Republicans Want Bush's Good Guy Image To Reemerge
President Bush's
regular guy image, shelved after 9/11 when he became the war
president, is set to make a comeback at the Republican National
Convention. Just as the Democrats tried to soften Sen. John Kerry's
image with speeches by his daughters, the Republicans are setting the
stage to show off Bush's Texas roots and highlight his role as husband
and family man.
Insiders say the Republicans will even play up Bush's love
of baseball and other sports when officials talk about him during the
GOP convention in New York. "He's a good guy," said Republican Party
Chairman Ed Gillespie. Bush, he added, "is someone you enjoy spending
time with." Republicans worry that the good old boy image has been
hurt by the war in Iraq and portrayals by Democratic critics that Bush
is a mean conservative. Polls show that a slight majority of Americans
like president Bush even if they don't support his policies. The
officials hope to build on that and contrast the president with
Kerry's image as an aloof politician. –Paul Bedard, U.S. News
