Bush s attempt to play Carmen San Diego with Boston television reporter Andy Hiller has prompted just such a reaction. Hiller was a snot when he asked the names of Chechnya s prime minister and the recently installed heads of Pakistan and India. Nevertheless, Bush handled the exchange as if Hiller were a peer he wanted to impress. Those men wouldn t find The Smirk endearing. They would take one look and try to rip the man s lungs out.
Every candidate bears a distinguishing flaw.
When Bill Clinton first ran for president, nobody doubted his devotion to issues or penchant for plunging into the vagaries of public policy. Nor did the public question his political skill. We merely wondered whether he was a reprobate. In the case of Bush the Younger, we re not sure whether he s a reprobate, but a growing number also harbor the fear that he s a lightweight, blithely unconcerned about the gravity of the situation. He inhabits a political Oz, where the colors are happy and the tough decisions can wait until the oracle speaks.