Attention Foreverdad, Angry Republican Mom, and of my other conservative friends out there: stories like this one are what scare me about the Bush administration.

I've taken cheap shots at Bush, his family, and his administration (see "Barbara Bush", below) but sometimes I'm not kidding. This is one of those times.

Bush wants Congress to expand his powers AGAIN "in case" there's a flu epidemic. He wants to be able to put "affected areas" under federal military control. Do you know what that's called? Martial law.

"After the bungled initial federal response to Katrina, Bush suggested putting the Pentagon in charge of search-and-rescue efforts in times of a major terrorist attack or similarly catastrophic natural disaster. He has argued that the armed forces have the ability to quickly mobilize the equipment, manpower and communications capabilities needed in times of crisis.

But such a shift could require a change in law, and some in Congress and the states worry it would increase the power of the federal government at the expense of local control."

Since when does a conservative advocate increasing Federal power and decreasing local power? That goes against what conservatives have advocated since this country began: a smaller Federal government. For better or worse, Reagan threw responsibility for many issues back to the states, because that's what his ideology called for. What ideology is driving George Bush?

And why is he calling for these extreme measures?

"Experts agree there will certainly be another flu pandemic -- a new human flu strain that goes global. However, it is unknown when or how bad that global epidemic will be -- or whether the H5N1 bird flu strain now circulating in Asian poultry will be its origin."

First of all, flu epidemics of varying severity happen every year. They call it "flu season." Maybe it will be bad, but the evidence is missing -- just like the evidence of weapons of mass destruction. We took his word on that, and look where it got us.

How did Bush decide this emergency was dire enough that he would need the power to shut down entire areas of the country and put them under national military control?

"Bush made clear that the potential for an outbreak of avian flu is much on his mind, and has him talking with 'as many (world) leaders as I could find' and reading a book on the 1918 Spanish flu pandemic that killed 40 million and consulting staff and experts."

Oh my God! He read a book! Maybe this IS serious after all! (okay, that was a cheap shot.)