States of Denial

Good Monday Morning. A few new items today.

• How else not to begin with Bob Woodward? But the news isn't Bush's state of denial. That's been obvious even since before Woodward wrote "Bush At War" five years ago. The more catastrophic state of denial that Woodward unwittingly reveals is his own, and the press corps' in general. See "Woodward At War."
  

• Osama bin Laden's best ambassadors were in Washington last week for a dinner date with President Bush. See "Enemies, a Love Story."

• Misunderestimating intelligence is a specialty of the White House. The latest National Intelligence Estimates retreated an old question in Washington, Bush's insistence on having read "three Shakespeares" notwithstanding: Can the president read? See "It Is Iraq, Stupid" (with apologies to James Carville).

Candide's Latest should be updated by early morning Monday. Thanks for reading.pt