An Demo, now Repub, jumps ship

Matthew Dowd, a top ranking Texas Democrat, broke with his party in 1999 to become a supporter of George Bush, and eventually a top advisor in the White House. Here's what he as to say about that:

“It’s almost like you fall in love,” he said. “I was frustrated about Washington, the inability for people to get stuff done and bridge divides. And this guy’s personality — he cared about education and taking a different stand on immigration.”

No more. Since 2004 Dowd has turned a 360 and is now a critic of the Bush admin, like so many others. So from trusted Bushie to repeating the same things anti-Bushies have been saying for years.

You can take your choice of how to interpret this: an oily politico oozing from the wreckage while he can, a principled citizen seeing the light, or simply one confused fellow. It does, however, show what happens when an administration starts to lose political and, perhaps moral, authority. It's time for most politicos to put distance between themselves and the fading admin and strike out for a bold new approach of their own - after first consulting the polls, their consultants, and fellow party members.