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March 07, 2006
Reagan's Bartlett says Bush Doomed the GOP
"It is manifestly clear that Bush has not helped the Republican party politically and I think he is setting them up for a fall which we may see as early as the Congressional elections in November."
These are the words of conservative Bruce Bartlett, who worked in the Reagan White House and authored the 1981 bestseller Reaganomics. His new book, Imposter: How George W. Bush Bankrupted America and Betrayed the Reagan Legacy, hit the shelves February 28.
Speaking today on Air America Radio's Rachel Maddow Show, Bartlett said Bush's poll numbers will take down some prominent Republicans in this year's elections.
"No Republican member of Congress is going to get reelected with those kinds of [Bush poll] numbers dragging them down, and I think its only a matter of time before the rats start deserting the sinking ship," he said.
The question, of course, is can those rats, who for six years have blindly and willfully stuck by their man Dubya, now shake themselves loose from the rat-trap that his his failed presidency? I sure hope not. That is neater and cleaner than I think is realistic.
Bartlett doesn't seem to think so either, though his book is designed to inspire debate among those in the right wing, in order to salvage the right's political gains and, he believes, the Reagan legacy, policy-wise.
Bush, said Bartlett, called Bush "a failure" and "just a partisan Republican" who "substituted partisan Republicanism -- that is, doing things to help his side, help his pals..." for real conservativism, based on "a desire for power." "But power for what purpose?" he asked. "For its own sake?"
Bartlett even had some strategic political advice for Democrats and said he'd take Bill Clinton over George W. any day:
Bartlett: In the last two election cycles they ran away from Bill Clinton which, whatever else you want to say about him, he was politically effective; he was politically popular, he won two national elections and he was the first Democrat to do that since Franklin D. Roosevelt. I think that getting back to what was good about Bill Clinton's policies might be the ticket for the Democrats to get back in power.
Maddow: At this point I feel, I almost feel like if Clinton could run again he'd win with about, you know, almost a Kim Jong Il proportion of the vote.
Bartlett: Well, if he was running against George W. Bush I'd vote for him.
Maddow: (laughing) I bet you never thought you'd say that before this predidency worked out this way.
Bartlett: (laughing) No I wouldn't!
Posted by MJuhre at March 7, 2006 03:38 PM