Can 'blame Bush' still help the Democrats win?
Though Dems are bashing the GOP's "ideas" as warmed-over Bush policies — some pundits say the strategy is a loser in 2010

Once again, the Democrats are counting on the unpopularity of the George W. Bush administration to help them win an election. Republicans "don't have a single idea that's different than George Bush's ideas," President Barack Obama said at a recent fundraiser. "Instead, they're betting on amnesia." Bad tactic, say some commentators, who argue that the Dems better find a new talking point fast: (Watch a Fox News discussion about the anti-Bush tactic)
"Blame Bush"? I think not: The key problem with this strategy, says Frank Rich in The New York Times, is that "betting on amnesia is almost always a winning, not a losing, wager in America." And given the "radical" ideas the post-Bush GOP plans to institute if they win, the Democrats are actually "flattering the current GOP by accusing it of being a carbon copy of Bush."
"How to lose an election without really trying"
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Nothing can help the Democrats now: It's true, says Rick Richman in Commentary: Trying "to bring back the bogeyman to scare the kids" won't work in 2010 — because nothing can hide the Democrats' terrible track-record. Unemployment remains astonishingly high. Two "prominent" Congressional Democrats are facing ethics charges, and Obama "is suing a state for trying to enforce existing immigration law." If they want to win elections, the Democrats must first learn how to govern.
"If you cannot bring back hope and change, bring back Bush"
Still, it's a timeless tactic: Blaming an unpopular president has worked well in the past, says the University of Virginia's Larry J. Sabato in The Hill. "Every Democratic national campaign from 1932 through 1952 prominently featured attacks on Herbert Hoover." And Republicans bashed Jimmy Carter "consistently from 1980 through 1988." Even if targeting Bush has "little real effect" this fall, it still "makes sense" as a tactic.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Book reviews: 'The Thinking Machine: Jensen Huang, Nvidia, and the World’s Most Coveted Microchip' and 'Who Is Government? The Untold Story of Public Service'
Feature The tech titan behind Nvidia's success and the secret stories of government workers
By The Week US
-
Mario Vargas Llosa: The novelist who lectured Latin America
Feature The Peruvian novelist wove tales of political corruption and moral compromise
By The Week US
-
How to see the Lyrid meteor shower
The explainer A nice time to look to the skies
By Devika Rao, The Week US
-
The JFK files: the truth at last?
In The Spotlight More than 64,000 previously classified documents relating the 1963 assassination of John F. Kennedy have been released by the Trump administration
By The Week Staff
-
'Seriously, not literally': how should the world take Donald Trump?
Today's big question White House rhetoric and reality look likely to become increasingly blurred
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK
-
Will Trump's 'madman' strategy pay off?
Today's Big Question Incoming US president likes to seem unpredictable but, this time round, world leaders could be wise to his playbook
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK
-
Democrats vs. Republicans: who are the billionaires backing?
The Explainer Younger tech titans join 'boys' club throwing money and support' behind President Trump, while older plutocrats quietly rebuke new administration
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK
-
US election: where things stand with one week to go
The Explainer Harris' lead in the polls has been narrowing in Trump's favour, but her campaign remains 'cautiously optimistic'
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK
-
Is Trump okay?
Today's Big Question Former president's mental fitness and alleged cognitive decline firmly back in the spotlight after 'bizarre' town hall event
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK
-
The life and times of Kamala Harris
The Explainer The vice-president is narrowly leading the race to become the next US president. How did she get to where she is now?
By The Week UK
-
Will 'weirdly civil' VP debate move dial in US election?
Today's Big Question 'Diametrically opposed' candidates showed 'a lot of commonality' on some issues, but offered competing visions for America's future and democracy
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK