because a great many of the D’s elected are so conservative themselves. She says half of them are conservatives.

She is indeed right. If only twice as many Democrats had been elected, it would have proved that there are twice as many conservatives in the country, and this is clear to any thinking person. We might challenge Ms. O’Beirne to explain how the next Republican win is a victory for liberalism.

The reason that O’Beirne and others are able to accept such an absurdity is because they’ve been listening to George W. Bush for six years and are thus able to believe six impossible things before breakfast."