William McGurn: Obama v. Bush, the Sequel
[William McGurn is a Vice President at News Corporation who writes speeches for CEO Rupert Murdoch. Previously he served as Chief Speechwriter for President George W. Bush.]
While campaigning for president, Barack Obama arguably ran as much against George W. Bush as he did against John McCain.
All across America, Candidate Obama hammered home his message. Mr. McCain represented "the same old Bush-McCain policies that have failed us for the past eight years." A vote for Mr. McCain was a vote for a "third Bush term." And far from being a maverick, Mr. McCain was in actuality a Bush "sidekick."
Today we're back to the Obama v. Bush storyline. With one twist. In this election cycle, the Democrat tarring his opponent as a "Bush Republican" is running behind in the polls—while the Republican bashing his opponent as an "Obama Democrat" enjoys a lead.
The two races are for the governorships of New Jersey and Virginia, states that Mr. Obama carried in the last election. In New Jersey, the incumbent Democratic governor, Jon Corzine, is running on the same anti-Bush message that worked so well for Democrats last year. But in Virginia, Republican Bob McDonnell has turned the tables by tying his opponent to Barack Obama.
The received wisdom, of course, is that national politics have little to do with the choices voters make at the state and local level. Most press commentary reflects this wisdom, tut-tutting about candidates trying to use presidents to define their opponents. Whether or not the received wisdom is right, the candidates themselves obviously believe otherwise—or they wouldn't be doing it.
In New Jersey, Republican challenger Chris Christie served as a U.S. attorney under President George W. Bush before receiving his party's nomination—and Gov. Corzine doesn't intend to let the voters of blue-state New Jersey forget it.
A cruise through the Corzine campaign Web site shows press releases referring to Mr. Christie as "Bush Republican Chris Christie." One of many Bush-themed ads carries this tag-line: "Chris Christie—the same Bush policies that got us into this mess." And at a Corzine rally this past weekend, the Press of Atlantic City reports former Vice President Al Gore revving up the crowd with attacks suggesting that Mr. Christie represents "the George Bush wing of the Republican Party."
Given the miserable state of New Jersey's economy, it's not surprising that Gov. Corzine would like to nationalize this election. In addition to the swipes at Mr. Bush for the state's woes, the governor has put up billboards showing him standing behind President Obama. Unfortunately the old Bush-bash doesn't seem to be working: the RealClearPolitics.com poll average shows Mr. Christie up by 6.6 points...
Read entire article at The Wall Street Journal
While campaigning for president, Barack Obama arguably ran as much against George W. Bush as he did against John McCain.
All across America, Candidate Obama hammered home his message. Mr. McCain represented "the same old Bush-McCain policies that have failed us for the past eight years." A vote for Mr. McCain was a vote for a "third Bush term." And far from being a maverick, Mr. McCain was in actuality a Bush "sidekick."
Today we're back to the Obama v. Bush storyline. With one twist. In this election cycle, the Democrat tarring his opponent as a "Bush Republican" is running behind in the polls—while the Republican bashing his opponent as an "Obama Democrat" enjoys a lead.
The two races are for the governorships of New Jersey and Virginia, states that Mr. Obama carried in the last election. In New Jersey, the incumbent Democratic governor, Jon Corzine, is running on the same anti-Bush message that worked so well for Democrats last year. But in Virginia, Republican Bob McDonnell has turned the tables by tying his opponent to Barack Obama.
The received wisdom, of course, is that national politics have little to do with the choices voters make at the state and local level. Most press commentary reflects this wisdom, tut-tutting about candidates trying to use presidents to define their opponents. Whether or not the received wisdom is right, the candidates themselves obviously believe otherwise—or they wouldn't be doing it.
In New Jersey, Republican challenger Chris Christie served as a U.S. attorney under President George W. Bush before receiving his party's nomination—and Gov. Corzine doesn't intend to let the voters of blue-state New Jersey forget it.
A cruise through the Corzine campaign Web site shows press releases referring to Mr. Christie as "Bush Republican Chris Christie." One of many Bush-themed ads carries this tag-line: "Chris Christie—the same Bush policies that got us into this mess." And at a Corzine rally this past weekend, the Press of Atlantic City reports former Vice President Al Gore revving up the crowd with attacks suggesting that Mr. Christie represents "the George Bush wing of the Republican Party."
Given the miserable state of New Jersey's economy, it's not surprising that Gov. Corzine would like to nationalize this election. In addition to the swipes at Mr. Bush for the state's woes, the governor has put up billboards showing him standing behind President Obama. Unfortunately the old Bush-bash doesn't seem to be working: the RealClearPolitics.com poll average shows Mr. Christie up by 6.6 points...