I am sorry but what the hell? David Wu is nuts.

"Faux" everything is the perfect word to describe the Bush gang. Thank you, David Wu.

Today's Oregonian carried Leonard Pitts's simple, excellent explanation of why nothing Bush proposes will change anyone's mind at this point: Bush has no credibility left. Pitts says what we all know: leaving Iraq in turmoil abandons the Iraqi people to the mess we've created and sets the U.S.A. up for future calamities; that withdrawal at this point would be mistake. But, as Pitts continues, we also all know that remaining in Iraq under the Bush administration's leadership will be even worse; and so we support withdrawal not because it is prudent, but because victory would require removal of the entire Bush administration and we don't think we can get that last bit done before '09.

Nice to see you in action one more time, Lt. Sulu.

I never watched Star Trek (more of a Star Wars guy myself) so I didnt even get the reference really (though I sort of do now after reading some of the comments). But that was one of the more amusing speeches I've ever seen made in the House of Reps, I suspect Wu had a good time delivering that one.

Well that was interesting. David Wu should watch a little more StarTrek if he wants to use that source as an effective metaphor. Vulcans in the white house that aren't vulcans because they have no ears, so instead, they're faux-Klingons? That's just screwy.

Wu has the right idea in attempting to use StarTrek to get a point across. Many people have a greater sense of ideaology, ethics, politics and more through that show than they do of people in politics. At one time, people in the real world of politics were archetypes for characters in StarTrek.

Wu is great. Best Representative I have ever had. My only criticism is that the Ferengi would have been a Star Trek metaphor more appropriate to BushCo.

The White House is full of Vulcan Idiots.

Great. With a little help, Wu can be the next Jim Trafficant. Piss on me if I don't supply the wig.

P.S. You're really funny Jack Bog. Seriously. That thing about making fun of the county? Gets funnier every time. Fucking laugh riot. You should write for Wu. You should write every joke ever told, from now on forever. For serial. You should make a past time of picking navel lint, in your saucy way. You should get out more.

Wow! I am really proud to be represented by this guy in Congress. What a statesman. What an orator. You can just see the respect he commands with his colleagues.

Don't we have a decent D who can take this guy out in the primary? I don't even want to admit voting for him unless I wear a paper bag over my head.

As b!X states above, the "Vulcans" named themselves. When I heard about Wu's speech, this immediately came to mind. Guess I know too much.

Proof of Klingons in the White House

You mean Wu was joking? Well that's nice that our elected's can take time on the floor to be so lighthearted about bush, his advisors, and how they've led this country into a situation that looks to be untenable. I thank bix for his info on the source of the reference.

Seriously, if that group, Donald Rumsfeld, Dick Cheney, Colin Powell, Paul Wolfowitz, Richard Armitage, and Condoleezza Rice dubbed themselves the Vulcans, no wonder we have problems. To responsibly affect the course of a nation in a way that respects the lives of million upon millions of people, you have to be able to make a distinction between fiction and reality, and the perfection possible in art and literature that's unlikely in reality.

I'm not so sure now that Wu was right to use that analogy, at least the way he did. He could have used it more effectively to dismiss the credibility of that group outright for allowing their fantasy to realize terrible consequences.

I understand perfectly what Wu was trying to present. Why not use a Star Trek metaphor? At least the "real Klingons" as portrayed in Star Trek always faced their enemies and their leaders would be out in front of the attack. Why bash David when the Bush Administration has, from day one, couched their rhetoric in comic book terminology, i.e. "evil doers" and "axis of evil".

Myself, I wouldn't have used the term "faux Klingon"; I would have compared Bush to a Pakled. Go David...keep it up.

It was the PNAC chicken-hawks themselves that wanted themselves called "Vulcans" . Wu did a good job of calling them out on it. I'd wager that any of his constituents who caught that speech understood him just fine. Star Trek references are not as obscure as some people seem to think. Big deal. The point is this ill-considered war and how we get out of it.

