If Only...

Steve Gilliard sure sounds convincing as he predicts the downfall of the Bush Gang (snippet):

"....This could end a couple of different ways, but I'm betting that Rove is indicted by the middle of the month. Fitzgerlad didn't conveiene a grand jury and drag up Viveca Novak for fun and games. Remember, the singular trait of Bushies is an overweeing belief that they will prevail no matter what, despite the constant string of failures they've racked up. My bet is that an indictment will come as a shock to Bush, despite the evidence that it is coming. To people who believe Bush will skate, just keep in mind, Nixon was far more popular than Bush ever was excluding 9/11. And with Jack Abramhoff about to paralyze Congress, Bush's decline could be short, sharp and fast. No matter how reckless Bush seems, and he seems to be doing 90 on a wet road, it's all based on a need for approval and a fear of failure. THis whole thing is driven by a fear of failure. The one thing liberals do, repeatedly, is cede power to Bush he does not have. 2005 was a year of failure for Bush, yet time and again, people were wondering when he would turn it around. He won't. Katrina made that impossible. He failed so badly, so publicly, public trust has been eroded trust. The mass confusion of the new Medicaid plan will alienate the elderly, the most loyal voters. The US Army is reaching it's limits in Iraq, by mid-summer, with shrinking recruiting and soldiers leaving the Army after three tours, climbing divorce rates, the US will have to begin to leave Iraq or draft replacements...."

This is by far the most all-encompassing optimistic prediction from a reputable political analyst I've read. I would give anything to be able to believe it. But one thing Gilliard fails to recognize is that the government is run by corporations, not individuals or political coalitions. Those in power could care less if Bush is running scared or losing the trust of his party. He's the Howdy Doody of the military/industrial/petroleum monolith and really doesn't seem to care about consequences in the least; as financially protected as he is, why should he? The Steve Gilliards of the web need to take one more step back, because they're seeing not the forest, but only the leaves.