Would GOP Cancel Convention for Gustav?
Filed under: Presidential Campaign 2008, Republican National Convention
Irony of Ironies – Hurricane Could Hit NOLA on First Day of Republican National Convention
The Washington Post and others are reporting tonight that Republican leaders both in and out of the White House are struggling with how to manage the potential of a Cat 3 hurricane hitting the Gulf Coast while President George W. Bush is scheduled to speak at the Republican National Convention on Monday.
Some are even suggesting postponing the festivities in Minneapolis. That ain’t gonna happen. What the Republicans have gotten in Gustav is the opportunity to jettison the least popular President in modern times from the convention schedule.
Seven out of ten Americans believe Bush is doing a bad job. Eight out of ten Americans believe the country is on the wrong track. This ironic twist of fate – a hurricane during a Republican national gathering – will give Republican leaders the chance to chase the Head Elephant from the room.
The bullshit being floated tonight – that they’ll actually put the convention off is the cynical Republican spin-machine in motion. Awww, the poor pachyderms. Life is so unfair. The Democrats enjoyed beautiful days in Denver capped by perfect weather for Sen. Barack Obama’s eloquent acceptance speech.
They’re not posponing the convention! There are too many moving parts, too many ordinary people taking time off of work and paying their way to Minnesota. This evening’s news is all about setting things up to dump Bush.
Former White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan said it best this evening to the Washington Post:
Former White House spokesman Scott McClellan, who said in a recent book that Hurricane Katrina left “an indelible stain” on the Bush presidency, said Bush should be making plans to cancel his speech.
“If it’s a major hurricane, I think that they certainly need to show they learned lessons from three years ago, both from a policy and perception standpoint,” McClellan said.
He also suggested that McCain could benefit politically from such a scenario: It would allow Bush to mount an effective GOP response to a disaster, while removing the unpopular president from the convention roster. “It could be a two-fer,” McClellan said.
[...] by buckdenton on August 29th, 2008 Irony is a bitch: Gustav as a category 3 hurricane is predicted to make landfall “while President George W. Bush is scheduled to speak at the Republican National Convention [...]