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Bruce Barlett on George W. Bush -- the New Nixon. Quotable:

It is a fact of life that perception is often more important than reality. This is especially so in politics, where people can be dogged by impressions even when they are completely untrue ...

I believe that President Bush is in danger of creating a perception about himself that may prove .. hard to eradicate if it is allowed to continue. That is the view that he is "Nixonian," having an approach toward politics and policy paralleling that of Richard Nixon. It is characterized by a willingness to subordinate everything to one's re-election -- to say and do anything to advance this goal, with no concern whatsoever for the long-term consequences.

I first discussed this equivalence back in August, after hearing Rush Limbaugh mention it and reading a July 7 column by William Safire in The New York Times. Since then, a number of commentators have noticed a similarity between the two presidents ..

[On Nov. 25] Limbaugh talked again about how Bush revives memories of Nixon. "This administration reminds me of Nixon," he told his radio audience. "He's following Richard Nixon's footsteps on domestic policy" by pumping up federal spending for any group whose votes can be bought. Limbaugh warned that Bush was endangering his support among conservatives who want limited, constitutional government, not new Medicare entitlements and other expansions of the state into our lives and pocketbooks.

Veteran Associated Press reporter Tom Raum wrote that Bush is "retracing the steps of Richard Nixon three decades ago" on Nov. 29. On Dec. 2, Wall Street Journal columnist Alan Murray said, "Presidents Nixon and Bush may turn out to be bookends to the conservative era, with their big-government drift." The former took office at the end of a liberal era when voters were not yet ready for conservative policies, while the latter took office at the end of a conservative era when they have grown tired of efforts to limit government expansion, Murray wrote.

Lastly, Newsweek reported in its Dec. 8 issue that it was now "conventional wisdom" that Bush is following the Nixon model: "Medicare bill passes, economy surges. Thanksgiving stunt a PR coup. Like Nixon in '72?"

This is very dangerous for President Bush. Nixon is one of the few presidents in history reviled almost equally by left and right ... With so many on the right comparing Bush to Nixon, it is only a matter of time before those on the left pick up on it and start making the comparison themselves. With the left's control of the media, it could soon be echoed far and wide. This will not be good for Bush's re-election or ability to govern. He can nip it by expending some political capital on an issue of principle.