Bill Clinton left office with a record 66% approval rating. President Obama currently enjoys a 53% (and rising) approval rating. But George W. Bush, author of the Iraq invasion and thumb-twiddler-in-chief during the 2008 economic collapse, limped out of office with just 34% of the population giving him the thumbs up.
In previous elections, Bush was treated as only slightly less toxic than botulism, and Republicans were happy to have him back in Texas painting bath-wrinked toes. So what what does it say that in this cycle, Bush is being stuffed into a suit and pushed onto the campaign trail?
Former President George W. Bush is helping a handful of vulnerable Republican senators up for re-election in November, including Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) and Sen. Kelly Ayotte (R-NH), according to a New York Times report.
What it says is that, despite lingering antipathy for Bush, despite the fact that he was named worst president by 61% of historians, and despite increasing evidence that Bush could have prevented 9/11, he still looks good when compared to Donald Trump. With Trump’s polling closing on the point where more people hate Trump than there are people, Republicans need to prop somebody up there next to would-be Senators. And any Senator in a close contest certainly doesn’t want to be seen with Agent Orange.
They’re hoping that Bush will remind voters of the days when Republicans were merely incompetent and completely wrong on every topic, but not racist, misogynistic, demagogues. Or at least, not so obviously racist, misogynistic, demagogues. Bush represents the token #NotTrump endorsement, without being so blatant as hauling in a Romney.
A spokesperson for the former president said last month that he does not plan on endorsing Trump as the Republican presidential nominee. And the New York Times reported that Bush is not happy with Trump
For people who have embarrassed themselves as badly in this election as John McCain, how could it hurt? Oh, and in case you’re wondering: This is not good news for John McCain.