They Knew!
October 25, 2009
It is inconceivable that Bush is unaware that the right wing of the Republican Party is already exceedingly skeptical about his conservatism. Grass-roots conservatives have expressed their distrust of W. well before his salvos at Congress.
Has Bush become so smug with his seemingly prohibitive lead in fundraising and in the polls that he feels he not only doesn’t have to placate the right, but can intentionally alienate them?
But why would he want to alienate the right unless he is not one of them?
I can think of one reason, and it’s not encouraging. Perhaps he is employing the Clintonian trick of triangulation — distancing himself from both Democrats and conservative Republicans for his own political advantage. That would be quite an act of disloyalty, considering the widespread congressional support for his candidacy.
It may be that Bush is playing no games at all, but merely beginning to reveal his true ideological makeup. Recently, he unveiled his education plan, which, because of its potential for leading to national testing standards, has conservatives very distressed.
The tenor of Bush’s assaults on the congressional majority and the right are even more disturbing. Why on earth would a Republican, much less the foremost Republican leader in the nation, adopt Bill Clinton’s destructive and polarizing terminology of class warfare?
Why would he give aid and comfort to those who have fraudulently tried to portray Republicans as heartless and uncaring? Will he talk about draconian Medicare cuts next?
As the de facto Republican leader, Bush should be rehabilitating Republicans — defending them against these outrageously defamatory characterizations.
I was willing to give Bush the benefit of the doubt and assume he was trying to better market conservatism when he coined his “compassionate conservative” slogan. But now I can’t help but wonder whether his critics were correct in insisting, rather, that he was apologizing for traditional conservatism.
Either Bush is not very conservative or is trying to pander to the moderate swing vote — either of which is troubling.
Here is a Republican, son of a president, white, Protestant and wealthy, who nonetheless was able to pull 49 percent of the Hispanic vote in the last election. Here is a Republican who believes in tax cuts, welfare reform and faith-based institutions but who speaks of “compassionate conservatism.” Has the messiah come?
Many Republicans are prepared to say yes. They are panting to find a leader who will make conservatism cool again…
Will George W. be able to pull off a different kind of political jujitsu — appropriating the Democrats’ favorite term of self-praise while implementing conservative reforms? The great danger is obvious: The desire to be seen as “compassionate,” while understandable, has weakened the principles and good sense of many a Republican.
So far, George W. has shown an agreeable allergy to taxes, a sensible commitment to missile defense and a commendable dedication to free trade. But on the issues that are loaded with mine fields — abortion and affirmative action — he has been so guarded that skeptics may well wonder how much beyond lip service they can expect from him.
Bush remains the prohibitive favorite to secure the Republican presidential nod, with his oodles of money, legion of supporters and nonpareil political network. Yet he doesn’t appear to take the quest seriously. He behaves as if he were in an amusement park, pursuing a hobby rather than a calling.
The key indicator is The Smirk. It pops out indiscriminately — in times of peril as well as moments of mirth. It gives bystanders the sense they’re dealing not with a political heir to Lincoln, Reagan or George Bush, but with an exhibitionistic frat boy who has poked a hole in the bottom of a beer can and wants an audience to watch him pop the top….
Bush’s attempt to play Carmen San Diego with Boston television reporter Andy Hiller has prompted just such a reaction. Hiller was a snot when he asked the names of Chechnya’s prime minister and the recently installed heads of Pakistan and India. Plenty of diplomats would flunk that quiz — and the Texas governor at least described the new leaders with a fair degree of accuracy.
Nevertheless, Bush handled the exchange as if Hiller were a peer he wanted to impress. Rather than telling the youngster to grow up and ask serious questions, he chose to joust — and with each pass looked more and more like the fool…
In the case of Bush the Younger, we’re not sure whether he’s a reprobate, but a growing number also harbor the fear that he’s a lightweight, blithely unconcerned about the gravity of the situation. He inhabits a political Oz, where the colors are happy and the tough decisions can wait until the oracle speaks. When he stumbles over abstruse matters of foreign policy, for instance, he actually jokes about his cluelessness…
A good fight will help him and his party, for almost as interesting as the fact that his backers want someone to practice tough love is the fact that even his GOP opponents fear his demise. One Republican candidate says a Bush meltdown would cost Republicans the White House and the House. Another has expressed open astonishment of shabby staff work by the Bush team, warning that Bush’s fate could shape GOP fortunes for the next decade or more.
If this is the voice of compassionate conservatism, Democrats have nothing to fear.
