Posted by Jed Lewison on Fri Jan 2, 2009 at 2:15 AM Pacific

They still don't get it

Bush CoS Josh Bolten and national security adviser Stephen Hadley still think the reason why Bush is unpopular is because the country didn't get to see what a rosy personality he had:

Bolten said another of his goals when he took over was to try to get the country to see the likable boss he and other aides saw in private, convinced that would boost Bush's popularity. "I failed miserably," he conceded. "Maybe in the beginning of the sixth year of a presidency, that's a quixotic task. . . . But everybody who has actual personal exposure to the president, almost everybody, appreciates what a good leader he is, how smart he is and, especially, how humane he is."

Hadley invoked Bush's 2000 campaign theme in summing up the president's personal qualities. "He has got this great compassion which was not just a slogan, 'compassionate conservative.' It is who he is. It is one of the great things he brought to this office," Hadley concluded. "This is the one thing that just drives me crazy, that somehow this is an arrogant administration, an arrogant president running an arrogant policy. This guy -- one thing he is not is arrogant."

Here's the thing these guys need to get through their thick skulls: the American public has rendered a sour verdict on the Bush Presidency because of what he has done.

This isn't about personality. It's about the fact that Bush is one of the few presidents in history who has left this country in worse condition than when he arrived.

These two clowns still don't understand that the problem isn't the "do I want to have a beer with him?" test, it's the "did he do a good job?" test.

And in case they haven't figured it out yet, the answer is 'no.'

They still don't get it

Bush CoS Josh Bolten and national security adviser Stephen Hadley still think the reason why Bush is unpopular is because the country didn't get to see what a rosy personality he had:

Bolten said another of his goals when he took over was to try to get the country to see the likable boss he and other aides saw in private, convinced that would boost Bush's popularity. "I failed miserably," he conceded. "Maybe in the beginning of the sixth year of a presidency, that's a quixotic task. . . . But everybody who has actual personal exposure to the president, almost everybody, appreciates what a good leader he is, how smart he is and, especially, how humane he is."

Hadley invoked Bush's 2000 campaign theme in summing up the president's personal qualities. "He has got this great compassion which was not just a slogan, 'compassionate conservative.' It is who he is. It is one of the great things he brought to this office," Hadley concluded. "This is the one thing that just drives me crazy, that somehow this is an arrogant administration, an arrogant president running an arrogant policy. This guy -- one thing he is not is arrogant."

Here's the thing these guys need to get through their thick skulls: the American public has rendered a sour verdict on the Bush Presidency because of what he has done.

This isn't about personality. It's about the fact that Bush is one of the few presidents in history who has left this country in worse condition than when he arrived.

These two clowns still don't understand that the problem isn't the "do I want to have a beer with him?" test, it's the "did he do a good job?" test.

And in case they haven't figured it out yet, the answer is 'no.'

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