incoherent on the economy, and incompetent in the job market

Incoherent on the Economy...

Dana Milbank makes fun of Treasury suit Phillip Swagel, who had the unenviable task of trying to talk up the economy at a Treasury briefing after the latest bad batch of numbers had come out. More jobs lost, inflation (fueled by non-stop rate cuts by the Fed trying to prop up growth) on the verge of breaking out, poor consumer confidence - and don't forget, economic numbers have been cooked over the years to look less bad than they really are - not an easy job for Swagel, who was rather incoherent in his briefing. Which is refreshing because it reflects the de facto Bush Administration's incoherence on the economy.

And an Incompetent on the Job Market

He's back! Serial liar Alberto Gonzales has been popping up lately. He spoke at a graduation in the US Virgin Islands - and got to the beach too, no doubt, wondering whether body parts from torture victims at Guantanamo ever floated by on a Caribbean wave. And he was at a baseball game, doing some sort of commentary. Al Kamen speculates that Gonzales' op-ed in the Los Angeles Times is an audition for a new role - Pontificator on Hispanic Issues.

Wow - I guess Gonzales is recovering from the premature memory loss that so plagued his days as Attorney General.