Let George Be George?
They call George Bush the “Establishment Candidate” mainly because the Republican governors and members of Congress -- pros who wanted a proven commodity and big name at the top of the ticket -- anointed him. None of them figured on the McCain phenomenon.
Himself a McCain supporter, Gary Bauer explained what the Bush camp forgot to take into account: ”That campaign was built on a lot of money early on, a lot of endorsements early on. And I think what everybody tended to forget was this one little group that’s actually more important than money or endorsements, and that’s voters.”
Yet as 26 Republican governors committed to Bush gathered in Washington, they stressed there was concern, but no panic. Gov. Mike Leavitt, R-Utah, spoke for the gathering: “The governors were with George Bush early. We’re with him now. We’ll be with him to the end.”
Bush’s supporters say it wasn't Republicans, but rather Democrats and Independents who were to blame for his big loss in Michigan. And they’ll be barred from many of the key states ahead.
As CBS News Correspondent Eric Engberg reports, some of the governors want Bush unleashed on the stump. According to Gov. Edward Schafer, R-N.D.,: “We all would like George to be George. You know he’s a very personable individual. We need to get him just with the people; let him be himself and not be so constrained by the people so much. I think he’s been a little tight.
None of the governors are publicly criticizing the campaign’s unprecedented expenditure of $400,000 a day, reported this week to the Federal Election Commission. But party insiders say the big contributors and the fundraisers are not happy.
“These men and women are business folks. They like to win. They don’t really understand what’s going on and they don’t understand how you can spend $55 million and not be on top.” explains Scott Reed, a GOP activist.
Bush had originally planned to speak to the Republican governors in Washington next week. But the kingmakers who were among his earliest presidential backers understood perfectly when he told them that something unforeseen had happened and he needed to stay on the campaign trail.