The Bush Legacy

The Republicans who seek to inherit the Republican nomination from George W. Bush don't appear eager to inherit his presidential legacy.

The Washington Post reports that Republican presidential hopefuls are walking a tightrope in advance of the primaries. They'd like to distance themselves from the Bush record and the president's low approval ratings without appearing to be too critical. The party's base remains loyal to Bush, and anything that is perceived as Bush bashing could have a negative effect on a campaign among the very voters that campaign will need to win the nomination.

But without establishing their independence from Bush, the Republican hopefuls can't hope to win many of the Democratic or independent votes they will need to win the general election.

There is no clear consensus as to which direction the party should take.

David Frum, former specchwriter in Bush's first term, recalls that the Democrats faced the same kind of problem at the end of Bill Clinton's presidency, debating the direction the party should travel.

But it's a little different with Bush. Democrats could only claim majorities in the House and Senate for the first two years of Clinton's presidency. For the last six years of Clinton's tenure, Republicans controlled both houses of Congress by varying margins.

For most of Bush's presidency, the Republicans controlled not only the White House but both houses of Congress as well -- and most of the justices on the Supreme Court were appointed by Republican presidents.

So Republicans can't blame Democrats for mushrooming deficits, or the failure to do something about issues that social conservatives care most about, like abortion.