Of Lipstick and Legacies

A couple of the big lefty bloggers commented this weekend on this piece from the Washington Post:

Others inside and outside the administration, however, say the upbeat talk masks disappointment and frustration among many White House staffers, who believe Bush's reputation has been unfairly maligned for a series of calamities -- from the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks to the financial crisis -- that were beyond his control and that he handled well. GOP nominee John McCain's escalating attacks on Bush's tenure have added to the irritation, these people said.

"Everybody kind of wanted to spend the last 100-plus days doing some legacy things, and the financial crisis has thrown a wrench into that," said one prominent Republican who regularly talks with senior White House officials.

"You have a combination of no legacy stuff, a horrible economic mess and the likelihood that Obama is going to win," this person added. "There is a real sadness there."

But of the posts I saw, no one made the obvious point that this stuff is the Bush legacy. The financial crisis, 9/11, (the botched response to Katrina) and the rejection of the GOP at the polls in 2006 and again tomorrow haven't occurred in a political vacuum. These events are correlated, with Bush at their dead center.

Note to Bushies: "This pig is unlipstickable" is not your premise; it's our conclusion.