Oh, You’re More Than Nutty

No longer content with merely ejecting citizens from public events, the Bush administration now wants a political litmus test for things as seemingly innocous as, well, international telecommunications standards:

At least four of the two dozen or so U.S. delegates selected for the [Inter-American Telecommunication Commission] meeting, sources tell TIME, have been bumped by the White House because they supported John Kerry’s 2004 campaign. …

The White House admits as much: “We wanted people who would represent the Administration positively, and–call us nutty–it seemed like those who wanted to kick this Administration out of town last November would have some difficulty doing that,” says White House spokesman Trent Duffy.

Representing the Administration? Here I thought it was to represent American users and their businesses, who are best served by selecting the most skilled engineers we can find, regardless of their partisan leanings.

Only the Bushies, who have a breathtaking contempt for dissent (and by extension, democratic process) would seriously require those in the science and engineering professions to first signal their loyalty to Our Great Leader before being permitted to join technical working groups.

And we’re all the worse off for it.

Hit Me With It