Believe it or not, back in 2000 I actually heard people say "yeah, Bush isn't that bright, but it looks like has a good team around him." Seems like another life, doesn't it? Now that the shelter of a rubber stamp congress has been removed, and the pale, wriggling forms of the Bush administration have been hauled up into the light of day, the "good team" is anxious to prove one thing to the American public: they're massively, unbelievably stupid. Really. That's not my opinion, that's what they want you to believe.

Paul Wolfowitz didn't launch a war on corruption that involved holding back funds from the poorest in the world, while simultaneously treating his girl friend to a massive pay raise because he's evil. He's just stupid.

The documents released yesterday by the World Bank will do little to appease Paul Wolfowitz’s critics. But they also suggest that his woes stem far more from confusion and error on the bank President’s part than from any corrupt motive.

Karl Rove didn't delete those thousands (millions?) of emails because he was trying to hide something. He was just stupid.

Karl Rove's lawyer on Friday dismissed the notion that President Bush's chief political adviser intentionally deleted his own e-mails from a Republican-sponsored server, saying Rove believed the communications were being preserved in accordance with the law.

Gonzales didn't know people were out to sack the attorneys, because he couldn't possibly interpret meetings, letters, emails, and charts explaining the situation. His assistant, Kyle Sampson, seems to have also been afflicted. Rumsfeld? Cheney? Rice? No one could have foreseen... well, whatever.

There are two possibilities. One, considering the massive scope of corruption revealed in the Bush administration, there may be a recognition that the "I don't remember" defense, which had served Republicans since the time of Reagan, isn't quite up to the challenge. Secondly, they may be that stupid. More and more, it seems that FEMA director, Mike Brown, was the brains of the outfit.

Actually, make it three possibilities. Maybe these guys really were smart back in 2000. Maybe Bush is contagious. That would certainly explain a lot.