The GOP is in extraordinary disarray

This was supposed to be the week they turned it around.  A new White House offensive on terrorism, the nutty ABC movie, a primetime speech by Bush, a come from behind win in Rhode Island. Stories early in the week all pointed to a resurgent GOP, ready to turn around their bad poll numbers and use their political mastery to whack the Dems, again.

Didn't really play out that way, did it?

Pentagon lawyers publically rejected the Adminstration's proposal for new military tribunals.  House Republicans rejected the Bush/McCain-led Senate-passed immigration bill, relabeling it the "Reid-Kennedy Democratic Amnesty" Bill.  Senate Republicans and Secretary Powell choose the Geneva Conventions over Bush's detention and interrogation plan.  Iraq had some of the most violent days in its recent history.  The sordid scandals of the Bush era returned with a vengence, as a 2nd Republican Congressman, Bob Ney, pled guilty to corruption charges.  He is now set to return to court October 13, just a few weeks before the election. 

The week began with the story line R's resurgent.  It ended with Rs in deep and difficult disarray. 

One other sign of how desperate the Administration is to change the story line of this election is their effort to lie about current economic circumstances.  As James Crabtree reported earlier this week on our blog, the Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisors gave a speech this week repeating the Administration's case that contrary to all public analyses wages and income are rising in the United States.  He based his argument on what is called nominal wages, or the actual rise of wages prior to adjusting for inflation.  Of course these figures have risen, but once inflation is accounted for peoples incomes and wages have declined in recent years.  All public analyses use these figures, or real wages and income as their measure.  It is extraordinary for an economist to be making this case, as he is surely aware of the ridicule that will be heaped upon him by his peers.  And to us, here at NDN, this effort to recast the economic debate needs to be understood simply as an incredible and purposeful lie by the Administration, something I guess we've all become used to in recent years.