Gag, gag, gag. I know, Hitler’s been Person of the Year on Time‘s cover before, but this just reeks. Actually, the Bush pick isn’t surprising. The media has been all up his bunghole since Sept 11, and has, with few exceptions, been lap dogs, held in check by their corporate masters. Personally, I would have preferred to see either Karl Rove and Mehlman or Falwell, Dobson, et.al. (“Religious Right”) named on the Time cover. At least it would be a nod to the manipulation and brainwashing tactics used in the GOP’s politics that got Bush back in the White House. I want these folks who are running the show defending their policies, beliefs and tactics as much as possible — out in the open where their hypocrisy and contempt for the voting population can be exposed.

Putting that smug loser on the cover gives him more legitimacy than he deserves. (AP):

The magazine’s editors tapped Bush “for sharpening the debate until the choices bled, for reframing reality to match his design, for gambling his fortunes – and ours – on his faith in the power of leadership.”

…After a grueling campaign, Bush remains a polarizing figure in America and around the world, and that’s part of the reason he earned the magazine’s honor, said Managing Editor Jim Kelly.

“Many, many Americans deeply wish he had not won,” Kelly said in a telephone interview. “And yet he did.”

In the Time article, Bush said he relishes that some people dislike him.

“I think the natural instinct for most people in the political world is that they want people to like them,” Bush said. “On the other hand, I think sometimes I take kind of a delight in who the critics are.”

Kelly said Bush has changed dramatically since he was named Person of the Year in 2000 after the Supreme Court awarded him the presidency.

“He is not the same man,” Kelly said. “He’s a much more resolute man. He is personally as charming as ever but I think the kind of face he’s shown to the American public is one of much, much greater determination.”

The magazine gives the honor to the person who had the greatest impact, good or bad, over the year.

Asked on ABC’s “This Week” how Bush reacted when he learned of Time’s decision, White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card said the president was “not worried about what pundits might be saying.”

[OMFG, what sh*t is being shoveled by Card here… -P]

Card praised Bush as a “great liberator” for the people of Afghanistan and Iraq and lauded Bush’s tax cuts, education and Medicare reform packages and plans to remake Social Security.