George Bush was on Fox News Sunday yesterday discussing, among other things, the state of the 2008 primaries. This marked his first real venture into the election thus far. In the segment, he offered support (if relatively tepid) for John McCain as a "true conservative," but said he'll have to do more to win over hardliners: "If John is the nominee, he has got some convincing to do to convince people that he is a solid conservative, and I'll be glad to help him if he is the nominee."
Bush's take on McCain's path to the top is particularly humorous in light of the fact that Bush himself is pretty much the reason for McCain's unexpected rise. He's succeeded this primary season precisely because Republican and independent voters perceive him to be unlike Bush (whether those perceptions hold much water is an entirely different story, of course). Andrew Sullivan made this point in the Times of London pretty well over the weekend. Among other things, McCain voted against Bush's tax cuts, lambasted his torture policy and has been critical of his Iraq policy--all of which have helped him curry the favor of the vast swath of conservatives who are dissatisfied with Bush.
While we're on the subject of McCain, someone made this awesome parody of the will.i.am Obama video highlighting the absurdity of McCain's "Yes we can ... stay in Iraq forever" rhetoric.
--Kate Sheppard
