Morons

Remember, we pay these guys' salaries.

The retreat was held under tight security at a secluded Hyatt resort. Scores of Capitol Hill police officers joined the local authorities and the Secret Service in securing the grounds of the 400-room complex. Police officers with automatic weapons staffed the guard gate, and small Coast Guard boats patrolled the adjacent Choptank River.

Even some lawmakers said that they were taken aback by the scale of the police presence but that with almost half of the House on hand, perhaps it was prudent. The adjoining golf course, a sore subject these days given the image of lobbyist-financed outings, went unused.

The Republicans were well protected from reporters, who were kept in an idled restaurant about a quarter-mile from the hotel and escorted on and off the grounds by the police. Party officials said the privacy promoted candor.

And President Bush, who arrived for a Friday pep talk to reassure Republicans worried about his poll numbers, cautioned against loose lips as well. He asked the members of Congress to allow his comments about the National Security Agency's surveillance program to "stay in the room" — words mistakenly piped back to the White House press room through an open microphone that was cut off before too much was said.

During a question and answer session, Mr. Bush, asked about his lackluster standing in the polls, told lawmakers that he was not pleased, but that if he took the numbers to heart, he would end up "in the fetal position on the floor," according to one audience member who was granted anonymity because the session was supposed to be private.

And though the administration's response to Hurricane Katrina was high drama on Capitol Hill, Mr. Bush apparently was not asked about the storm or its aftermath, audience members said.

He left before lawmakers and their families wrapped up Friday with a screening of "March of the Penguins," the documentary that no doubt reminded some of the difficult slog to November.

Meanwhile, remember when House Republicans demanded to know the name of every person Bill Clinton ever had coffee with? Where, to quote Bob Dole, is the outrage?

UPDATED with new and improved NYTimes link generators! What I won't do, Dear Readers, for your collective edification.