The GOP and legacy

This week's Newsweek has a series of articles on the state of the GOP in the last year of Bush's presidency. It was only a few years ago that various people were claiming that the GOP would hold onto its majority for decades. Now the party is in disarray. The first article discusses the current crop of GOP candidates for prez. and how they are trying to be anything but Bush (while still perpetuating many of his policies). It also discusses how presidents tend to end up in a bubble, surrounded by yes-men, if they're not careful. And Bush wasn't.

Bush's former speechwriter, Michael Gerson, laments on how the party has lost its way. First, it let Bush govern unchecked. Then Bush proceeded to offend every GOP coalition -- those concerned about budget, immigration, and compassionate conservatism that wasn't. Add in the public's sour mood on Iraq. All are now being taken out on the GOP candidates, the victor being chosen as the lesser evil. The core GOP issues of the 1980s -- tax rates, welfare reform, high crime -- are no longer big issues (at least to the GOP) and they haven't figure out what issues to replace them with. There is someone who will unite them: Hillary.

Issues that Bush has ignored (or made worse) that the next president will have to deal with: Immigration, Foreign Policy, Economy, Health Care, Environment.

A good Shakespearean tragedy studies how the character flaws of the central character bring about his demise. Here is an excerpt of a new book, The Bush Tragedy, by Jacob Weisberg. Briefly mentioned (in the excerpt) are Act 1: the son's struggle to be like dad, Act 2: The son's success as he tries not to be like dad. The excerpt discusses at length Act 3: The botched search for a doctrine that will clarify world affairs coupled with a growing messianic complex. The various doctrines:

Unipolar Realism: "I'm not Clinton." This ended with 9/11.

With Us or Against Us: What frightened Bush wasn't the terrorism of 9/11 but the anthrax scare a month later. The neo-cons take over the asylum.

Preemption: If biotech is going to be the battleground the only defense is a strong offense. This justified the Iraq war.

Democracy in the Middle East: The war was still young. Success in Iraq would cause the other Middle East countries to get rid of their dictators.

Freedom Everywhere: Democracy is God's gift to humanity. That flopped most quickly.

Since the 2006 election, when Dems took over Congress, there hasn't been much of a foreign policy. "The more the son's faults glared, the more his father's reputation grew."