WTF Is It Now?!?

SUFFER THE CHILDREN
This year's N.A.A.C.P. convention may be in the president's home state of Texas, but anyone who expected a courtesy call from George W. Bush was mistaken. This is not a president who is interested in what one of the convention's participants referred to as "the woes of black folks."

When Mr. Bush is insensitive to the needs and the aspirations of black Americans, it's a reflection of his insensitivity to the interests of all working Americans. The N.A.A.C.P. is a far from perfect organization. But the anger coming out of its convention in Houston shows that it's still sharp enough to recognize the difference between compassion and cynicism, and to see the threat inherent in a president who will leave no millionaire behind.

Marion Wright Edelman, president of the Children's Defense Fund, put the matter well: "The Bush administration's words say, `Leave no child behind.' The Bush administration's deeds say, `Leave no millionaire behind.' " The truth is that the "woes of black folks" are for the most part the everyday struggles faced by the majority of poor and working-class Americans, including many who are considered, statistically, to be middle-class.

The problems linked to overburdened and underfunded school systems are not limited to the inner cities. Inadequate housing and a lack of affordable health care are major issues for millions of American families, across the board. So is the difficulty of finding adequate and affordable child care. But these are not matters that grab Mr. Bush's attention and move him to action.

- Bob Herbert in The NY Times, with thanks to Pat and Scott for the link.

You really have to wonder what his nursemaids are thinking. This past weekend, with wildfires decimating most of the west, with flooding down in Texas (and all of the telephone lines are down...), trouble in LAX, trouble in the Middle East, trouble on Wall Street, the big NAACP convention (to which he was invited), where does Laura's Lazy Loser go? To his rich daddy's summer place in Kennebunkport to fish and play golf.