With reckless spending, enormous debt and record balance of payment deficits, Bush & Co. is frittering away America's economic influence, strength and ability. Sort of like what he's done militarily.

Nov. 27, 2006 issue - "President Bush flew halfway around the globe last week, but in a sense he visited another world. Bush is preoccupied almost entirely by Iraq, Iran, Israel, Lebanon, North Korea and, if he has time enough in a day, by Venezuela and Russia. His counterparts in Asia are focused primarily on something quite different: their own economic growth. And while roadside bombs may be what makes the daily headlines, it's ultimately economics that's likely to determine the international balance of power."

"Brad Setser, a former US Treasury official, estimates that China now holds $700bn in US long-term bonds, enough to lower US long-term interest rates by 1.5% - which helped stimulate the recent housing boom.

"But those holdings are a double-edged sword.

"If China attempted to diversify its holdings, it could cause a collapse in the value of the dollar and higher inflation in the US."

Arf (Aren't they gonna say the Ds would be worse, Bow. Yep. Saddam's gone, they'll say. No more Saddam. If Gore were elected, Saddam would still be around. If Kerry were elected, Iraq would be a mess.)