Republicans Not Relying on Bush in Fall Elections

As Bush's poll numbers continue to fall, it's not surprising that Republicans are trying to distance themselves from the president as noted by Paul Bedard in US News & World Report:

Congressional Republicans and GOP political strategists said today that they don't believe President Bush will make a dramatic upward move in the polls by the fall, forcing members who face re-election to push their own agenda at home instead of hoping to ride Bush's coattails to victory.

"He might come back—who knows?—but we've got to do this on our own. In fact, it's irrelevant if he comes back. He probably will, he's got 2 ½ years — but we don't," said a key GOP official. As a result, Republican officials said, the GOP leadership will step up its plans to tackle issues that are important back home, such as high gas prices, expensive college tuition, and medical care.

These are the same Republicans who gave Bush carte blanche for the last five years. They never challenged Bush on any major issue until his poll numbers became toxic. These are the same Republicans who fought for fiscal responsibility in the 90s, then changed their minds and have since put every boondoogle, tax cut and corporate favor on the national credit card. These are the same guys who spent years ignoring the growing energy crisis of this nation and they still do not have a solution except to loosen pollution controls in every community in America. These are the same guys who let the oil companies, pharmaceuticals, the insurance industry and others write legislation that has nothing to do with dealing with major issues or providing better products or services but a great deal to do with bigger profits without having to work for them.

The Republicans in Congress may distance themselves from Bush but they can't distance themselves from their own failed record. And then, there are the growing corruption scandals from the billions unaccounted for in Iraq to military contracts to.... well, I think the reader gets the general idea.