Another trip to the Potemkin Village

It's beginning to make a lot of Democrats squirm a bit. Why is Bush spending so much time and money on the privatization campaign when it's pretty much dead in the water? Even Joe Lieberman is going back to the light, by signing a letter to the prez that denounces privatization. Is it an elaborate smokescreen that will allow other insane measures to pass with little opposition? It'd be a safe bet-- consider the bankruptcy bill that's speeding through Capitol Hill. Great for the rich, and another turn of the screw for the little guy.

But I'm getting off-topic. W is running his barnstorming tour on privatization like everything else if run. Audiences are composed entirely of supporters, and any opposition is squelched (in a word, fascistic).

Here's the story:

"Tickets for the president's visit to Westfield are spoken for and the waiting list is growing, according to Abby Bird, a spokeswoman for Rep. Mike Ferguson, R-Warren Township. The White House has given Ferguson, whose district includes Westfield, several hundred tickets to distribute among local constituents and groups for the 10:40 a.m. town hall meeting at the Westfield Armory. [snip]

Some of the tickets to the Westfield event are being distributed on a first come, first served basis. Others are for groups ranging from high school students to business organizations, she said.

Among those organizations are the chambers of commerce in Hunterdon and Union counties, the Somerset County Business Partnership and the New Jersey Business and Industry Association, Bird said. Those groups distribute their allotment at their discretion, she said."

One heartening fact about the privatization roadshow is that plenty of old-timers are showing up-- and they're pissed. And they aren't even being threatened with benefit cuts. They're just looking out for their children and grandchildren. People like Rick "Santorum" Santorum were stunned by this display of compassion. Which shows the poverty of their moral codes.