It is probably too much to hope for, but since Bush has so successfully exploited evangelical Christian rhetoric and duped so many gullible Christians, perhaps this hit to his credibility will give them second thoughts.

Great post Mary, trust is a huge issue and people don't like to be duped by a con man more than once. Let's hope they have learned this lesson using Shrub's own words of wisdom.

"There's an old saying in Tennessee — I know it's in Texas, probably in Tennessee — that says, fool me once, shame on — shame on you. Fool me — you can't get fooled again." —George W. Bush, Nashville, Tenn., Sept. 17, 2002

Theologicus, you might be interested to know that the parents of a friend of a friend are wacko fundamentalists, but several months ago even they started to turn against Bush. Of course, that's only a single case, but it shows that such a change is not impossible.

emal - LOL! Bush's own words are so inspiring here....

Thanks for the great post, Mary!!! It's always nice to visit LeftCoaster -- especially after a day of being immersed in a blogsphere flame war about the AWOL story.

When I first read Paul Krugman's article (your link -- thanks again!!!) it dawned on me why AWOL Bush is the vehicle to bring down the House of Bush. Krugman asked, why not Harken? The answer is so simple: everyone understands AWOL, while Harken Energy requires a multi-level educational process.

Like it or not, political campaigns revolve around soundbites. And AWOL Bush -- and the endless dissembling of the WH spin doctors -- is having an irreversibly corrosive effect on Bush's credibility.

The real story behind AWOL Bush is why he failed to report for his flight physical. I'm betting it was because of a cocaine bust, and the community service Helen Thomas alluded to.

If (and when) that comes out, what will it do to his fundie wing nuts?

Awesome.