Joe Conason: If D.C. Pundits Say 'Stop,' Go (Americans sick of unchecked & unaccountable Presidency) [View All]

http://www.observer.com/20070402/20070402_Joe_Conason_opinions_conason.asp

If D.C. Pundits Say ‘Stop,’ Go
By Joe Conason

Someday the Democrats may learn an important lesson about the collective wisdom of the media in the nation’s capital: On important questions of policy and politics, the Washington press corps is almost always wrong. They are always full of opinions about everything from clothing, haircuts and marital problems to political tactics, but the safest course is always to ignore their advice.

At the moment, the most popular line among the certified pundits is that the Congressional Democrats are in danger of displaying excessive zeal in probing Bush administration corruption—and specifically the apparent politicization of the federal law-enforcement system by the White House and the Justice Department.

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But the Washington punditry has been reliably wrong about everything of consequence for many years, from Whitewater to weapons of mass destruction. For any sane politician, the “biggest risk” is listening to these people.

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Every poll shows that American voters want Congress to fulfill its constitutional mandate to oversee the executive branch, which ran amok under the flaccid reign of former Speaker Dennis Hastert. Most Americans are sick of this unchecked and unaccountable Presidency, and they show no signs of impatience with Democratic efforts to rein in the White House.

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