GOP Party Implosion Continues

04/24/2006

Paul Munnis

The implosion of the GOP is accelerating today as developments worsen for Mr. Bush and his Administration.

Mr. Bush is in California trying to speak to immigration and the LA Times wants Dick Chaney to get out. They suggest he plead bad health and resign and that someone like Howard Baker, take the post, someone who has no presidential aspirations but is statesman-like.

The White House has indeed turned to Howard Baker. They seek a miracle in the form of a consult about what to do about Iraq. I think if Baker knew he’d of volunteered the information by now. So, all they can think of is to work the spin machine harder.

The West Wing has no ideas about how to save the Party. Even Karl Rove is perplexed. Oh he can do some things to try to make things better for Congress in November of 2006; for example they can bring home some troops from Iraq, but many of the things that need doing are doctrinaire and aren’t so easy to change or adopt.

Mr. Rumsfeld and Ms Rice are both under pressure—the former to resign and the latter to perform. Neither is very likely.

Mr. Bush’s job approval ratings continue to slide and are now at 32%. He is only a few points from the 20’s now. He clearly does not any longer have the support of the American people. Denial is pointless for the Administration.

Congress today slipped another $15 Billion worth of pork into the Emergency Spending Bill as pure deficit spending.

The management of the mess in Louisiana is itself a mess.

Bush doctrine now has Catholics split over immigration policy even as Bush waffles and decides he now supports the Senate compromise position that has been tabled.

Gay bashing has failed the GOP and was to have been their big issue. People aren’t having it.

Gas prices are climbing like mad. We are looking at $4.50 gas by November 2006. Mr. Bush did nothing to prepare America for this oil shock. His policies of ignoring alternative energy and providing tax deductions for purchasing gas guzzling SUV’s have failed. People are not happy campers.

Newt Gingrich was confronted with the question: “What success can you claim for ‘Contract With America’?” He was forced to admit that most were failures or at best lukewarm. He had no new contract to offer either.

It all adds up to bankruptcy of political capital for the GOP and it’s hard to get re-elected when people are so tense.

In a few weeks Congress will go on summer recess and the home town parades will begin all over America. Lots of Congressmen will be marching in these parades and touting their “record.” The problem is that voters know their record and they are not celebrating it. Therein lies the lesson.

When you have had total control of government and you have so few positive results to show for it then you don’t have much to run for re-election on.