The Bigger Picture

Because the media reports scandals in a bubble and/or like some catty soap-operas ('OMG Lindsey Graham yelled at Alberto Gonzales! Daaaamnnn, you go girl'), most people likely see them as isolated incidents of political chicanery. In the case of the Bush administration, most of these scandals are linked by common threads. Few people (my favorite exception is the muckraking gang at Talking Points Memo) try to piece these together.

The common thread is extreme partisanship and power. Republicans hate the idea of government and have thusly been mixed at running it, but the Bush Republicans used government-- moreso than their predecessors-- as a way to consolidate their own power and to enrich their friends. The U.S. Attorney purge, the warrantless wiretapping program, war profiteering, the cronies and FEMA and elsewhere, etc... all guided by this ideology.

Rep. Rahm Emanuel this week gave a speech really tying this all together well in an incredbly damning indictment of the Bush White House. It was major news all over the country seen by absolutely no one.

He summed it up thusly: "The Bush Administration has redefined the famous challenge of President Kennedy’s inaugural address. Instead of 'Ask not what your country can do for you,' it has become 'Ask what your government can do for our party.'"

Anyway, here are some highlights from the text (I couldn't find video)-

Not since the days of Watergate, when our judicial system and intelligence community were deployed by the White House in the service of partisan politics, have we seen such abuses. And in many ways, what we have seen from this administration is far more extensive than that scandal.

Partisan politics has infiltrated every level of our federal government – from scientific reports on global warming to emergency management services to the prosecutorial power of the federal government itself. Even the Iraq War – from our entry to the reconstruction – has been thoroughly politicized and manipulated.

....

[T]hese are not isolated incidences. It’s a pattern of political appointees who put partisan interests ahead of country –- and were told to do so.

He concludes-

While we pursue these ideas -– and others -– to get politics and policy back into balance, ultimately we need leaders who see public service as a calling and not a profit center for themselves or their political allies. A Congress that takes its oversight responsibilities seriously is our best antidote to the unprecedented politicizing of government. Furthermore, the media must also continue to shine a bright light on government and keep our leaders honest and accountable. That vigorous oversight ought to extend to the next Administration, whether Democratic or Republican and Congress.

The saddest legacy of the Bush Administration’s six-year trail of cronyism and corruption is that it contributes to the public’s already cynical view of government. This makes it even more difficult for those of us who believe that the purpose of government is to secure a better future for our country and all of its people. Repairing this sorry legacy is the first challenge our next President will face.

Ummmm, yea, good luck with that, Rahm. They're too busy covering John Edwards' haircut.

The whole speech can be read- here. It's a Cliff Notes of Bush administration corruption.

[UPDATE: The Bush cultists at Powerline brag that the administration is 100% scandal-free.]