A piece in today's WaPo about which Republican POTUS candidates are being supported by which second- and third-tier members of the Bush political dynasty contains a tidbit from George P. Bush that's downright pathetic. Asked why he decided to raise cash for Fred Thompson, Jeb's eldest son explained that good ol' Fred was the only candidate to call and ask for his vote.
Is P. serious? This is how a politically engaged adult decides who to back for the most important political job in the country: Not the one whose policies he supports or who he thinks has the best leadership skills or who he thinks can be a uniter not a divider or even who comes across best on the telly--but the one who gave P. the warm fuzzies by calling him up and making him feel special?
Now, I've heard candidates ramble on about how they learned during such-and-such race about the importance of always asking for the vote. But to be honest, I always kinda thought those stories were about winning over the little guy, the folks typically overlooked by the system who want to feel important by having big-time politicians court them. It never occurred to me that a young scion of the nation's most prominent political family--a guy who spoke before the 1988 Republican National Convention at age 12--would be so attention starved that he'd hitch his wagon to whichever candidate happened to call. We're not talking about picking a prom date, here. This is about electing the leader of the free world.
Boy, I bet Ron Paul feels like an idiot he didn't phone first.
--Michelle Cottle