You need a program to keep up with the shuffling lineup in the White House, a phenomenon recently predicted by Fred Barnes.
Those of you who heard Barnes speak in Asheville recently might remember that he shared some sobering data about past presidents who try to recover from a second-term slump.
Earlier this month, Barnes wrote:
What are the odds that President Bush will succeed in his full-blown campaign to recover from a second-term swoon? Not good, if you consider the records of second-term presidents over the past 70 years.
Start with Franklin Roosevelt. He saw a Republican resurgence in 1938, struggled to win reelection in 1940, and was rejuvenated only by World War II. Harry Truman never recovered after the scandals and the Korean War dragged down his presidency. Democrats staged a revival in Dwight Eisenhower’s second term as he limped out of office. After enormous success in 1965, the remainder of the John Kennedy/Lyndon Johnson presidency was a disaster. Watergate short-circuited Richard Nixon’s second term, Iran-contra doomed Ronald Reagan’s, and impeachment ruined Bill Clinton’s.
Barnes suggests a staff shakeup is part of a four-part plan to boost the Bush administration. The other elements are increased communication with Congress, an “open door” policy that includes more chats with voters (we saw evidence of this change during the president’s recent trip to Charlotte), and increased emphasis on some policy ideas that had been ignored in recent months.
