A few months ago, I wrote a column about the odd way former Bush administration officials were projecting the habits and methods of their administration onto its successor. The most egregious offender here is Rove, who just gets more and more blatant. Today he writes, "Mr. Obama has already created a river of red ink." In fact, Bush created the river of red ink. The worst you can say about Obama--and it's a fair criticism--is that he lacks a realistic plan to clean up Bush's mess.
My favorite line in Rove column is this: "This fits a pattern. The administration consistently pledges unrealistic results that it later distances itself from." My God, is there any aspect of Bush's domestic or foreign policy in which that was not true? (His promise to pay off the entire national debt? His administration's prediction that the Iraq war would last no more than a few months?) Mark my words, it's a matter of time before Rove accuses Obama of manipulating intelligence to lead us into war.
--Jonathan Chait