Gore lieutenant happy with election results:
THE REASONS are complex, but the bottom line is not: “I’m glad Bush is in there and Gore is not,” is the blunt way one former top Gore lieutenant put it to me.
As Bush returned this week to a Democratic bastion — New York City — he remains, at least in pure numerical terms, the most popular president in modern history. More interesting, to me, is that — for now, at least — Bush’s successes and the nature of the war against terrorism have combined to erase the corrosive sense of bitterness left behind in the hearts of Democrats by the 2000 election.
First, it’s fair to say that Bush’s performance since Black Tuesday has impressed Democrats, even, if not especially, those who thought he was dumber than Will Ferrell’s amiable dunce on “Saturday Night Live.” Since his home-run speech of Sept. 20 — which solidified confidence in him — his sure and patient coalition-building (and noose-tightening) has impressed the Democrats, too.
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But at least the GOP has some ties to go on, and Democrats generally admire Colin Powell. “Frankly, I feel a whole lot better with Bush’s team in there,” said a top Gore guy I know. “We’d have had less experience, and a harder time.
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