Everybody knows that the boat is leaking
everybody knows that the captain lied.
-- Leonard Cohen
As the stench of corporate rot grows thicker across the land, more Americans are coming to the grim realization that the Bush presidency is part of the problem, not the solution -- from Harken to Halliburton to Harvey Pitt. But with Karl Rove striving mightily to position Bush as just the guy to clean up the mess -- and if you believe that, you undoubtedly had faith that Claude Rains could really stamp out gambling in Casablanca -- the question looms: Will the press (with rare exceptions like the New York Times' Paul Krugman and Frank Rich) continue to buy the Bush administration hype, or will it finally begin to play its vital role as a snarling watchdog?
Salon is not waiting around for the fourth estate to grow a backbone. This week, we rolled out a big cannon in our ongoing campaign to hold the Bush administration accountable for its corporate-driven policies: an aggressive daily journal by that scourge of Republican excess and Gilded Age greed, Joe Conason. His new political log, which will be updated during the day as events dictate, is a welcome tonic for all those who feel they have been forced to live in a bizarre media universe these past 18 months, where George W. Bush is a masterful leader with his hand on the tiller of America's destiny, buoyed up by unassailable poll numbers.
Salon is also pleased to announce the return of Jake Tapper as our national correspondent. No one in the political press corps can cut through the mendacity and windbaggery of Washington like the shrewd and witty Tapper. While the rest of the capital's press pack takes pains to cling closely to the conventional Beltway line, Tapper calls the Emperor buck naked whenever he catches an eyeful of his plush ass.
In coming weeks, Salon will announce other new features and columnists -- not just in our News and Politics sections, but throughout the site. Some of these will be available only to our Premium subscribers; all of them, including Conason and Tapper, underscore how important Salon's voice is in the national dialogue. It's a voice bold enough not only to attack the Bush regency but also to sometimes question its own convictions as well.
The point here is that there is no better time for Salon readers to subscribe.
Salon editors often get e-mails from readers that begin, "I've been meaning to subscribe to Salon, but --" The time has come to drop the "buts" and sign up. If you believe in a brave and uncowed press, put your credit card where your heart is. There is nothing else like Salon on the media landscape. Where else can you turn every day for an uncompromising and independent view of politics, power, culture, sex, technology and business? We need your support and we need it now. Please don't put it off another day.
The captain won't tell you about the leaks, but Salon will.
-- David Talbot
Editor
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