The preznit has decidered to get back to doing what he does best, campaigning. He was in Kansas City today speaking to the VFW in a sort of pre-emptive strike, drumming up support for the report he's going to release next month on the progress of The Surge, which every thinking person on the planet already knows is going to recommend continuing his Iraq debacle. He's scheduled to give another version of the same speech to the American Legion next week, and I'm sure there will be more to follow. It looks like dubya is going to stick with the same old game plan he's used so many times before. It goes something like this:

Phase One - Preach To The Choir: Start with dubya standing before a soothing blue background emblazoned with the catchy slogan for his latest abortion of a foreign or domestic policy - for this example I'll use The Great Stupid - speechifying to a hand-picked, (usually elderly) flag-waving conservative audience already known to be solidly behind the preznit. The mainstream media will dutifully report these speeches before the adoring crowds without mentioning that no protesters or opposing viewpoints of any kind were allowed within a half mile of the event.

Phase Two - Echo Chamber: Crank up the right-wing noise machine in support of The Great Stupid for 24/7 denigration and smearing of the nay-sayers, questioning the patriotism, bravery and birthright of anyone who opposes the preznit. Some of this rhetoric will inevitably find it's way into articles and editorials from mainstream news outlets as they constantly pursue "balanced coverage" to avoid being labeled "liberal media." Administration officials and supporters immediately begin citing these same articles as evidence of widespread bipartisan support for The Great Stupid.

Phase Three - No Lube: Proceed to ram The Great Stupid up the ass of Congress and the country. If it's pointed out that every poll shows the vast majority of Americans don't actually support The Great Stupid, and in fact think dubya is stuffed more full of shit than a cheap kielbasa, just trot out the tired old line that the preznit doesn't govern by the polls and is only doing what needs to be done to protect Amurka. Mission accomplished.

The sad thing is, this game plan will most likely work. It usually does. In fact, the only time it hasn't worked for dubya is when he tried to destroy privatize Social Security and the only reason it didn't work then was his inability to inject enough fear of brown people coming to take away your jeebus into the debate. That's much easier to do with The Great Stupid.

Even though dubya's argument for staying in Iraq has essentially devolved into "We must continue this catastrophe because if we stop it will be a catastrophe," he'll be able to frighten enough of the rubes that polls (the one's he doesn't govern by) will indicate a slight increase in support for his war without end. And that, coupled with evidence of some progress on the ground (after 4 and a half years, how could there not be some progress to point to on the ground), will be enough to force the feckless Democrats in Congress to capitulate to him yet again.