Max Cleland Works for... George W. Bush?

Rich Lowry has the shocking details of the collaboration of President Bush with a veteran who's intimately involved with... helping John Kerry get elected:

Max Cleland, who made a staged appearance at the Bush ranch Wednesday, was appointed by President George W. Bush to the board of directors of the Export-Import Bank in 2003. The same Max Cleland who is spending nearly all of his time attacking President Bush is, amazingly enough, a Bush political appointee.

According to a bank spokesman, Cleland makes $136,000 a year off this very cushy job. A couple of questions come to mind here: If Cleland had any decency, wouldn't he resign? Why would he accept a political appointment from a man he so loathes and thinks represents the very worst in American politics? Max Cleland's extremely partisan activities are being subsidized by the American taxpayer.

But, wait, it gets more sinister. There is now a definitive link between President Bush and the attacks against him. This link is as direct as most of the links that have been highlighted between Bush and the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth: Bush gave a $136,000 job to one of his attackers and a key member of Kerry's "band of brothers." By the logic of most of the press corps, this means George W. Bush must be responsible for the activities of Kerry campaign's band of brothers (see this chart). Who knows what deep game is being played here, but somebody should call the New York Times.

Okay, Lowry's being tongue-in-cheek. But he's got a point -- Cleland works on behalf of Kerry during the campaign, but he won't give up a six-figure income handed to him by Bush. Not all that surprising, since Senator Ketchup and his running mate are still drawing Senate paychecks, and they rarely show up on Capitol Hill. Also, the Kerry campaign insists Bush has something to do with the Swift Boat Veterans because we can play Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon with Bush supporters and Swift Boat supporters. Yet it appears Bush has an equally strong tie to a man who's consistently criticized Bush on his National Guard service.

I would say more, but I don't want Cleland to think I'm questioning his patriotism.