Kerry, the New Nixon. Bush, the old Fredo Corleone.

The Bush administration's inability to handle what they've taken on reminds me of the scene in The Godfather Part II in which Fredo Corleone's cheap blonde wife behaves embarrassingly at a family party. One of Michael's men whispers to Fredo, "Mike says if you can't handle her, I have to." Fredo, dejected and emasculated, says, "Go ahead." Michael's henchman hoists the screaming big mouth wife over his shoulders and takes her away.

The Bush administration is Fredo. They cannot handle what they've taken on -- diplomatically, fiscally and strategically.

They must be bailed out.

In 1968, with Vietnam raging out of control, Lyndon Johnson decided to not seek reelection. The Democratic Party was in disarray due to the splinter groups of disagreement over the war and civil rights. Add to this the chaos of the Robert Kennedy assassination and the anarchy of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. It was Nixon who stepped into the national arena and represented law and order. If you know the context of the times, Nixon was a has-been, a presidential loser of course as well as a gubernatorial loser AFTER he was defeated by John Kennedy. He was washed up.

He won.

Who better to play that Nixonian role this time around but former veteran and prosecutor John Kerry. In a world at the crossroads, Kerry provides the ability to think deeply and with longterm vision. That is in contrast to the demolition crew currently in office who is led by a man whose propensity for shallow thinking has gotten us into short term messes.

If you can't make long term planning, you're going to end up with the loud blonde bimbo. Just because that's what George W. Bush is capable of choosing doesn't mean we have to welcome her into the family.