Billmon: The Right's Iraq

One of the most fascinating -- and deeply amusing -- aspects of the Great Miers Revolt has been watching the conservative rebels react with growing disgust and anger to the tactics the White House is using to try to bulldoze Shrub's pen pal through the confirmation process.

The Rovian game plan is, in all its essentials, the same sleazy blend of double speak, half-truths, non sequiturs, demagogic appeals and knees-to-the-groin smears that were used to sell the invasion of Iraq. But those who applauded then -- and again when the same patented blend of slime was used in the Cheney-Bush reelection campaign -- are howling about it now that they're the intended targets.