Having fun with captions and bylines.

Somebody over at WaPo is having too much fun...

( Doh!, I was going to make fun of the the byline on the teaser, it said something about leaving a deep hole in White House...but in the last 2 minutes it has been replaced. )

Well, this is less fun without the image, but the article itself isn't bad either: "Bush's Favorite Author Leaving The White House". Who did you think was Bush's favorite author?

Seriously though, the whole article is damning with faint praise. Below are some quotes from the article. And also some garbage I made up.

• "Mike was substantively influential, not just a wordsmith, not just a crafter of language for other people's policies, but he influenced policy itself."
• Asked about his unprecedented degree of influence, Gerson replied "It's absolutely critical that the speechwriters understand the administration's goals and policy in their entirety. That's why they let me set them."
  
• In meetings with foreign heads of states, Gerson would sometimes aid the President in communicating through language barriers.
• He crafted the State of the Union language that labeled Iraq, Iran and North Korea an "axis of evil" and the inaugural address that committed the United States to "ending tyranny in our world."
  
• The most repeated phrases coined by Gerson are: "Stay the course" and "It's going to be hard work"
  
• He found a way to channel Bush's thoughts, colleagues said, transforming a sometimes inarticulate president into an occasionally memorable speaker.
• Gerson wrote or co-wrote every major speech Bush gave since announcing his candidacy, including convention and inaugural addresses and State of the Union messages.
• "Mike was a rhetorical genius who could not only put lipstick on a pig, he could teach the pig to sing."
  
• The most repeated phrases coined by Gerson are: "Stay the course" and "It's going to be hard work"
  
• "He's a policy provoker, a grand strategist and a conscience who in many cases has not only articulated but reflected the president's heart."
• He plans to look at writing, speaking and think-tank opportunities, with help from Robert B. Barnett, the high-powered lawyer who represents major figures such as former president Bill Clinton and Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.).
• He came up with the phrase "soft bigotry of low expectations" to focus on minority education problems.
• The most repeated phrases coined by Gerson are: "Stay the course" and "It's going to be hard work"
  
• Gerson's replacement as the primary speech author will require someone with a strong background in fiction or fairy tales.

Let's hope the next guy is better.