i was so distracted by all those demonstrations of ms word vs typewriter text that this almost slipped by me. 

saturday i was watching a 911 tribute that included an interview with some victims' family members, one of whom pointed out how adamantly the bush administration had fought the families' demand for a 911 commission.  fortunately bush--to his credit--eventually had a flip-flop moment in that regard. 

that's when i realized hed done it again last wednesday.  here's how mary curtius--an la times staff writer--reported it in an article entitled 'Bush Now Backs Stronger Spy Czar' dated 9/9/04:

President Bush, moving toward embracing a key element of the Sept. 11 commission's recommendations, said Wednesday that a new national intelligence director should have authority over more than half of the U.S. intelligence community's estimated $40-billion annual budget.

Until Wednesday, Bush had declined to take a specific position on who would control intelligence spending, a central and controversial question in the larger debate over how sweeping the overhaul of the intelligence community should be.

By offering a plan to give a national intelligence director budget authority over 12 of the nation's 15 intelligence organizations, Bush appeared to throw the weight of the presidency behind those favoring more rather than less reform.

lest anyone think im overly smitten by two demonstrations of adaptability in one election year, please be advised i dont roll over that easily.  if he wants my vote he better step n fetch n release the brent scowcroft report--still classified 2.5 years after it was submitted--currently located (according to one member of the 911 intelligence committee) in rumsfield's bottom drawer. 

that doesnt seem likely to happen though, if we believe timothy j burger of time magazine's washington bureau (reporting in an article entitled 'Reforming Intelligence: A Forgotten Report' dated 8/21/04):

Has the White House been sitting on a credible proposal for serious intelligence reform for more than two years? Knowledgeable government sources say that a classified March 2002 report from GOP foreign policy eminence Brent Scowcroft, produced for President Bush, proposed reforms similar to key recommendations of the 9/11 commission. Among them: making the current position of Director of Central Intelligence into the national intelligence czar, with authority over a separate CIA director and all or most of the $40 billion annual intelligence budget. One government source said the document contains little sensitive national security information and that its secret status is largely cover for the White House to avoid releasing a potentially embarrassing report.

unless, of course, there's another one of those flip-flop things.