And we're baaaaack! Back with a vengeance. Back in black. Back to the future. Back in the saddle again. Usually what happens is that I start out a little slow on Monday, get in a groove by late Tuesday, hit a fevered pitch on Thursday, and by Friday I'm primed for the loony bin. So it's good that I took the weekend to stabilize.

If you missed the 9/11 commission testimony last week, The Daily Show has a good highlight reel. By far, the most talked about part is Richard Clarke's testimony on Bushco's activities pre-9/11. On Friday, Bill Frist essentially accused Clarke of perjury, saying that Clarke's testimony before another commission should be declassified to see if Clarke gave contradictory testimony. When pressed on the issue, Frist admitted that he really had no basis for his accusation, and that he had no idea really whether or not there would be any contradictions. And then on Sunday, Clarke appeared on Meet the Press with Tim "Company Man" Russert to answer some of the charges made against him by the Bushies. To Frist's charge that he may have perjured himself, Clarke called Frist's bluff and said that while they're at it, declassify all of his and Condi's emails too. Message to Frist: don't play poker with the highrollers. Another rightwing talking point was that Clarke had sent a polite letter to Shrub when he resigned, and so of course Clarke must be lying about everything. To this, Clarke pulled out a handwritten note from Shrub thanking him for his service. Touche.
Clarke also read some excerpts from Bob Woodward's book, "Bush at War," in which Shrub himself said that pre-9/11 he wasn't all that concerned about al-Qaida.
Bottom line: Unlike other Bush critics, Clarke isn't backing down.
And does anyone really buy Condi's excuses as to why she can't testify under oath in public?

Karl Rove had some unexpected visitors over the weekend. I love this story. Rove is just one more reason to get rid of Shrub come November. This slimy p.o.s. needs to be taken down a few rungs, and a Bushco defeat would do the trick.