President Bush has mastered two powerful political tactics: swerving toward your base and scaring everyone else.

It's awe-inspiring to watch him employ both within a 24-hour period. First, Judge Alito (Go, conservatives! It's your birthday!). Now, bird flu. Is it a coincidence that President Bush is employing these tactics at a moment when his presidency appears to be crumbling? I'm gonna go with, "No."

Incidentally, I think President Bush is right to be tackling Bird Flu in a proactive way. And I'm reminded of the time that President Clinton bombed something or other at the height of the Monica Lewinsky scandal. Senator Hatch went on TV to voice frustration. On the one hand, the timing of the bombing seemed highly suspect. On the other hand, the bombing was probably the right thing to do. Damn President Clinton for making us wonder whether this bombing was politically motivated!

Back to today… Damn President Bush for making us wonder whether the bird flu thing is politically motivated!

Now that I’ve gotten that off my chest, it occurs to me that it must be difficult to focus on scandal and policy all at the same time. How well did Clinton handle such a challenge? Well, the something or other that Clinton bombed was Afghanistan. In retrospect, that may not have been the most effective approach to dealing with Osama.

Here’s hoping Bush’s bird flu strategy – even if politically motivated – turns out to be better than Clinton’s Osama strategy.