Bush's Katrina Lie - Reax

USA Today scans the online outlets for reactions to the videoconference tape which proves that Bush lied when he declared infamously that nobody anticipated the breach of the New Orleans levees. So far, the arguments of Bush's apologists are pretty weak.

- Power Line blog asks whether the video and related transcripts really do show that federal officials were warned that the hurricane could devastate New Orleans, but moved too slowly to react when it did: "Do the documents show any such thing?" writes Power Line co-author John Hinderaker. "Beats me; the AP didn't release the documents or video footage so we could draw our own conclusions. It merely summarized them for us, in a way obviously intended to make President Bush and the administration look bad."

No surprise that Powerline ignores completely the fact that meteorologist Max Mayfield's comments about the levees demonstrate that Bush lied - just plain lied - when he said nobody in the administration anticipated the breaches. One can certainly torture reality to argue that Mayfield referred specifically to the levees being "topped" rather than "breached," but the difference is rhetorical at best. And, really, who believes Bush would know the difference in the first place? The bottom line is that our president sought to deceive the American people about what he knew and when he knew it.

And, that old saw about how the media are just trying to make Bush "look bad" is worse than pathetic. Note to Powerline and its ilk: you need a new talking point; that one is a non-starter. Nobody can make Bush look worse than Bush himself. The videotape is exhibit A. In the court of public opinion, George W. Bush is a convicted liar.