Cheney out, Giuliani in?

Rumors are circulating that Cheney, viewed as a liability but perhaps to be kept on in his secret bunker to control things, will suddenly develop such "poor health" that he will be replaced on Bush's ticket by Rudy Giuliani. For many reasons except for showboating, Giuliani would be an extremely poor choice. All those wives he cheated on, the old mafia-family connection rumors that circulate from time to time, his ego (which is apt to clash with Bush's), and that less than stupendous manner of speaking means that if he is chosen, he's only chosen because of his status as "America's mayor." Meaning: token.

Despite what was a very admirable job on 9-11, Giuliani probably wouldn't be kept on in an community as a mayor for very long.

But we won't lose Cheney - he'll just be driven into deeper, even less accountable cover. This seems even more dangerous to the America we love. Remember, Cheney is someone who thought Nixon wasn't sneaky enough and that the greatest error he committed was on getting caught.

However, watching to see how many people Giuliani would alienate (and his true nature comes out frequently, irresistably) would be amusing. But America needs more than amusement now. We need strong leadership that cares about more of the American people than just big corporations and special right-wing talk show hosts.