The anti-Bush revolt grows

It's getting harsh.

"If I had a choice and Bush were running today against (Democratic President) Bill Clinton, I'd vote for Bill Clinton," said Bruce Bartlett, a former Reagan administration Treasury Department official whose book, "Impostor: How George Bush Bankrupted America and Betrayed the Reagan Legacy," is making the rounds of conservative think tanks and talk shows. "He was clearly a much better president in a great many ways that matter to me."

You think? I mean, if peace and prosperity and good, fiscally responsible government are the things so-called conservatives value.

Bartlett's book came out at the perfect time, as congressional Republicans push back on the Dubai port deal and myriad other facets of Bush's domestic agenda. And as we've seen in all the recent polls, Bush hasn't just lost Democrats and Independents, but he's tanking among the Republican faithful. It's a full-on across-the-board collapse for our lame-duck president.

Bartlett may truly be the extreme of Republican discontent, but only because he arrived there sooner than most. He'll be joined by more of his colleagues over the next few months. The fact he's been welcomed with open arms around the conservative machine (think tanks and noise machine) is proof of that.

It's curious that the only person outside the administration rushing to embrace Bush even tighter these days is John McCain. Once a "maverick", McCain has tossed that all aside in order to become Bush's biggest, most loyal, sycophant.