Politico: Bush Haunts Johanns
Jun 18, 10:06 AM CST
Politico.com understands that Johanns has a problem on his hands:
In his bid for Nebraska’s open Senate seat, Mike Johanns has a problem. On the one hand, he’s eager to tout a résumé that includes a stint as secretary of agriculture. On the other, he’s reluctant to fully embrace his former boss, President Bush, at a time when the president’s approval ratings are at record lows.
While Bush is more popular in Nebraska than in most other places, Johanns still faces the conundrum confronting Republican candidates across the country: what to do about the lame-duck president.
Johanns, a former governor who’s running for the Senate seat left open by the retirement of Republican Sen. Chuck Hagel, has so far charted a middle course that navigates between full flight from Bush and a hearty embrace.
Between Scott Kleeb and the NDP, we’re not going to let Johanns off the hook:
“One of the first things [Johanns] did was hold fundraisers with Bush,” said Kleeb. “It’s very hard to distance yourself when half of your money comes from your work in the White House.”
Bush isn’t Kleeb’s only source of attacks. He criticizes Johanns for leaving his Agriculture Department post before the Farm Bill passed and portrays Johanns’ subsequent claim that he would have supported the bill, despite Bush’s opposition, an unpersuasive “flip-flop.” Invariably, though, after eight years of Republican governance, the topic always seems to come back to Bush.
I, for one, hope Johanns keeps playing up his experience – because that experience came as a part of one of the most disastrous administrations in American history.
– by Eric Van Horn | Send this to a friend
