Laura doesn't count.

• Author: Rothschild, Matthew
• Position: George W. Bush, Laura Bush - Editorial

According to Bob Woodward, George Bush says he won't leave Iraq even if the only ones remaining who agree with him are Laura and their dog Barney.

I think that's a lie, too. I don't know about Barney, but Laura's view doesn't seem to carry much weight.

Woodward reports that after the 2004 election, the First Lady, along with then-Chief of Staff Andy Card, wanted to get rid of Rumsfeld.

But Bush said no, listening instead maybe to Barney and to that other White House canine, Dick Cheney.

For his part, Cheney listens to Henry Kissinger.

Cheney told Woodward that Kissinger is the person he consults with most on the job, and that Bush values Kissinger's advice a great deal, too, inviting him to the White House once a month or so.

Bush needs to revise his manifesto of stubbornness: He won't leave Iraq, even if the only ones remaining who agree with him are Barney, Cheney, and Henry the K.

He'd do better to listen to Laura.

Subscribers Milt and Donna Francis kindly invited me out to Colorado on September 16 to give a talk on impeachment in the neat little town of Salida, population 5,500, elevation 7,000.

I was pleased to see more than 100 people show up, including Barbara Ehrenreich's sister, Diane Alexander, who lives nearby. And I was impressed by everyone's concern about our democracy, and their dedication to do something about it.

The issue of the Iraq War has seized Salida. This spring, Debra Juchem hung two signs on her building. One said, "Kill one person and it's MURDER, kill thousands and it's FOREIGN POLICY." The other said, "Stop the Iraq War Now!" The city ordered her to remove the signs, claiming they were too large. Juchem and the ACLU of Colorado threatened to sue, and the city backed down, so I was able to admire the signs when I drove by.

Juchem and other activists then prevailed upon City Councilman Hugh Young to introduce a resolution on October 2 demanding an end...