A lot of Paul Krugman's columns have been fodder for his critics in the blogsphere, but few more so than his contention that business scandals on the Enron model would ultimately change American politics more than the effects of September 11th.

Now, as one huge company after another drowns in a wave of accounting scandals, as the stock market itself gets dragged down by the wrecks (and dragged down further by Dubya's reassurances), as Dick Cheney hides from questions about Halliburton in a secure, undisclosed location, and as Dubya tries to shrug off the flood of stories about his own questionable dealings, Kevin Phillips (no slouch as a political prognosticator) is saying that it just might turn out that way --- and polls are showing that even the current election cycle is turning in that direction.

Time will tell. As it did for the last Bush in the White House --- who was also trying to shamelessly exploit a military victory which turned out in the end to be partial at best.