The news was bleak by anyone's count. In August, the U.S. economy lost 84,000 jobs, pushing unemployment from 5.7% to 6.1% -- the highest rate in five years.
If that weren't enough, payroll employed has declined by 605,000 since January.
So it wasn't surprising that Democrats blamed the White House, citing President Bush's spending policies as Exhibit A in what ails the economy.
Leave it to Sen. Chuck Schumer (the other Democratic senator from New York) to find a silver lining. In a statement issued by the Joint Economic Committee he chairs, Schumer said:
If there is a bright spot in today's bleak jobs news, it is that we only have 4 jobs reports left before the Bush stewardship of this economy is finished.
Could it be that President Bush's decision not to show up tonight at the Republican National Convention satisfies everyone -- except, perhaps, Democrats?
With his job approval rating hovering around a record low, his presence in St. Paul, Minn., during prime time wasn't exactly what was needed to shine a positive light on the Republican presidential ticket.
Indeed, it would have given commentators one more opportunity to remind Americans that Bush's expression of support for John McCain was not necessarily a good thing -- and, anyway, the two could barely tolerate each other and had not, apparently, spoken to each other since late May.
Along comes Hurricane Gustav, the convention schedule gets torn up, and instead of heading to the upper Midwest, the president dispatches himself this morning to Texas, to comfort evacuees from the approaching storm.
And he gets a chance to step out of a blatantly political role and present himself instead as "on the job as president of the United States," said Kenneth M. Duberstein, Ronald Reagan's final White House chief of staff, in an interview with Countdown to Crawford.
Besides, said Kenneth Khachigian, who wrote the speech Reagan delivered to the Republican National Convention in 1988 as he turned the political reins over to George H.W. Bush, the current President Bush really had no choice.
"The potential for disaster would make the president look thoughtless if he came to the convention and addressed the political gathering, instead of showing his concern" for the people in the storm's path.
Khachigian said:
It was probably a pretty easy call for him to make. Katrina's on everyone's mind. The choice was made for him. I don't think he had to weigh one thing against the other. Once it got to a certain dimension -- with the governors of the gulf states canceling, and [Vice President Dick] Cheney not coming -- that's probably the right thing to do.
"The president has become the comforter in chief," Khachigian said, and it would have looked inappropriate for him to forgo that role to speak in the political setting.
As for getting out of a setting in which the coverage would note Bush's low standing, Khachigian added: "It sort of relieves him of having to deal with one more series of political shots."
When delegates to the Republican National Convention gather in St. Paul, Minn., next week to nominate John McCain for president -- God and Gustav willing -- Democrats will be there to welcome them.
In the form of billboards. And bus stop signs. At the Excel Center. And all over town.
"We're going to spend every day looking for every opportunity to remind voters in the Twin Cities and across the country that a vote for John McCain is a vote for George W. Bush and his failed policies," explained Democratic National Committee spokesman Damien LaVera.
Just for the record, Republicans set up shop in Denver during the just-completed Democratic National Convention, creating a website called NotReady08 that parroted the Barack Obama '08 signs.
Back in the day, political parties used to give each other a respite, letting the other side have its moment in the sun. No more. These days, when it comes to presidential politics, there's always a cloud nearby.
It may be hard to believe in Pol-World, what with Barack Obama basking in the Denver glow and heads spinning over John McCain's vice presidential pick (Sarah Palin Who? Governor of Where? Alaska?).
But there remains a White House. The president is there. And as always, trouble is a-brewing.
It's just that few are paying attention.
Never mind. At the White House, there are distractions aplenty from Pol-World.
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir V. Putin (remember him?) saw the hand of President Bush in the conflict in Georgia. He told CNN on Thursday that the White House may have ginned up the Georgian military push into South Ossetia (which brought a Russian response) to benefit McCain's campaign.
If his aides are telling him that, White House Press Secretary Dana Perino said of Putin, then he's...
It was almost as if Vice President Cheney had already left the scene, riding off into the sunset like some cowboy to the Wyoming plains.
At last night's Democratic National Convention, Cheney was replaced by Republican nominee-in-waiting John McCain in the boo meter from delegates.
Countdown to Crawford has been cataloging the daily Bush mentions from Denver -- see here and here. Wednesday's tally shows that Bush has fallen from 61 mentions to 57, but McCain has shot up to 85. The biggest mentioner was Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry, who used Bush's name nine times and McCain's 22. But Indiana Sen. Evan Bayh mentioned Bush 12 times, and vice presidential nominee Joe Biden used McCain's name 13 times and Bush's seven -- if you include the time he misspoke and called McCain "George ... I mean John McCain."
Many of the speakers took shots at the Bush-McCain administration, an attempt by Democrats to tie the Arizona senator to an unpopular president.
Even the White House took note of this development. Asked if President Bush was "surprised to learn that he has been head of the Bush-McCain administration," White House spokesman Tony Fratto said yesterday:
He is willing to -- he is supporting President McCain -- and he's aware of how ...
Told that he'd called the senator the president, Fratto said, "Did I say President McCain? Well we'll all be saying President McCain soon enough, don't worry."
