Bush? Never Heard Of Him

President Bush’s effectiveness as a domestic president is ending not with a bang but with a whimper. Almost four months before the midterm elections, congressional Republicans fear an association with him might alienate their constituencies and result in a loss of the House of Representatives. They hold the House by only 15 seats and suddenly even previously safe districts are at risk. Just a month ago Bush delivered a nationally televised address on immigration, urging Congress to provide for eventual citizenship for the more than 12 million illegal immigrants in the country (the pro-business position). He convinced the Senate, but the House refused to budge from its punitive position to criminalize any assistance to illegal immigrants.

The White House had hoped that the killing of terrorist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi would reverse Bush’s slide in popularity. Indeed, there was a slight bump upward of several points. But this is a classic epiphenomenon that has already started to wither.

From the vantage point of Capitol Hill, the most salient factor is that Bush’s evanescent Zarqawi “recovery” has failed to cast any glow onto Republican prospects. Enforcing party discipline for a purely political congressional vote last week that endorsed Bush’s policy in Iraq, such as it is, has barely quelled panic. Even as Bush briefly nudged up ever so slightly from the low to mid-30s, Republican candidates fell further behind in the polls. For Republicans, Bush has become cement shoes.

Two recent near-death experiences have desperately frightened Republicans. In a June 6 by-election to fill the seat of the corrupt and imprisoned Republican congressman Randy “Duke” Cunningham in suburban San Diego, one of the safest Republican districts in the country, the Republican narrowly held on only through demagogic appeals against immigrants. Then, in Utah, in an even safer Republican district, the state party denied endorsement to Rep. Chris Cannon, a Republican with a 100 percent American Conservative Union voting record, because he had made the mistake of supporting Bush’s immigration plan. On Tuesday, Cannon edged out a primary challenge from an anti-immigrant activist who insisted he was battling “Satan.”

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http://www.trueblueliberal.com/2006/06/29/bush-never-heard-of-him/#more-7889