No, they are not stupid. It is quite plain however that the White House did NOT have in mind keeping any promises made for conservative votes. Bush lauded his conservative views and whined for their votes and then did an in your face gambit fully expecting that he could pull it off.
He and his handlers failed miserably. All one has to do is look and listen to Bush on TV. He is one POed off person and is having great difficulty containing himself.
If one cannot see the inner rage exhibited by Bush, they need new glasses. When people questioned the war, he used patriotism to ward off the blows. With this there is no defense and he had to resort to the shopworn theme of "trust me". That is damn lame for any president to use as a crutch.
Not much here but your own personal opinion.
Rage? no I haven't seen it.
Patriotism used as a defense of the war? no I haven't seen it. you sound like Hillary.
"Trust me" isn't acceptable? again I disagree. At times when a leader has to make difficult choices he needs to have the trust of his peeps.