Oval obtuseness.

• Author: Hightower, Jim
• Position: The Lowdown - Column

We've long known that George W. is not the quickest bunny in the litter, but lately we've also seen his grip on reality go all slippery on him.

He's had three recent public eruptions of cluelessness. The first came when a reporter mentioned in passing that gasoline prices were headed toward $4 a gallon. "Wait, what did you just say?" asked a surprised Bush. "You're predicting $4-a-gallon gasoline? That's interesting," mused] the leader of the free world. "I hadn't heard that."

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OK, Bush is too busy doing President-y things to fill up his own tank, so it's understandable that he's not personally in touch with pump shock. But shouldn't someone besides the occasional reporter be informing "the decider" about the inflationary realities gnawing at the meager incomes of the citizenry?

Next came a breathtaking expression of Presidential obtuseness. On March 13, the guy who keeps reminding us that he's "the commander" was getting a briefing via teleconference from U.S. military officials in Afghanistan. Suddenly, Bush let his inner warrior slip out, much like a little boy playing soldier. "I must say, I'm a little envious," the President declared to the real soldiers. "If I were slightly younger and not employed here, I think it would be a fantastic experience to be on the front lines of helping this young democracy succeed. It must be exciting for you." Speaking from the security of his White House foxhole, George added that the battlefield is "in some ways romantic ... you know, confronting danger."

Ah, yes, the romance of war! Yet when this combat enthusiast was "slightly younger," he used his daddy's political connections to take a pass on romance, dodging the jolly adventure of confronting danger in Vietnam. Nor have his own daughters, nieces, and nephews--who are of prime enlistment age--been moved to share the "fantastic experience" of war that Bush requires so many other families to enjoy.

Next came the Wall Street meltdown of mid-March, when the powerhouse investment firm of Bear Stearns crashed under the weight of its own unregulated avarice and arrogance. This...