There are a couple of memorable fight scenes in movies that have been on my mind.  One is in The Quiet Man and another is in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.

They are very similar scenes.  In The Quiet Man, John Wayne and Victor MacLaughlin agree to “Marquis of Queensbury rules” and in Butch Cassidy, Paul Newman tries to make rules for a knife fight.  In both, the rules quickly go out the window.  “Rules in a knife fight,” Newman says dismissively after kicking his opponent in the groin.

That’s how I feel about President Bush’s plea for bipartisanship.

Yeah, Dubya, we’re gonna be just as “bipartisan” as Denny Hastert and Frist were when you guys controlled Congress.

We’re gonna look for every way we can to co-opt Republicans to get them to vote for what we want and, failing that, we’re gonna cram stuff down your throat you hate but can’t veto.

Say bye-bye to Tom DeLay’s “K-Street Project”.

What earmarks?

Rummy gets extradicted to Germany to stand trial for war crimes or you swallow a ban on torture, how about that for bipartisan?

Sure hope the drug companies put back a few dimes in savings because that Medicare Part D bonanza just disappeared. 

You can throw that veto pen away when the tax cut for the middle class by way of Alternative Minimum Tax reform comes across your desk.

Think you’d like to veto a raise in the minimum wage?  We’d love for you to try that.

Have we mentioned what’s going to happen to Dick Cheney’s Halliburton holdings when we’re finished investigating war profiteering?

Maybe it’s just me, but do you think you’d like a special prosecutor to look into why 454 White House contacts with Jack Abramoff weren’t enough and Karl Rove had to meet the uber-lobbyist on streetcorners in order to avoid the White House logs of meetings?

Just remember my born-again son, we’re just trying to do unto you as you did unto us.

Gloating happy dance continues.