-- Johanna Neuman
Photo: "The Goodnight Bush" chorus sings lullabies to a departing present from the Democratic National Convention in Denver. Credit: Doug Pensinger/Getty Images
Nearly everyone who's anyone in the political world is in Denver this week or will be in St. Paul, Minn., next week, so why not the Bush legacy bus too? The sponsors explain the bus route in their latest press release:
Kicked off across the street from the White House on June 24th, the National Bush Legacy Bus tour has since blanketed half the country, paying 25 states a visit -- from New Hampshire to New Mexico -- and over 60 cities, towns, and historic sights like Mt. Rushmore and the Grand Canyon, not to mention the doorsteps of many of Bush’s conservative enablers in Congress and symbolic locations like the president’s home away from home in Crawford, Texas.
The bus is the brainchild of Americans United for Change, created three years ago to oppose the president's efforts to privatize Social Security and since branched out to other causes. With backing from labor organizations, veterans groups and moveon.org, and powered by environmentally correct biodiesel fuel, the 45-foot, 28-ton bus is in the middle of a 150-town tour to, as the organization puts it, educate Americans on the impact of Bush policies.
The bus includes interactive exhibits on some of the landmark policies of the Bush years, including global warming, the Iraq war, civil liberties and the federal response to Hurricane Katrina. Spokesman Jeremy Funk says traffic in Denver has been good, and most comments have been positive.
Except for one viewer who, after looking at the museum-on-wheels, walked away muttering, "I suppose you'll blame him for tornadoes too."
In a way, it all began with Michael Dukakis. At least he thinks so. And he wants to apologize for what has happened over the past eight years.
Certainly you remember the governor of Massachusetts who left the Democratic National Convention in 1988 with his party's presidential nomination and a double-digit lead over the soon-to-be Republican nominee George H.W. Bush. And you remember what happened next: The attack of the Republican meat-grinder. At least that's the way Dukakis remembers it.
Katie Couric, the CBS News anchor, ran into Dukakis at a security checkpoint at the Democratic National Convention in Denver, and taped this interview.
Dukakis doesn't mince words about what happened as a result of the work he did in 1988.
"We ran a great primary campaign and screwed up the final," he says.
But what does all this have to do with the final months of the George W. Bush presidency--and what Dukakis calls "the worst national administration in my lifetime?"
Simple, he says:
Look, I owe the American people an apology. If I'd beaten the old man, you'd never have heard of the kid and we wouldn't be in this mess. So it's all my fault, and I feel that very, very strongly.
What happens when thousands of Democrats gather in a huge stadium to nominate one of their own to run for president? If the president is an unpopular incumbent, and a Republican, they tend to boo. And most politicians like to give a convention crowd something to shout about.
As Countdown to Crawford reported here yesterday, Monday's speakers were restrained, mentioning President Bush a mere 14 times over seven hours.
But Tuesday, look out. In a pattern that could escalate through the week, a greater number of speakers -- up from 44 to 52 -- mentioned the president more often. In fact there were 61 mentions of Bush, more than one per person.
The Tuesday tally was given a huge boost by Illinois Rep. Rahm Emanuel. The Chicago politician, chairman of the House Democratic Caucus, is sometimes called Rahmbo by his colleagues, a tribute to his passionate debating. In the long-running primary saga between Hillary Rodham Clinton, who he worked with in the Clinton White House, and fellow Chicagoan Barack Obama, Emanuel was famously neutral -- and uncharacteristically silent.
But in his speech Tuesday night, Emanuel was not neutral about Bush, posting a 2008 Democratic National Convention record of 13 mentions.
When thousands of delegates and even more journalists gather for a political convention, you can expect to hear a lot of trash talking about the other side.
But last night the Democrats hardly mentioned President Bush, whose approval ratings have been stuck in the 30% zone for months.
As a public service, Countdown to Crawford has searched all 44 speeches from last night's podium and found only 14 mentions of Bush's name. If you had watched from the afternoon to the evening, you might have heard his name about once every half hour. It usually brought a boo.
Maybe the measured use of Bush's name had something to do with the theme of the evening -- a showcase of Obama family values. Or maybe Dems just want to move on.
Either way, the big mentions went like this: two from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, two from investor Andrew Tobias, and three from Rep. Grace Napolitano (D-Norwalk).
By the way, that head count that doesn't include the one mention his father got.
If you were President Bush, would you watch the Democratic National Convention?
It doesn't appear that he was terribly anxious to do so.
The president is spending an end-of-summer (and end-of-term) holiday at his home in Crawford, Texas. Deputy White House Press Secretary Tony Fratto was asked whether Bush would be spending much time in front of the tube tonight watching the Democrats in Denver.
Fratto's response:
"I didn't ask him whether he'll be watching. I can check and see whether he plans to or not. I'm sure there's also a baseball game on tonight, too."
Yes, the president does go to the occasional ballgame--and not just to throw out a ceremonial first pitch. And yes, he was a part owner of the Texas Rangers.
But tonight, he may have some motivation other than just being a fan of the game.
It needn't be said that he might find the ballgame--any game--more entertaining than flipping channels, from Democrats to Democrats to Democrats.
James Gerstenzang and Johanna Neuman are reporters in The Times' Washington bureau. Between the two of them, they have covered the White House, diplomacy, military affairs, the environment, international economics, trade and Congress. They have both spent time in Crawford, Texas.
