Out of time, out of gas, and out of here

And none too soon. Froomkin of the Washington Post gives an overview of Bush's STFU speech to the nation and the media's reactions. The shorter version? Nobody is listening anymore:

There it was last night, for all the world to see: A presidency running on empty.

In his final State of the Union address, President Bush had almost nothing to say. Certainly nothing new and significant. Nothing remotely memorable.

It's a safe bet that nothing he said last night will amount to much. Nothing he said will help bring the country together, or undo the damage he has done to American interests abroad. Nothing he said will help him win back the trust or support of the American people, both which he lost a long time ago.

On the traditional State of the Union litany of subjects, his repetition of familiar and sometimes delusional talking points conveyed a clear, though unintended message: That those looking for meaningful progress on the key issues facing our nation and our world today will have to wait for the next president.

(Picture from here.)

Update: Dear God, he's doing it again! Tengrain of Mock, Paper, Scissors has the pic.

Update 1/31: Dancin' Dave of SteveAudio has the blow by blow of Georgie's speech with some excellent observations like:

Like the "surge" in Iraq, I think it's safe to say that Georgie is doing all he can to try to duct-tape his teetering mess in the hope that he'll have safely shuffled out the door chuckling before it all comes tumbling down upon his successor, who will have to deal with a record deficit and trying to escape the quagmire of Iraq.

Exactly. The C student frat boy is trying yet again to evade hard work and responsibility. But Bush's legacy is writ large on the world and we will never forget.

Update 2/1: GAHHHHHH! Watertiger of Dependable Renegade catches another bald rub.

Are you a Bush Republican?

All those who supported Georgie Bush and his Grand Adventure need to wear this button at Bush's last State of the Union address:



Digby of Hullabaloo:

The Republicans can run, but they can't hide from their complicity in this, especially the presidential candidates who are still quaking in their boots for fear of offending the Bush cultists who continue to defend that shameful record. Bush is their albatross --- they made him, now they have to take responsibility for him. If you listen to their rhetoric on the trail it's quite clear that they are ready to do it all over again.

We want pictures. And names. And how many times they supported the Bush administration, how many times they marched in lockstep with the Rovian demands. We will never forget, nor will we let them forget.

We will remind the voters at every turn.

Just staying alive takes all one's focus

Iraqis are 'indifferent' to Bush's SOTU speech. After all, they've been listening to the promises for three explosive years and it's only gotten worse:

In Baghdad, Hoda Abdel Hamid, Al Jazeera's Iraq correspondent, said Iraqis had so many problems that they would not pay much attention to Bush's speech.

"Iraqis told me 'we don't believe in all his promises - he's going to ask us to be patient, but he's not the one living under the bombs'". "All Iraqis can hear this morning is explosions - there are mortars going off and there is a heavy gun battle going on just a couple of hundred metres away.

"This is what Iraqis are listening to."

Senator Jim Webb

does us proud.

Transcript here, and here is part:

Like so many other Americans, today and throughout our history, we serve and have served, not for political reasons, but because we love our country. On the political issues - those matters of war and peace, and in some cases of life and death - we trusted the judgment of our national leaders. We hoped that they would be right, that they would measure with accuracy the value of our lives against the enormity of the national interest that might call upon us to go into harm's way.

We owed them our loyalty, as Americans, and we gave it. But they owed us - sound judgment, clear thinking, concern for our welfare, a guarantee that the threat to our country was equal to the price we might be called upon to pay in defending it.

The President took us into this war recklessly. He disregarded warnings from the national security adviser during the first Gulf War, the chief of staff of the army, two former commanding generals of the Central Command, whose jurisdiction includes Iraq, the director of operations on the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and many, many others with great integrity and long experience in national security affairs. We are now, as a nation, held hostage to the predictable - and predicted - disarray that has followed.

The war's costs to our nation have been staggering.
Financially.
The damage to our reputation around the world.
The lost opportunities to defeat the forces of international terrorism.
And especially the precious blood of our citizens who have stepped forward to serve.

Update 1/24: Think Progress offers a point by point challenge to Bush's SOTU.

The only one believing the promises in the SOTU

Fluffy is stunned by the promises of eternal kibble in her bowl....

Will the SOTU be a STFU?

BBC:

To characterise this year's State of the Union address as President George W Bush's "don't mention the war" speech would be a little unfair.

Really? I wonder why?

Bush addressing the domestic side of his agenda:

Health care and tax breaks for rich people. Tax the lazy poor people. Screw the environment. Be afraid cuz ferringers are bad. Drilling for oil in Alaska, by the way caribou is delicious. Iraq has to be a success cuz you're dealing with mah legacy here! Immigration reform by shooting illegals at the border and building a big wall like East Germany did. Deficits show our economy is healthy! What war with Iran? Why does Pelosi's eyes burn mah back? Damn that woman! Demrats better work with me cuz I'm the Escalator Decider guy!

Prediction for the State of the Union address on Tuesday

What Bush imagines:


while he sees the crowd going wild:


But his explanation of the mess he's responsible for:


having to explain his friends:


his bad jokes:


his vanity war:


will not go over well:


and will result in this:


and hopefully this:


Update: Democratic Daily has the perfect cartoon.