Whistling by the graveyard

This piece, by Fred Barnes, would work as a parody.

The first thing that jumped out at me was this:

Roberts is a Thatcherite. He's strongly pro-American and pro-Iraq war. Among other things, Bush and Roberts talked about the decline of Europe and the role in this played by the shrunken
influence of Christianity. By the time they broke for lunch, the president was "revved up," an aide says. His fervor was infectious. "Roberts is more conservative than I am!" a pleasantly surprised White House official exclaimed.

What does being "pro-America and pro-Iraq war" have to do with conservatism? Pat Buchanan and George Will certainly don't support the mess we've made of Mesopotamia, but I dare say they consider themselves conservatives. These people equate their radical agenda with conservatism and the truth couldn't be further apart.

This statement:

Bolten's view--and presumably Bush's--is that if you're going to do something, do it swiftly. And that, by the way, is exactly what the White House did in response to the Walter Reed scandal, instantly denouncing the poor treatment of wounded soldiers and hastily naming a commission to recommend improvements.

is vivisected here.

but Barnes' wishful thinking goes overboard here:

What has cheered congressional Republicans is the White House's eagerness to fight back on a wide range of issues, not just on Iraq and the war on terror. "They're tired [at the White House] but you don't get the sense they're giving up," a Senate official insists. "From Bush on down, they haven't stopped fighting back. If they do, it'll be trouble up here" on Capitol Hill for Republicans.

Rush is pissed that Lt. Gen Kiley resigned today, making him the third to go in the Walter Reed scandal. He's also pissed that Gonzales' aide Kyle Sampson packed it in, rather than facing indictment over the AG purge. Gonzales will go next. Henry Waxman will methodically demand accountability from all of them, including Condi. Fred Barnes is whistling by the graveyard.