A cruel reminder in the wake of all these ponies

Yes, big victories for Dems yesterday and embarrassing defeats for Schwartzie and his pal, George. But, in the bigger picture, we're still on the outside looking in.

Richard Norton Smith, executive director of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum, said the effect of the elections could be greatly exaggerated. "It's bragging rights for a couple days," Mr. Smith said of the Virginia results.

Of far greater significance, he said, are Mr. Bush's prospects of getting Judge Samuel A. Alito Jr. to the Supreme Court, for example. "I suspect he would trade Virginia for Alito" in the broader scheme of things, Mr. Smith said.

On a seemingly unrelated note...is the indicted Scooter still working in the White House? He of the aspens "turn in clusters, because their roots connect them," fame. If not, there appears to be another Robert Frost wannabe in the administration.

An administration official, declining to be identified because of the delicate nature of the visit, described Mr. Chalabi as "an avid fisher in troubled waters, sometimes to our advantage and sometimes not."

Heavy, man. Real heavy.