Bush Looks Abroad as Domestic Agenda Fizzles

June 27, 2005

Bush Looks Abroad as Domestic Agenda Fizzles

"With key elements of his domestic agenda stalled and his job-approval ratings sagging," President Bush is following a strategy that was favored by many of his second-term predecessors: "He is devoting more time and energy to international affairs, most visibly by hosting a stream of foreign leaders."

As the Los Angeles Times notes, second-term presidents "have historically been frustrated on domestic policy by members of Congress who care more about the next election than the legacy of a lame-duck chief executive -- and who believe voters are more often moved by issues close to home than by foreign policy."

"Since May, Bush has met with three dozen foreign leaders and consulted with many others by telephone."

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Taegan D. Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites.

Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.

Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country, including the Washington Post, USA Today, Boston Globe, San Francisco Chronicle, Chicago Tribune, Philadelphia Inquirer and Christian Science Monitor.

Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.

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June 27, 2005