"Bush has been almost uniquely incompetent among modern presidents. But the real failure of the Bush years is a fundamental failure of ideology. For the first time since 1932, conservatives have controlled every branch of government. They had a chance to show they had a real governing ideology, and it turned out they didn't.
. . . Are George Bush and Tom DeLay and Bill Frist real conservatives? Of course they are. They've failed because of that, not despite it."
The deep question for this blog, though, is, "will anyone, other than that rarity, the intelligent liberal pundit (aka Kevin Drum) notice?"
In 1932, conservative politics managed to cook up an economic disaster, a depression deeper and more persistent than any the country had previously seen. Conservatives have always liked depression, and prior to 1932, conservative policies usually made them worse for the poor and working class, on purpose, because that made depressions "better" for the very rich. But, in 1929, things got seriously out of hand. And, liberals and progressives got a firm grip on power, and did not fully let go until 2001.
Conservative politics gave us two world wars, the Great Depression and sixty years of Jim Crow. They were a disaster, and they got blamed.
Conservative politics are a disaster today, as well, but will they get blamed for the consequences?
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