David—

Bush 43 as TR? We can only hope. Teddy's mother-ship of an ego probably led him to abandon the Republicans in 1912, but didn't the GOPs pro-plutocracy attitude have something to do with it as well? As for Bush, a hopeful sign is that he spent more time talking about poor people when he ran for president than any Democratic nominee I've watched—since, er, McGovern. His domestic policy was the most creative of any Republican I've ever covered, far more creative than Gore's. But it simply can't coexist with his tax policy. We'll see where his heart is soon enough. Maybe even tomorrow night.

Speaking of presidential comparisons, how about Lyndon Johnson: a 9 percent spending increase! Guns and butter, too! One last point on Bush and TR: Maybe tomorrow we can talk about Bush, National Greatness, and Rhetorical Greatness.