ORRIN JUDD ACCUSES RICHARD COHEN of politically-motivated dishonesty in his latest column on Bush:

Particularly when you consider that Mr. Cohen and Ms Dowd and the others have repeatedly stated that they too think there’s a case for removing Saddam–in this very story Mr. Cohen says, “A case for war exists.”–it’s very difficult to accept that these increasingly hysterical columns aren’t being driven by the fact that there’s a mid-term election just days away and that the establishment Left is trying its best to diminish the President before voters go to the polls and elect candidates who support him.

Now, there are plenty of tried and true reasons for liberals to oppose Mr. Bush and his agenda. Everthing he proposes to do in the future–from extending free trade to cutting taxes to limiting abortion to privatizing Social Security to voucherizing public education to providing social assistance through faith-based institutions–is anathema to the Left. So argue the issues. Make your case to the American people on the level of ideas and their consequences. Are these good reasons not enough? Do Mr. Cohen and his ilk really need to stoop to lies?

Charles Austin, sadly, is on hiatus and has nothing to add to this discussion.