The W factor

D.J. Drummond has one of the best commentaries on the GOP race for president I've read in some time. It's perfect reverse spin; he says Republicans ought to quit absurdly comparing themselves to Ronald Reagan and instead embrace George W. Bush. He's right.

Drummond notes that while Bush's popularity has sagged, the underlying reasons he was elected twice remain. He also pierces the media fog and puts GWB's tenure in perspective.

The next reason for would-be Presidents to consider Dubya, is the accomplishments he has made. I know it's quite the fashion to tab Bush as a "failed" President somehow, but in reality his work has been effective. His tax cuts unquestionably eased the 2001 recession which followed the 9/11 attacks, his Supreme Court and Federal Judiciary nominations have been superb from the perspective of judicial reform (rolling back the tide of activist judges who ignore the Constitution), his National Security doctrine has prevented another major terrorist attack on U.S. soil, and has severely damaged the capabilities of Al Qaeda and other Islamofascist organizations (far too many people judge the war in Iraq and Afghanistan on the peculiar assumption that terrorists would have stayed home and been peaceful, rather than grown in ambition and violence, if we had just let Saddam go on in his murderous ways). And yeah, Dubya has done a pretty good job of helping Americans understand the signature differences between a Republican President and a Democrat President.

Drummond then makes the point that likeability matters greatly, a point that GWBush understood well. I agree. By his reasoning, the most likely next president will come from among these three: Giuliani, Romney or Obama. Not a bad theory.

Technorati Tags: 2008 election, al-Qaeda, Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, John McCain, Rudy Giuliani