What Did Sen John McCain Concede to Make George Bush Graceful and Kind in Defeat?

Since the PlameGate indictment of Vice-President Cheney's special advisor, Lewis "Scooter" Libby, and amid Special Prosecutor Fitzgerald's continuing investigation of Karl Rove and possibly Dick Cheney...major media sources have been reporting that President Bush wants to retake the reins of his presidency (presumably from Mr. Cheney), and steer it in a new direction.

A first Bush step was to publicly admit that mistakes were made in the Iraq War. The President's admission was obvious...the fact that he admitted to anything was the big story. It reflected a glimmer of honesty and even humility...attributes thusfar sorely lacking in his administration.

The news this week is that "President Bush embraced Sen. John McCain's proposal to ban cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment of terrorism suspects on Thursday, reversing months of opposition that included White House veto threats.

Bowing to pressure from the Republican-run Congress and abroad, the White House signed off on the proposal after a fight that pitted the president against members of his own party...."

Translation: Once the Senate courageously stood up to the White House by voting 90 to 9 to ban torture, this moment of Bush acquiesence was inevitable.

Per AP, "The Republican maverick and the administration have been negotiating for weeks in search of a compromise, but it became increasingly clear that he, not the administration, had the votes in Congress."

As is widely known, Dick Cheney campaigned tirelessly to allow the CIA to continue torture techniques, but Cheney has been kicked to the political curb by Bush, at least for now.
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My first question: This was too easy...Is this really a "done deal" as Senator McCain proclaimed today? Let's read the details between the blaring headlines....

Per the New York Times, "While details of the agreement remained uncertain, it appeared that the tremendous global outcry over allegations of secret prisoner transfers and interrogations, and its increasingly powerful echoes in Congress, had succeeded in bending the administration to compromise. "

The Washington Post reports , "Speaking to reporters outside the White House afterward, McCain said the next step is to put his amendment's language in the House-Senate conference report of the fiscal 2006 defense appropriations bill. 'I hope we can get this resolved in the next 24 hours so the House and Senate can vote on the conference report . . . and move forward,' McCain said."

And AP notes tonight that "The agreement still needs to be approved by Congress, whose GOP leaders hope to adjourn for the year in a few days."
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Remember how this Administration sneaked that high school/military recruiting provision into the No Child Left Behind Act? Remember how they tried (and are still trying) to quietly tuck into various bills the right to drill in sacred Alaska wildlands, to sell off parts of national parks, and to drill for oil in national parklands?

Remember how the entire USA Patriot Act was printed the night before the vote was rushed through Congress, and how not one legislator had the opportunity to read it before casting a vote?

Fellow liberals, this is not done until it's done. And then, still be skeptical. Never, ever let your guard down with the Bush/Cheney/Rumsfeld/Rice team. They've been dishonest and deceitful with the American public on a mind-numbing array of issues. Nothing has changed.
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My other question: What did Senator John McCain have to concede to be accorded a rare hero's photo-op treatment by the Bush White House in defeat? And why would George Bush in retreat suddenly be uncharacteristically graceful, kind and complimentary to a longtime oft-bitter rival?

Be very, very suspicious of this one. McCain got to look like prime presidential timber....decisive, courageous, humane, leader-like, ethical.... while the world media snapped photos as he uncomfortably shook hands with the grinning President.

As a result, John McCain is now clearly the Republican frontrunner for the 2008 presidential race. And McCain is remarkably hungry to be President. It's likely his last shot, due to age.

Ask yourself this: What did McCain bargain away to make George Bush smile amidst embarrassing public defeat? What did McCain concede to strengthen his presidential stature?

The Patriot Act? Uncomplaining support of the War in Iraq, Bush-style? Billions more in rich tax cuts for millionaires? Confirmation of Judge Alito to the Supreme Court? Protection during an upcoming scandal?
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Thank God that torture will be disallowed by the United States. It's unimaginably evil that it was ever permitted by this administration.

But there's no such thing as free lunch from the Bush Administration, ethics be damned. Everything has a price tag in Bushland, and the hidden price is usually steep and often unethical.

As President Bush hones a newly conciliatory, Cheney-less image, stay alert and stay vocal, liberals. Nothing has changed. Even the untrustworthy players are still the same.
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