Putting A Muzzle On The Messenger

This administration is so bent on controlling the information flow that it even vetted the speeches and reports of the Surgeon General, the nation's doctor. From today's NY Times:

Former Surgeon General Richard H. Carmona told a Congressional panel Tuesday that top Bush administration officials repeatedly tried to weaken or suppress important public health reports because of political considerations.

The administration, Dr. Carmona said, would not allow him to speak or issue reports about stem cells, emergency contraception, sex education, or prison, mental and global health issues. Top officials delayed for years and tried to “water down” a landmark report on secondhand smoke, he said. Released last year, the report concluded that even brief exposure to cigarette smoke could cause immediate harm. [Emphasis added]

Hiding important health information from the public is despicable enough, but the White House wasn't content to stop there. It also insisted on using the Surgeon General for propaganda purposes.

Dr. Carmona said he was ordered to mention President Bush three times on every page of his speeches. He also said he was asked to make speeches to support Republican political candidates and to attend political briefings. [Emphasis added]

Catapulting the propaganda was more important than science, although that is certainly no surprise with this gang, but mentioning Dear Leader's name three times for every page of a speech?

The White House pick for the next Attorney General, Dr. James W. Holsinger Jr., comes up for confirmation hearings later this week. This is a man who has stated that homosexual sex is "unnatural and unhealthy." Six months ago, that man would have been a shoe-in for confirmation. Hopefully this Senate will be more circumspect, given this latest bit of information on how the administration operates.

Note: The full text of Dr. Carmona's prepared remarks are available in .pdf format here.