Dick Morris is writing open letters to Karl Rove. OK, fine - one political opportunist to another, it makes some sense, in a egotistical sort of way. But his suggestions are appallingly bad - mixing bad fiscal policy with excessively militant diplomatic grandstanding, garnish heavily with partial withdrawal in Iraq. It strikes me as the worst kind of abdication of leadership - pandering to every miserable impulse of the polity. Bread and circuses for the elderly? Give 'em drugs. Worried about the costs and efforts and embarrassments of doing the right thing in Iraq? Declare "victory", bail, and let the locals go hang. Need to counter the embarrassment of pulling another Vietnam bugout at less than one-thousandth the cost? Make everybody feel aggressive, virile and manly by stomping Iran in some cheap and ineffectual fashion. About the only suggestion I can't call actively immoral is the suggestion for the promotion of hydrogen-cell cars, if only because it's so utterly inoffensive and bland that the Bush administration is *already* doing it in some desultory, halfassed fashion.

Either Morris has collapsed into some final, morally degraded state of total irresponsibility, or he's pulling a Rove on Rove and giving him intentionally bad advice in the hopes that he'll take it.

Via Porphyrogenitus.