Square-Jawed Warriors Against Bushism

When the history of the decline and fall of Bushism is written, the most important opponents of the Bush agenda aren't going to be the Congressional Democrats, the mainstream media, or the left-wing blogosphere.

Instead, it's going to be square-jawed, rock-ribbed Republicans in the federal government, men and women who fell afoul of the Bush administration because of their belief in the Constitution, laws, rules, fairness, and fidelity to the best interests of the country. Spread throughout the State Department, uniformed military, CIA, FBI, and other federal agencies, the square-jawed warriors were disgusted with the relentless efforts of the Bush administration to circumvent the Constitution, distort data, ignore sound analysis, and obstruct established procedures. As a result, they began to resist the people at the top. Disaffected Republican bureaucrats objected to distorted findings, leaked unjustified intelligence claims to media outlets like McClatchy, ignored hints that they needed to be more partisan, and started testifying about Bush abuses to Congress.

Braver than the Democratic leadership and mainstream media and more mature than the left-wing blogosphere, the square-jawed Republicans of the federal bureaucracy have been the most effective force in slowly grinding the Bush administration to a halt. They deserve a lot of credit. When the time came, Republican bureaucrats risked their careers and their reputations to stop the Bush administration's effort to turn the federal government into a constituent part of the Republican Party apparatus. They acted because they put a higher value on the values of democratic government than the Republican Party agenda and partisan advantage.

Hopefully, they'll receive all the credit they deserve.