If you ‘buy in’ to Noonan’s assessment of President Bush, et al, then you must also ‘buy’ her assessment of President Reagan:
“THE BATTLE FOR THE MIND OF RONALD REAGAN WAS LIKE THE TRENCH WARFARE OF WORLD WAR I: NEVER HAVE SO MANY FOUGHT SO HARD FOR SUCH BARREN TERRAIN”
I suppose GWB should consider himself lucky that Noonan merely accuses him of destroying the Republican Party — unlike, of course, the conservative elitists/propagandists who insist that Ronald Reagan was a “conservative” purist, (when he was actually a REPUBLICAN pragmatist) for the express purpose of destroying ALL current Republicans, including President Bush.
Speaking of President Reagan, I remember VIVIDLY all the screaming about how he “expanded government and increased spending”...but never heard anyone whining that he single handedly destroyed the Republican party. No, we’re doing it all by ourselves. It’s always easier to blame someone else for our own wrongdoing.
Good point.