Time Bandits.

With the House GOP prepared to make a deal with moderates, the White House unrolls a new pitch for the “future-embezzling” Dubya dividend debacle. Arguing that bigger is better on the assumption that there’s a 1-1 relationship between low taxes and more jobs, Dubya’s simplistic proposition has even ticked off GOP economists. (As one Republican put it when queried whether Dubya’s fuzzy math makes sense, “I suppose it matters whether you think economics matters.”) Meanwhile, Bill “kittenkiller” Frist takes the blame for congressional in-fighting on the size of the tax cut.

Hedging their Bets.

In the wake of Dubya’s embrace of preemption, historian Joyce Appleby wonders whatever happened to Congress as a center of foreign policy. As James Madison put it, “The constitution supposes, what the History of all Govts demonstrates, that the Ex. is the branch of power most interested in war, & most prone to it. It has accordingly with studied care, vested the question of war in the Legisl. But the Doctrines lately advanced strike at the root of all these provisions, and will deposit the peace of the Country in that Department which the Constitution distrusts as most ready without cause to renounce it.” Looks like recent experience has proven him right.

The Battle of Concord.

Sensing a misstep on the military question, John Kerry launches into Howard Dean, his most potent rival in the New Hampshire primary. For their part, the Dean camp counters by accusing Kerry of Gore-like evasiveness. Meanwhile, on another front, Harold Meyerson of The American Prospect suggests Dean is using the Gore playbook in his attacks on Gephardt’s health plan. I still run hot and cold on John Kerry, but I must say, hiring Gore flunky Chris Lehane as his campaign spokesman clearly goes in the minus column…he may be good at his job, but Lehane still exudes Gore’s insincerity. At any rate, with less a week until the first debate, it’s definitely on.

Me, Me, Me…

The Matrix: Reloaded gets ever closer with this brand-new TV spot. I warn you – if you’re planning to stay spoiler free, do not watch this ad…I’m not sure how it fits in the film, but I still wish I hadn’t seen the last exchange…I fear it was a bit like seeing the Ents and the charge at Helm’s Deep in the final ad before LOTR:TTT.

Statement Game for the Zebras.

I gotta say, last night’s Lakers-Wolves Game 3 had the worst officiating I’ve seen since…well, since Sac-LA Game 6 last year. With the ticky-tack 4th, 5th, and 6th fouls on KG, the phantom foul on Kobe’s 4-point play, and that egregious call in OT when Wally World shadowed Pargo (a rookie…a rookie got that call) on the full-court break and never touched him, it was clear the league was angling for the Sacramento-LA rematch. Fortunately, Wolves got the win anyway…nevertheless, the reffing was flat-out egregious. Update: The league fesses up.