Whatever else may go wrong between now and Election Day, George W. Bush will always have the months after 9/11 to his credit, and that is going to make him very tough for anyone to beat in November. . . .
That’s why criticism of the invasion of Iraq is quickly approaching its sell-by date as a campaign issue. Look back just a few months too far, and you see George Bush in his finest hour. Anger over Iraq has played well in the pre-season, but will go only so far in the general election. Voters already know how they feel about the decision to go to war, and either way the war happened, and it’s clear that the way out is the way forward. What’s up for grabs is what comes next.
The emotion the Democrats need to stimulate is hope.
Read the whole thing.
UPDATE: Reader Chuck Allen notes this poll of attitudes toward the war and observes: “Backing up Ed Cone’s assertion that vocal opposition to the Iraq war is ‘quickly approaching its sell-by date,’ are the results of a poll by the financial paper Investor’s Business Daily. In this poll the war is not a hot election issue even among those who opposed it. . . .” Interesting.