Good Grief! It's the Peace Dividend, Stupid

Grief is fairly widespread in Washington these days.
There's some grief over the Scooter Libby trial. Even the press is squirming, and I can't say I'm sorry about that.
There is some more grief over the budget proposal. Maybe even a whole bunch of it. You know, caused by the so-called "budget cuts" from the Bush admin.
There is grief in the congress about the Iraq Strategy. The usual players, the usual complaints, the usual, usual.
There's even some left over grief about Speaker Pelosi's plane, but let's skip all that.
I like Sen. Carl Levin's grief the best. He's got to be one of the best actors I've ever seen. The grief on that man's face is incredible. He never has a good day. He must really exercise and take good care of himself to be able to carry the all the grief of the American People on his shoulders like that. I'm sure that if you looked up Atlas in Webster's Dictionary or in the Encyclopedia, Sen. Carl Levin's pix would appear.
His latest burden is trying to comprehend how a person (fitch) could give the President a report with a different danger assessment than the CIA's.
Is he talking about the same CIA that got military strength of the former USSR wrong?
The same CIA that got the fall of the former USSR wrong?
The same CIA that said that Saddam was years away from developing "The Bomb" before Gulf War 1?
The same CIA that was wrong about N. Korea's bomb-building ability?
The same CIA that missed 9-1-1? Should I go on?
Maybe Carl knows something we don't. Is there a 2nd secret CIA the American People don't know exists that got the reports right?
I seem to remember some grief a couple of years ago, in the congress, about what should be done to make the 1st CIA functional again. I guess Carl Levin forgot about the "Peace Dividend". you know, that's the one that democrats during the Clinton admin. said we got after Ron Reagan won the Cold War. The Clinton admin gutted the CIA and the military, explaining that they were intrusive and obsolete in a "Post Cold War World". That there was nothing to worry about in a "Post Cold War" world. So our congress, in all it's wisdom, started cutting.
Now, Sen. Carl Levin wants to know where the equipment is that our troops could use. Now, Sen. Carl Levin wants to know why people don't believe the CIA. HA! If that doesn't beat all. If anyone should know, it should be members in the "Hallowed Halls of Congress". They acted before Bush came into office. Carl doesn't remember that they "CUT" buying for the military and "CUT" funding for the CIA.
Good Grief Carlly Levin, it's the "PEACE DIVIDEND" come home to roost!!!