A Stitch in Haste

President Bush has an op-ed in today's Wall Street Journal / OpinionJournal:

My principles are no secret.

--Unlike so many of his Administration's practices.

I believe that when America is willing to use her influence abroad, the American people are safer and the world is more secure.

--Except for the more than 3,000 killed in Iraq, with more undoubtedly on the way.

I believe government closest to the people is more responsive and accountable.

--If President Bush cares so much about "accountable government," then why is he so rabidly opposed to "activist judges" who merely seek to protect some of "the people" from others? Stated differently, what about when government becomes too "responsive" to illegitimate motives of "the people," such as anti-gay bigotry?

The outcome of the elections has changed the balance of power in Congress, yet the priorities for keeping our country safe and prosperous go beyond party labels.

--So do the preservation of civil liberties and constitutional notions of due process and equal protection.

It is a fact that economies do best when you reward hard work by allowing people to keep more of what they have earned. ... Now is not the time to raise taxes on the American people.

--I hope the President keeps that in mind when calls come, as they have in the past and will in the future, to eliminate the wage cap on Social Security, which would be the largest tax increase in American history.

It's time Congress give [sic] the president a line-item veto.

--Fine, but do it the right way: via a constitutional amendment and not via a patently unconstitutional warm-fuzzy-feeling bill like the last one.

I look forward to working with Congress on these difficult issues. ... If the Congress chooses to pass bills that are simply political statements, they will have chosen stalemate.

--Stalemate, for lack of a better word, is good. Stalemate works. Two years of stalemate would be a most refreshing change from the last six. Bring it on...

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The real State of the Union address will be delivered on Tuesday, January 23, 2007.