Schumer and Reid: McConnell must choose

In a press conference today announcing the Senate Dems' latest Iraq legislation, Democrats made clear that Republicans have to make a choice between the president and the wishes of their own constituents. This has added salience given that Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell is up for reelection next year.

Schumer:

Senator McConnell and his Republican leadership can continue to follow the president off the cliff and try to block debate. And I understand why they want to block debate. They're torn between their president and their constituencies. But they will not succeed because we are in the majority.

Reid:

[A]s Senator Schumer said so clearly and so well, this war is unpopular.  It is draining the American treasury not only of our gold, but our young men and women.

And so I think they had better start looking at what is right, not what is good for the president.

It's interesting that McConnell didn't come out swinging, but stated at a press conference that he would need a few days to figure out how to respond to the Democratic proposal.

Perhaps it has something to do with this:

SurveyUSA. 2/6-11. Likely voters. MoE 4.1% (1/12-14 results)

Do you approve or disapprove of the job Mitch McConnell is doing as United States Senator?

Approve 49 (52)
Disapprove 42 (38)

SurveyUSA. 2/6-11. Likely voters. MoE 4% (1/12-14 results)

Do you approve or disapprove of the job George W. Bush is doing as President?

Approve 37 (35)
Disapprove 61 (62)

McConnel is slated for a tough reelection victory, and the closer he attaches himself to Bush and his war, the further he'll drop, the easier it'll be for Democrats to give him a run for his life.

With the war in Iraq going badly, President Bush's approval rating in Kentucky is the lowest of his presidency, according to a Courier-Journal Bluegrass Poll -- and the lowest of any U.S. president since the poll first asked such a question in 1987.

The most recent poll found that 55 percent of those questioned disapprove of the job Bush is doing, while 43 percent approve. And 60 percent say they don't like the way Bush has handled the war in Iraq.

And this, of course, has direct repercussions for McConnell:

The Kentucky Republican says it's too soon to know whether the war will further hurt the GOP's political prospects in 2008 — including his own, since he is up for re-election.

But some analysts and politicians think President Bush's policies in Iraq will be a significant factor in next year's election.

And for McConnell — as the head of Bush's party in the Senate and one of the president's most forceful defenders — the political danger could be acute.

That is reflected in The Courier-Journal's latest Bluegrass Poll, in which more than half the respondents said McConnell should oppose Bush's plans to send more troops to Iraq.

In an interview, McConnell said he was "not terribly surprised at the outcome. I'm not surprised that people are skeptical and are not satisfied (given) the lack of progress. I'm not satisfied ... and I'm sure the presi dent isn't, either. That's why he ordered this different approach."

The poll, conducted Feb. 8-14, found that 52 percent of Kentuckians questioned said that McConnell should oppose the troop surge, compared with 40 percent who said he should support it. The rest were undecided.

As Schumer and Reid said, McConnell has a choice to make. And if he chooses Bush over his constituents, it'll have lasting electoral repercussions.