About that rat hole

After more than three decades of a maniacal and murderous reign, it is somehow fitting that the lasting image the world will have of Saddam Hussein is one of a bedraggled and pathetic madman pulled, blinking, from a rat hole.

For far too long, Hussein has lived a lie as the latest and greatest in a long line of wise and powerful rulers dating to ancient Mesopotamia. In the end, he was exposed as nothing more than a poser. And a coward at that.

By every possible reasonable and objective standard, Hussein’s capture is good news — for us and for the long-oppressed Iraqi people.

Our U.S. troops — those in the Fourth Infantry Division and their colleagues throughout the armed forces — should feel proud of their courageous role in ridding the world of such a menace while nurturing the democracy that will keep it forever at bay.

Having vanquished for all time a warmongering tyrant and demonstrating — again — that the United States is a force for good and not evil, President Bush should rightly take credit for staying the course in the face of a relentless political assault by nearly all of the Democrats who seek to replace him, and would then quickly cut and run.With the Howard Dean nomination train already having left the station, the Democrats themselves have perhaps one last opportunity to come to their senses and get off, or at least give a second look to pro-liberation leaders like Joe Lieberman and Dick Gephardt, who understand that terrorism and our national defense are not provincial campaign issues like ethanol and textile imports.

But the best news of all is for newly liberated Iraq. The Iraqi “resistance” may not be over, but the end now truly is near for the Baathist hangers-on and their foreign jihadist allies. Hussein’s abrupt demise most assuredly will embolden ordinary Iraqis to enlist in the effort to restore order in their country and lay the groundwork for a brighter future.

Make no mistake, the first order of business must be the public trial of Hussein and his evil henchmen. In Iraq. It is the height of hypocrisy for a United Nations that looked the other way at Hussein’s worst abuses and refused to lift a finger to help Iraqis when they needed it most to now claim jurisdiction over his fate. It is the Iraqi people who have been victimized; only they can right the wrong.

With impeccable timing, Iraq’s Governing Council only last week put the finishing touches on a tribunal governing war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide. We can think of no more deserving first defendant than the man most responsible for the torture and murder of millions of innocent men, women and children. The bones in the mass graves deserve nothing less.

Schwarzenegger gets a ‘big’ win

Speaking of rat holes, please pardon us if we choose not to go ga-ga over Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s “first major legislative victory” last week.

To those of you who weren’t paying attention, the Democratic-controlled Legislature relented and passed, and Schwarzenegger signed, an economic recovery plan to go on the March ballot. The deal includes a $15 billion bond to cover California’s past debt, a balanced-budget requirement for its future and provisions for a rainy-day fund for whenever.

So why are only Democrats clapping? It turns out there are no real spending controls involved, which is just how former Gov. Gray Davis’ enablers prefer to operate and the reason we had a $38 billion deficit in the first place.

If Schwarzenegger wants to spin this as a win, we’ll give him the benefit of the doubt. For our sake and yours, we hope he doesn’t come to rue the day he chose not to use his popular mandate to implement true reform in Sacramento. After all, that’s why we elected him.