Is This Really What It Has Come To?

When I was looking for an update today on KR and all his real and potential legal troubles, I ran across this piece from Harper's entitled, "Hold the Presses! Journalist Challenges Karl Rove for Lying." It describes a scene in which KR was more heckled, really, than actually "challenged" about something he said while participating in a panel discussion at an event sponsored by The Week magazine. Please don't ask me why anyone thinks his presence on any panel in any forum is warranted or even instructive; we all now know that you can accomplish any short-term goal (including getting an utter incompetent elected as president) if you are willing to lie, cheat, steal (as in "votes"), smear and, generally play dirty, no matter what the long-term consequences. I think we've all seen quite clearly what an operative who subscribes to the undemocratic philosophy of "the ends always justifies the means" brings to the political process, and leaves in his wake. Brilliant, my ass. The credibility of the organizers of any event which would invite KR to participate (unless it's a Grand Jury event!) is automatically suspect to me.

Be that as it may ... From the article:

But there were a few interesting moments, such as an exchange that took place during a panel that included Rove, former New York Times Editor Howell Raines, and Harold Evans. According to the account in Reason:

Raines challenged Rove on how John McCain had sought the endorsement of fanatics like John Hagee. “That’s not the same as sitting in that church for 20 years as this pastor said the government created crack to kill the black community,” said Rove, “that the CIA created AIDS.” Chris Lehmann, an occasional Reason contributor, piped up from the second row from the stage. “He wasn’t in the pew!” Lehmann said. “He wasn’t in the pew when Wright said that!” Evans tried to quiet the room down. “We’re moving on to another subject,” Evans said. “Then he should stop lying,” Lehmann said.

Which is perhaps the first time during the entire Bush Administration that a journalist has actually called Rove a liar to his face.

I must confess, my first reaction to this news was more intense than perhaps I can articulate. It was a lot like, Oh, yippee! That SO makes up for everything. Boy, wouldn't it have been swell if someone had had the wherewithal to "challenge" KR when he was actually ... whaddayacallit ... on the administration's payroll??!!!

I suppose my overall reaction could best be summed up as: WHOOP-DEE-DAMN-DOO.