Jon Stewart's take on bushco...

[gratefultobelib]

The Stewart interview by Bill Moyers on PBS was incredible. I thought Stewart's summation here was particularly illuminating:

JON STEWART: Yeah, it's kind of astonishing. There is I used to have a real disconnect, I think, with the administration, I couldn't figure out what was going on. I think it's suddenly become clear to me. They would rather us believe them to be wildly incompetent and inarticulate than to let us know anything about how they operate. And so, they do Constitutionally-mandated things most of the time, but they don't — they fulfill the letter of their obligation to checks and balances, but not the intent.

For instance, Alberto Gonzales, and you've been watching the hearings. He is either a perjurer, or a low-functioning pinhead. And he allowed himself to be portrayed in those hearings as a low-functioning pinhead, rather than give the Congressional Committee charged with oversight, any information as to his decision-making process at the Department of Justice.

And I used to think, "They're doing this based on a certain arrogance." And now, I realize that it's because they believe there is one accountability moment for a President, and that is the four year election. And once you get that election, you're done.

[wordpix]

1. I saw part of this and would love to have the video for my library. Any link?

[BrklynLiberal]

2. The entire show was fantastic, as usual with anything that Moyers does. LINK:

http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/04272007/watch.html

[gratefultobelib]

3. Link!

If I do it right!

http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/04272007/watch.html

If it doesn't work, go to PBS.org and type in Moyers and you will get there. It was such a marvelous interview. The one afterwards with Josh Marshall was also superb. I watched both online as well as Moyers' 1st piece on selling the war.

[lildreamer316]

8. Thanks....was looking for those.

Wonderful interviews.

[Orangepeel]

4. one major point of disagreement

the do NOT believe there is one accountability moment for A president. They believe there is one accountability moment for THEIR President.

[pretzel4gore]

5. bush isn't legitimate

no way could bush win an honest election (same goes for reagan)...this fact, that a repuke government is imposed on us, by necessity, because the majority of voters would reject the special interests only agenda of rightwing regimes, even Jon avoids mentioning....the 'accountability moment' is a fiction

[chelaque liberal]

6. I thought this was the best part:

JON STEWART: And by the way, that was all just ? that was a game, and he knew it, and the guys on the committee knew it. And for the President to come out after that and say, "Everything I saw there gave me more confidence in him," that solidified my notion that, "Oh, it's because what he expected of Gonzalez was" it's sort of like, do you remember in GOODFELLAS? When Henry Hill got arrested for the first time and Robert DeNiro met him at the courthouse and Henry Hill was really upset, 'cause he thought Robert DeNiro would be really mad at him. And DeNiro comes up to him and he gives him a $100 and he goes, "You got pinched. We all get pinched, but you did it right, you didn't say nothing."

BILL MOYERS: Gonzales said nothing.

JON STEWART: Right. And "you went up there and said nothing. You gave them no legal recourse against you, and you made yourself a smart man, a self-made man, look like an utter pinhead on national television, and you did it for me."


Jon nailed it! It is not possible to describe it any more precisly.

[The Backlash Cometh]

7. That's right out of the good ole boy handbook:

"They would rather us believe them to be wildly incompetent and inarticulate than to let us know anything about how they operate."