remember last week, when i wondered how to show folks that bush lies on policy? well, it's obvious that paul krugman and i are soul mates. or, at the very least, that he reads me every day to mine my brilliant intellect. anyway -- he writes today,

"So the right has used deceptive salesmanship to undermine tax enforcement and push through upper-income tax cuts. And now that deficits have emerged, the right insists that they are the result of runaway spending, which must be curbed.

"While this strategy has been remarkably successful so far, it also offers a big opportunity to the opposition. So here's a test for the Democratic contenders: details of your proposals aside, which of you can do the best job explaining the ongoing budget con to the American people?"

that's the best challenge i've heard from a columnist in quite a while. i hope the dems are up to it. however: like i said last week, it's going to take more than explaining this particular con, or any particular con. we have to figure out how to unspin the magic armor of bullshit surrounding the administration before anybody's going to pay attention to niceties like facts.

laurel and i spent some time talking about what sort of advertising might do the trick. personal testimonials? easy-to-read graphs? i decided that, while people don't want to hear that they've been duped, they might be more receptive to hearing that someone with whom they identify feels duped. maybe?