While Klingons are belligerent and warmongering, "not-all-that-bright" doesn't quite suit those who would invent a cloaking device. And above all else, they have Honor, something the Pretendident and his closet queens do not. I'm thinking more along the lines of Ferenge, weasel faced money grubbing little bastards whose only thought is to the bottom line, collateral consequence be damned.

Sal --

All of Yamhill county has been in the 1st Congressional District for at least two decades. Republican Jim Bunn came from McMinnville, but in Congressional seats, you don't have to live in the district you are running for. Democratic candidate Catherine Webber made an issue of Bunn's carpetbagging to the 5th district instead of running in his home district the 1st, but the 1994 Republican revolution swept him into office despite that fact. Salem Democrat Mike Kopetski preceded Bunn, and Mike defeated Salem Republican Denny Smith earlier.

The 1st district has been represented by Wu, Elizabeth Furse, and before that Les AuCoin. All were great Democratic legislators who represented Yamhill County.

As the self-appointed Judge of the Court of Common Sense, I rule Wu is not funny.

Like seeing your best friend's face blown off, in the middle of Baghdad, for cheap gas prices and Deadeye Dick's pension fund, isn't funny.

Wu should rot in hell for trying to get laughs from 3,000 dead U.S. soldiers, 30,000 wounded soldiers and 100,000 plus dead Iraqis.

It is beyond mortifying. It is pathetic and shows how out-of-touch most Americans are to the carnage.

Kari, please. It is NOT funny.

TomCat is right on target. The Shrubbery are much more like Feregi than Klingons, who have a well-developed sense of honor to go with their bloodthirst.

We can all agree it was not funny. Like cancer is not funny.

Whether it was meant to be funny is the question.

With millions of Americans laughing at The Daily Show mocking Wu, I'm guessing that was his first and last Klingon reference on the floor of the House of Representatives.

However, I can't control what Wu says when he headlines the next Star Trek convention at the Hooters out by Mall 205 in the spring.

With all due respect to Mr. Ware, I don't believe the Klingons invented the cloaking device. It is my understanding from the original Star Trek television series that the original "cloaking device" was developed by the Romulans, and then the Klingons later stole or copied this strategically invaluable technology.

I was moderately amused by the reaction to the antics of David Wu (yes, my own Congressman) regarding his comparison of the Bush Administration to the fictional "Star Trek" characters, the Klingons. However, I am even less amused but quite appalled by the lack of outrage over his votes in Congress regarding the real Klingons, i.e., the bloodsucking leeches at the Credit Card companies and the Pharmaceutical companies. Mr. Wu voted for the Bankruptcy "Reform" Bill, as well as the Medicare Prescription...well, Boondoggle, both of which were giveaways to those big Corporations, and were a slap in the faces (and the pocketbooks) of Middle-Class working Americans, just like me and millions of others. I know that Mr. Wu received at least one $10,000 contribution (found by just a few minutes of research on the Internets) from JPMorgan Chase, the very same Corporation that recently raised the interest rate on my Credit Card to 32.24% (yeah, me with a Credit Score of 720, and ZERO late payments!), and he publicly laughed off (at an event in Tualatin, Summer, 2005) the fact that his six or seven-year old son was receiving solicitations from the Credit Card companies. When I contacted his Office regarding the Medicare scam, the response was "the Congressman voted for the Medicare bill because it helps the poorest and the sickest." Well, I never realized that the CEO's of the big Pharma Corporations were poor and sick (at least not physically!). I now make a public plea to all Progressive Democrats in the First Congressional District of Oregon to find and prepare a candidate to run in the 2008 Primary Election who will truly represent the citizens of this District, and not the big Corporations. And no, I will certainly NOT be that person, but I will actively support him (or her...Hello, Alexa?). Although I consider myself to be a loyal Democrat, my vote must be earned!