Officially spitting out the Bush KoolAid.

Long ago, in a far-away blog, I spent a good deal of time discussing the fact that, despite his awkwardness, I generally liked President Bush.

That was long ago.

As a card-carrying Republican, I have generally held my tongue and withhold judgment when considering matters in our Executive Branch in the last couple of years.

But it's been harder and harder to tolerate the direction of our government as time has gone on.

The icing on the cake is the recent shotgun accident involving VP Dick Cheney. Now, I have no qualms with the fact that the Vice President had a legitimate hunting accident. These things happen. They are unfortunate, but it could really happen to anyone on a bad day.

The part I take issue with is the White House's assertion that the news wasn't released that very day because they didn't know about it.

Reportedly, the incident hit the media the day after the event, and only because the Texas land-owner on whose land the shooting occurred called her local newspaper.

When asked to comment on why the news wasn't released by the White House sooner, Scott McClellan said that the Vice President's office was handling it, the White House wasn't involved, and the White House didn't know until Sunday.

To which I respectfully cry out "Bull$h!t".

Why? Two words: Secret Service.

VP Cheney is followed by Secret Service, just as President Bush is. Even if I'm to believe that Cheney's office somehow made the monumental mistake in judgment to forget to dial in the big boss on such a major press event, am I to also believe that word didn't get to Bush's people through Secret Service channels?

So, to me, this is clearly a lie. Or a case of embracing plausible deniability. Or whatever. And it comes after a series of events that appear to be built upon a foundation of untruth.

This from the man who promised to restore dignity to the White House.

Make no mistake: the Bush Presidency has been one involving a lot of tough situations. I don't envy some of the decisions the President has had to make. I can only imagine the hand-wringing that goes into having to make some of the choices he does.

But I long for a President who I can believe. And this isn't one.

I can no longer, in good faith, trust anything this man says. If he were in court, and I had him on the stand, I'd spend hours impeaching his credibility to a jury through the various times he's proven himself untrustworthy.

Sadly, we still have two more years of him. I don't quite know what to do.

I'm considering voting in a Democratic legislature as a necessary balance.

Attention Oregon Republican politicians: The time has come to get off of this President's coat-tails and, instead of following him in lock-step, display the courage of your convictions and show me how you're different. Otherwise, I imagine you, and your counter-parts in other states, will face the wrath of the voters.

I'm disillusioned.

UPDATE: Well, maybe I'm being a bit hypercritical. According to former White House Spokesman Marlin Fitzwater, the VP's office was who should've disseminated this info, and the failure to do so should be charged to them and not the President. Joe Lockhart, who was Press Secretary for Clinton's administration, points out that perhaps we should wonder if they ever planned to tell us, and what else they're hiding.

While I'm not too excited about being more in line with the guy speaking for the convicted liar Clinton, I have to agree to some extent. The VP, I'm convinced, is not acting inconsistently with the rest of this administration. And, I think, this info certainly should've been released by the White House when it was clear the VP's Office wasn't doing their job.

Stupid is as stupid does...