Yes, 443 days and this, too, shall pass. But we all should be mindful that Washington is very much a place where precedents matter.
Having handpicked, likeminded underlings concoct copacetic legal opinions, complete with convenient definitions of what constitutes torture, is wrong and insidious in itself. But because it pushes the envelope of what a determined president (and/or vice president) can do and apparently get away with, covering those tracks with a cloak of secrecy labeled national security, it's a wrong that can go on giving long after Bush and his motley crew have departed.
Once Bush leaves there will be an understandable desire to put what he's done and how he's done it in the past and move on. Mark my words, that will be a terrible mistake, if it comes to pass. A future president will take up where Bush left off and push the envelope more.
I hope no-nonsense investigations will be undertaken to reveal the rot and wrongdoing, and that those will be followed by preventative legislation with teeth.
Commenting by HaloScan
