Not a good week

摘要

Abu Ghraib, Katrina, Jack Abramoff, Scooter Libby, Guantanamo, even Dick Cheney: familiar names have returned to haunt George Bush. George bush wanted to talk about health-care reform this week, but the media wanted to hear about the health of only one man: the 78-year-old lawyer Dick Cheney accidentally shot in the face while hunting (see Lexington). It's hard to interest reporters in complex issues when there's a simple, dramatic story to tell. So the president's spokesman spent the week fielding incisive questions such as: "Would this be much more serious if the man had died?" And Mr Bush's agenda languished.