Decisions

John Dickerson has an interesting piece on Slate about John McCain's convention dilemma: what does he do with President Bush, who is ostensibly the foremost party figure, but one less than 30 percent of Americans support? He sees three choices: invite Bush to come with his family and thus dilute some of the anger directed specifically at W, make him a character witness for McCain, or focus on issues where he and McCain have clashed.

I imagine it will be some combination of the second and the third, but I would make sure it is a positive speech. Bush can still be pretty effective when he is gracious and complimentary; praise of Bill Clinton at a White House ceremony three or four years ago comes to mind (I can't for the life of me remember what the occasion was), as well as his congratulations to Nancy Pelosi in the 2007 State of the Union address both come to mind. As an attack dog, it reminds people of why they don't like him: dishonesty, hardheadedness, buffoonishness, et cetera.