The Bush Hangover

Greg Sargent nails it:

The Bush Hangover: Large Majority Holds Bush, GOP Responsible For Crisis

One pet theory of this blog is that the financial crisis has had the effect of keeping George W. Bush firmly affixed as an albatross around the GOP’s neck. Call it the Bush hangover.

It didn’t have to be this way. John McCain campaigned against Bush’s record, and GOP leaders had hoped to recast the party in the post-Bush era and to erase the taint of Bush’s historic unpopularity. But the crisis, by sparking a debate over who caused the mess, has ensured that Bush continues to define the GOP in the public mind.

TV pundits never gave President Obama a honeymoon, and viciously attack Obama every time he makes the slightest criticism of the horrific policies of George Bush.

But Obama doesn't need a honeymoon to stay high in the polls, because the American people understand the prolonged recession we face - which could last for years, especially if Republicans block all efforts to create jobs - is The Bush Hangover.