So who do rightists suggest runs the Government? Computers?

Nope, I don't think it's only done by Republicans. Believe me, Beav ... I lived in Chicago for 8 years, I know just what kinds of crap Democrats are capable of!

No self-respecting intellectually honest Democrat could support the Chicago machine as an example of good politics. At least, nobody I ever ran across did. I don't see any difference in principle between the old (and new) Chicago machine, vs. George W.'s administration. It's all disgusting.

Thing is, Chicago doesn't have a strong "separation of powers" theory going on. The Mayor really is set up as almost a King. If there were a functioning separation of powers, Chicago would be way better off. And there used to be a functional separation of powers w/r/t the national government, but it's been completely destroyed. (Whenever you hear the phrase "Unitary Executive," that's ultimately what they're talking about: destroying the separation of powers.) And many, many people who call themselves "conservatives" can do nothing but applaud, because it's a guy on their side who's done it.

(And again, I'm not putting you in that camp.)

Well, thanks for that.

I would like to roll them all back into their original space.

I know the executive branch may have grown in strenght, but so has the legislative and the judicial.

Some of the accusations to of executive overreach is when the executive ignores laws where the legislative branch is overreaching their power by trying to legistlate executive power (did that make any f'n sense)?

One of the reasons conservatives got a bad rep on race relations because of the lack of support from Goldwater and others for support of the civil rights act - because they thougth they federal governement didn't have the power to regulate hiring practices and such when it does not relate to interstae commerce. Another example is the partial birth abortion ban which has some BS about "where it relates to interstate commerce" written into it.

We are becoming so damn centralized I don't know if there is a way back.