The Day the Truth Caught Up With Bush

By: Bruce S. Ticker

It is like something Biblical. Or anti-Biblical.

For six days God snoozed. Then on the seventh day he, or she, geared for action and gave us a gift.

If you are religious or not, that seventh day - Jan. 11 - was the day the truth caught up with George W. Bush.

On Saturday, Jan. 5, the president began the first day with a lovefest in Ontario, Calif., where he was recognized for being God's gift to the nation and saving the world.

Even perky Miss America urged her fellow Oregonians and all Americans to support our President "100 percent" presumably in the war against terrorism.

On the second day, the president's disciples continued to bash Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle for continuing to be "an obstructionist" over the economic stimulus bill.

Tuesday, Bush signed an education bill that won't educate anyone as friendly Ohioans watched him do it. The lovefest continued in Durham, N.H., and Boston, Mass.

Even the one seeming lemon turned into lemonade in New Hampshire where a 22-year-old student rose and shouted questions about children killed in Afghanistan. An older man abruptly pushed the guy back into his seat and struck him. A Bush fan after the President's heart.

And on the dawn of the seventh day, on Friday, New Hampshirites got to read a favorable review of Bush in the Concord Monitor, which is regarded as a balanced newspaper.

"Having risen to the challenge before him, Bush has most of the country on his side right now" a Monitor editorial stated. "More important, he continues to improve at the things that used to give him trouble."

But the Monitor's news section carried a story about the growing Enron Corp. scandal.

Newspapers Friday morning front-paged stories which related that Enron executives called Bush administration officials for help in avoiding trouble; administration officials, particularly Attorney General John Ashcroft, said they were staying out of the FBI investigation; and the auditor destroyed records.

Twelve hours later, Philadelphia's Action News program telecast a report of Bush's visit to a suburb where he signed environmental legislation into law.

In the middle of the story, the reporter said that Bush did not mention the Enron scandal and recounted some background of the investigations into the Houston-based corporation.

So it begins. If nothing else can do it, the Enron scandal has the potential not only to effectively bring down the Bush administration but also cripple the Republican party for years.

Republicans have sent strong signals that they have known for a while that Enron means big trouble. At least three Republicans in Congress have been assertive in supporting an investigation.

Two GOP congressional powerhouses from Texas announced their retirements in recent months. It turns out that Sen. Phil Gramm and House Majority Leader Dick Armey are somehow entangled with Enron.

Republicans in Congress have been expressing caution in Congress and even trying to define the agenda.

If this issue has staying power, Bush will be lucky if he doesn't get impeached. Even Al Gore could beat him in the 2004 election. Republicans in Congress who were vulnerable before may be easily defeated in November, clearing the way for a solid Democratic takeover of Congress.

Even if nobody in the Bush administration committed a crime, these people are too closely tied to Enron to escape notice of a strong appearance of wrongdoing.

Karl Rove and many other Bush officials had stock in Enron, Bush and other Republicans accepted Enron campaign contributions (including Ashcroft), Republican officials have worked for Enron and Enron has had remarkable access to Bush and his people.

It goes without saying that the Enron business should be investigated by a special prosecutor. Ashcroft claimed he was recussing himself from the investigation, but who knows what Ashcroft and other Bush lackeys do behind the scenes?

The full Bush saga so far has had a Biblical feel to it. A man who perhaps set out to transform a democracy into a dictatorship got exposed at every turn when he thought he had what he wanted.

On election night, for example, he thought he was the next president. Not so fast. Gore saw to it that the public would know how Bush won, if you wish to use the word, the state of Florida.

After Sept. 11, Bush was above any possible reproach. Then Enron...

Consider that the day the Enron debacle caught up with Bush was nine days short of the first anniversary of his administration.