Early indications are that the GOP will quite explicitly use the War on Terrorism as a campaign issue in its favor, playing on the high approval ratings for the President as a tool to take back control of Senate.
“We can go to the country on this issue because they trust the Republican Party to do a better job of protecting and strengthening America’s military might and thereby protecting America,” Karl Rove said at the Republican National Committee meeting here.
This stands in contrast to Dubya’s previous portrayal of bipartisan unity in the face of terror.
Of course, if the GOP wants to play that game, I’m sure the Dems can find plenty of grist for the mill. After all, bin Laden and Mullah Omar are both still at large. We’ve broken the Taliban in Afghanistan, but it’s doubtful the laurels for that will still be restful come November, which means that further action will need to be taken.
And, of course, if so, then the GOP leadership runs the risk of blowing everything by turning the war into a partisan issue. Which, ultimately, is a pretty despicable thing to do. And I came up with that adjective before I read it in the story.
If they were smart, they’d just stay quiet about it. If it’s that great a partisan win for them, then the voters will respond. If not, then trying to hype it as such can only cause more of a mess.
In his luncheon speech, Rove contended that Bush’s bipartisan strategy on such issues as education reform has, in fact, proved to be a partisan bonanza for the GOP. “I’m glad the Democrats worked with us [on education], but, you know what, the Republicans will get the credit,” Rove said. He cited Gallup polls showing that the GOP had “succeeded in wiping out a 51-year disadvantage on this issue.”
Hey, and you know, that’s a great way to encourage the Democrats to cooperate and actually frickin’ get something done in Washington — by then turning it back on them as a political gambit, by forcibly trying to portray any cooperation as a win for the GOP.
There’s already way too much of that sort of strategizing that goes on in back rooms in DC … we really don’t need any more.
Not that I’d expect anything better from Karl Rove.
(Via Cursor.org)