Say. This. EVERY. DAY.

…and in every statement. John McCain is George W. Bush.

Blue Blogistan is in, well, a blue period about the recent poll movements. It should be, although I think it can be vastly overstated.

There is, of course, ample reason for criticism of the Obama Campaign, in its failure to come up with a consistent, overwhelming line to define John McCain. I fail to understand why they don’t, because it is easy to do.

Georgia? “In the same way that George W. Bush went to war in Iraq without thinking through the consequences, now John McCain wants a new war with no end.”

Campaign tactics? “John McCain’s handlers are using the same strategy they used for their old boss, George W. Bush….”

Offshore drilling? “John McCain adopts the Bush policy of drilling and doing the oil industry’s bidding…”

Taxes? “John McCain wants to out-George Bush George Bush, and give away the federal Treasury to the super-rich.”

The economy? “Like George Bush, John McCain doesn’t think that there is any problem and is happy to go back to his lavish estate.”

Judges? “John McCain wants to appoint judges just like George W. Bush did–who trample on the rights of workers, the environment etc. etc.”

Insert issue here.

Yes, we can say he’s a crook, or a swaggering unreliable reactionary loner, or trigger-happy, or a hypocrite, or anything else.

There is one thing that is worse than all of those things, according to the electorate: George W. Bush.

Say this every day. In every press release. On every issue.

Author: Jonathan Zasloff

Jonathan Zasloff teaches Torts, Land Use, Environmental Law, Comparative Urban Planning Law, Legal History, and Public Policy Clinic - Land Use, the Environment and Local Government. He grew up and still lives in the San Fernando Valley, about which he remains immensely proud (to the mystification of his friends and colleagues). After graduating from Yale Law School, and while clerking for a federal appeals court judge in Boston, he decided to return to Los Angeles shortly after the January 1994 Northridge earthquake, reasoning that he would gladly risk tremors in order to avoid the average New England wind chill temperature of negative 55 degrees. Professor Zasloff has a keen interest in world politics; he holds a PhD in the history of American foreign policy from Harvard and an M.Phil. in International Relations from Cambridge University. Much of his recent work concerns the influence of lawyers and legalism in US external relations, and has published articles on these subjects in the New York University Law Review and the Yale Law Journal. More generally, his recent interests focus on the response of public institutions to social problems, and the role of ideology in framing policy responses. Professor Zasloff has long been active in state and local politics and policy. He recently co-authored an article discussing the relationship of Proposition 13 (California's landmark tax limitation initiative) and school finance reform, and served for several years as a senior policy advisor to the Speaker of California Assembly. His practice background reflects these interests: for two years, he represented welfare recipients attempting to obtain child care benefits and microbusinesses in low income areas. He then practiced for two more years at one of Los Angeles' leading public interest environmental and land use firms, challenging poorly planned development and working to expand the network of the city's urban park system. He currently serves as a member of the boards of the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy (a state agency charged with purchasing and protecting open space), the Los Angeles Center for Law and Justice (the leading legal service firm for low-income clients in east Los Angeles), and Friends of Israel's Environment. Professor Zasloff's other major activity consists in explaining the Triangle Offense to his very patient wife, Kathy.