Leave it to George W. Bush to conclude that the man best-suited to oversee the department responsible for making sure impoverished women have access to contraceptives, counselling and family planning assistance is the very same guy who, for years, has led a crusade against contraceptives in particular and sex in general.

Obstetrician, gynecologist and right-wing ham Eric Keroack, Bush’s appointee for deputy assistant secretary of the Office of Population Affairs, has until now acted as medical director of A Woman’s Concern, a non-profit, anti-abortion network of clinics that condemns contraceptives as “demeaning to women and degrading of human sexuality.” He’s also co-author of a paper claiming sex with multiple partners alters brain chemistry, making it impossible for women to form bonds later in life. The conclusions of the paper have been widely dismissed in the scientific community, including by its own co-author, Dr. John Diggs.

Senator Edward Kennedy condemned the appointment, saying it “flies in the face of bipartisanship, and... lets ideology trump science.” With Senate approval unnecessary, Keroack is expected to assume his new role within the coming weeks, and remain there until he’s caught with some leatherboy in him up to the elbow.

» Scott Saxon