Cult of Personality

Washington Post writeup of the looming Republican Party platform fight at the convention contains this hilarious tidbit:

The battle may not be avoidable. The current GOP platform is a 100-page document, and all but nine pages mention Bush's name. Virtually the entire platform will have to be rewritten to lessen the imprint of the president, who has the highest disapproval rating of any White House occupant since Richard M. Nixon.

And in the need for the re-write comes the problem, since it seems Republican Party activists are looking to stop McCainified "views on global warming, immigration, stem cell research and campaign finance from becoming enshrined in the party's official declaration of principles." A fight like that will probably be embarrassing for the McCain campaign since, at the end of the day, anything that underscores the hard-right's dislike for the guy is going to help him in this climate. By contrast, the inevitable speech by George W. Bush seems destined to be a disaster for McCain's quest for the White House.

Comments

A fight like that will probably be embarrassing for the McCain campaign since, at the end of the day, anything that underscores the hard-right's dislike for the guy is going to help him in this climate.

Interpretations, anyone?

Posted by SomeCallMeTim | July 7, 2008 1:30 PM

Will probably not be embarrassing?

At any rate, this seems wrong. A disunited party is never good for its presidential candidate.

Posted by John | July 7, 2008 1:34 PM

They won't put Bush's speech on Prime Time!
The MSM will collaborate with them. The average viewer will never know that Bush was there.

They'll either put him on at 2:00 AM or else he'll give a speech at 12:00 AM on day 2 of the convention when everybody is having lunch. They will keep him off the stage with McCain and try desperately to prevent photos of the two of them together. Either way, they will try and prevent any media coverage of the speech and McCain will try to totally ignore whatever Bush has to say.

You can bet any amount that George Bush will NOT be up on that stage with McCain after his acceptance speech! He'll be somewhere behind tinted glass in a sound-proof suite and occasionally cameras will pan him to see his reaction, but you won't be able to see his expression and he'll essentially be hidden behind aides.

The Reich-Wing dead-enders in the hall will give Bush a rousing welcome just to let him know they are still part of the 25% who think he's great, but the rest of the party will pretend that Bush is invisible.

Posted by Cugel | July 7, 2008 1:35 PM

OK, I never complain about the typos here, they're part of the charm. But I can only guess at the meaning of this post unless you fix it. I think John's interpretation is probably the right one, but who knows?

Posted by too many steves | July 7, 2008 1:37 PM

As usual, the pop-culturally deficient Post has gotten it wrong. The references to Bush in the platform aren't references to the President, they are references to Gavin Rossdale and Bush.

Now the references in the Republican platform to archaic forms of weights and measurement, eastern philosophy and explosives components makes perfect sense.

Posted by calipygian | July 7, 2008 1:38 PM

Will there even be any GOPers fighting to keep Bush's legacy and policies in the platform?

http://www.political-buzz.com/

Posted by matt | July 7, 2008 1:40 PM

Will probably not be embarrassing?

You're not entering into the spirit of the thing, John. I was hoping for something more in the family of "blessed are the makers of all dairy products."

Posted by SomeCallMeTim | July 7, 2008 1:41 PM

As usual, the pop-culturally deficient Post has gotten it wrong. The references to Bush in the platform aren't references to the President, they are references to Gavin Rossdale and Bush.

Now the references in the Republican platform to archaic forms of weights and measurement, eastern philosophy and explosives components makes perfect sense.

Posted by calipygian | July 7, 2008 1:43 PM

"The current GOP platform is a 100-page document, . . ."

Good God, no wonder the GOP is such trouble. Only liberals who insist on governing every ascept of life have 100 pages platforms.

If a political party cannot express its core convictions in a few paragraphs, its trying to hide the fact that they don't really believe anything and trying to be all things to all people.

Posted by Chicounsel | July 7, 2008 2:07 PM

I dunno. Bush can speechify purty good, so we'll see. If he manages to stick to the lines on the paper, and avoids any major gaffes, the MSM will likely spin it as a "grand and glorious farewell address". Never underestimate the mendacity of the press.

Posted by Jay Andrew Allen | July 7, 2008 2:30 PM

Also in the WP article was this beautiful description of how McCain is tying himselve into knots trying to be both a conservative and moderate at the same time. Sooner or later the MSM is going to notice he is contradicting himselve almost every time he speaks.

"McCain has spent the past year and a half trying to straddle the philosophical schism in the modern Republican Party. In primaries, he stressed his conservative credentials, but since clinching the nomination he has often reminded voters of his more moderate stances while professing his fealty to conservative positions."

Posted by Displaced Canuck | July 7, 2008 2:38 PM

"You can bet any amount that George Bush will NOT be up on that stage with McCain after his acceptance speech! He'll be somewhere behind tinted glass in a sound-proof suite and occasionally cameras will pan him to see his reaction, but you won't be able to see his expression and he'll essentially be hidden behind aides.

The Reich-Wing dead-enders in the hall will give Bush a rousing welcome just to let him know they are still part of the 25% who think he's great, but the rest of the party will pretend that Bush is invisible.

Posted by Cugel | July 7, 2008 1:35 PM"

Except how does McCain and the GOP really make peace with the dead-enders who aren't physically at the convention? McCain needs their votes to secure the red states. To do that, he does have to kiss Bush's ring.

Posted by Reality Man | July 7, 2008 3:39 PM

Reality Man writes: "McCain needs their votes to secure the red states. To do that, he does have to kiss Bush's ring."

That's ring as in sphincter, and he's been kissing it for years now. At his age he'll probably die with that taste in his mouth.

Posted by MoeLarryAndJesus | July 8, 2008 1:31 AM

Did Jimmy Carter speak at the 84 Democratic convention? Dems have more of a tendency to throw their failed leaders to the curb than the GOP but I have a hard time thinking he wasn't allowed to speak even though the Carter years were something the Dems didn't want to remind voters of in 1984?

Posted by am | July 8, 2008 9:02 AM