WASHINGTON -- The White House seems to breed arrogance. President Richard Nixon had his enemies list. President Bill Clinton's personal irresponsibility almost ruined his presidency. Now vice presidential aide "Scooter" Libby has been indicted as a result of his efforts to discredit an administration critic.
President George W. Bush & Co. routinely vilify his detractors, even conservatives. When previous Bush supporters unexpectedly opposed his nomination of Harriet Miers to the U.S. Supreme Court, administration and Republican Party apparatchiks immediately attacked their critics' motives.
That didn't work, so the president's friends then threatened to toss conservatives into outer darkness. One anonymous former presidential aide told Time Magazine: "They're crazy to take him on this frontally. Not many people have done that with George Bush and lived to tell about it."