MR. MURTAUGH'S RED CAPE :

Why the President Can't Lose in November (RICHARD L. BERKE, September 1, 2002, NY Times)

[J]ust consider the most convincing example (one Mr. Reed remembers well) of how divided government could play to Mr. Bush's advantage: the story of Bill Clinton. His presidency seemed destined to fail after the Republicans' rout in the 1994 elections. Suddenly Democrats no longer ran Congress - and Mr. Clinton had to contend with resistance to his agenda.

But with advice from his chief political adviser, Dick Morris, who was cozy with many prominent Republicans, the Clinton White House devised a successful strategy of so-called "triangulation," where the president steered carefully between the extremes of the House Republicans and the liberals in Mr. Clinton's own party. He was liberated from the dictates of his own party.

These days, the margins are so close in the Senate and House - and are expected to stay that way - that Mr. Bush would not be likely to get his agenda approved even if Republicans controlled both chambers.

Right now, Mr. Bush can mollify his conservative base by endorsing Republican proposals in the House on controversial issues like abortion and tax cuts, knowing full well that they will never make it out of the Democratic Senate and reach his desk for signature.

That way, he can satisfy conservatives without undermining his image as a "compassionate conservative" who reaches out to moderates and cannot be blamed for passing laws that are anathema to many voters.

Charles Murtaugh points to this story, which I have to confess I'd missed, and wonders why so little response from the Right. I'd merely point out that the premise of the article--that the conservative agenda is too controversial to run on--is inside-the-Beltway nonsense. Not only did Ronald Reagan, the Class of '94 and George W. Bush all score huge political upsets by running on tax cuts, the senior President Bush lost his re-election because he raised taxes. Other than in the febrile minds of liberal Democrats and their press lackeys there is simply no evidence that voters disfavor tax cuts.
Posted by Orrin Judd at September 2, 2002 5:46 PM