Taegan Goddard's Political Wire

June 27, 2005

Bush's Political Machine Fails at Governing

"President Bush and his hard-charging political team, which seemed to make all the right moves in winning re-election last year, have stumbled when it comes to governing in a second term," the New York Times reports.

"The tensions inherent in the transition from a first-term presidency, with its inevitable focus on re-election, to a second-term administration, which naturally casts more of an eye to history, are embodied by" Karl Rove. In his new job as deputy chief of staff for policy, "he has broad, substantive influence over almost every domestic issue" but he also retains his role as chief political strategist.

Meanwhile, a Los Angeles Times piece reflects a similar theme, noting many Republican insiders "are puzzling over how the president and his vaunted political machine could find themselves in such a weak position."

For more on the difficult transition from campaigning to governing, see my book You Won - Now What?

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Taegan D. Goddard is the creator of Political Wire, a political column updated around the clock with the most interesting news, buzz and commentary.

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.

This is a personal site and does not necessarily reflect the views of any company, political campaign or advocacy group.

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