The 'Nation' at War

Some interesting numbers: "The CIA leak case, in which former vice presidential aide Lewis 'Scooter' Libby was recently indicted on felony charges, has made a strong impression on the public. Fully 79% of respondents call the case 'a serious matter.' Americans now view Vice President Dick Cheney negatively 49%-27%, his worst-ever showing and a significant deterioration since January."

Good thing he's not running for anything, huh?

"The case, by compounding doubts about the administration's pre-war claims about weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, appears to have also taken a toll on public regard for Bush's credibility. Some 33% now give the president high marks for 'being honest and straightforward,' while 47% rate him poorly on that score. In January, he was rated positively on this score by 50%-36%."

And the zinger: "Nearly six in 10 Americans say they believe President Bush 'deliberately misled people' about the case for war to oust Saddam Hussein from power." That used to be considered a far-left position.

The political divide is reflected in a split over media coverage:

"About 50 percent of Americans say the Bush administration is being treated fairly by the press," says the Washington Times, "the lowest number since President Bush was elected, and an increasing percentage say the press is too critical of the president, according to the Pew Research Center.

"'There has been a notable rise over the past two years in the percentage who say the press is too critical of the Bush administration,' the survey released Tuesday stated."

In National Review, John Miller minimizes the import of Election '05:

"Professional pundits will spend the rest of this week debating whether the Democratic victories in New Jersey and Virginia provide a glimpse of what will happen in next year's elections. It's a quadrennial ritual of the chattering class.

"Here are the facts: It's been more than a decade since these off-year results seem to have foreshadowed elections that were still 12 months away. In 1993, the success of Republican gubernatorial candidates Christie Todd Whitman (in New Jersey) and George Allen (in Virginia) preceded 1994's GOP triumphs. The last two cycles haven't augured anything: Republican wins in 1997 were followed by Democrat congressional gains in 1998; the reverse was true for 2001 and 2002."

The Weekly Standard's Fred Barnes, who lives in Virginia, doesn't blame Bush:

"Jerry Kilgore lacked the three things needed for a Republican to be elected governor in Virginia. In order of importance, they are: a dynamic campaign, an issue, and a president who's not a burden. So he lost to Democratic Tim Kaine yesterday in an election that Democrats will claim is more meaningful that it really is. Democrats captured the governor's office in New Jersey, too, but that barely rises to the level of talking point. . . .