Inquiring minds want to know: Did Woodward sandbag Shrub?

It's generally been thought that the last two books by Woodward on the Bush (mis)administration were suck-up bulls**t jobs that would be of interest only to Bush true believers. When I explained to others, just how sucky and biased the 'reporting' in these books was, a common response has been to wonder aloud, "Do you think he was setting Bush up?" or words to that effect.

Personally, I think Woodward, seeing the writing on the wall inherent in the 'Torture' Bill just passed, the dissolution in the ruling party and the very real possibility of an imperial presidency looming, realized that his literary legacy as a bearer of truths in the Watergate investigation would be eclipsed by his last two pieces of drivel, in which he seems to have sold his soul to the same seats of power he exposed in Watergate.

I think Woodward thought that things would never go as far as they already have and wants to be remembered as a 'good guy', not one of the nazi hoard. And that this book is at long last the feeble return to conscience by a literary 'celebrity'.

Read this and this from Booman at Booman Tribune
And this from MSNBC