Bush is still wearing his running shoes

Politicians are never judged in isolation as their popularity always depends on how well the other guy is doing. For example, Ronald Reagan had a favourite joke to illustrate the point. Two men are walking in the forest when a bear comes rushing towards them Seeing the first man bend down to put on his running shoes, the second man says: “But you can’t outrun a bear.” To which the first replies: “I don’t have to; I just have to outrun you.” And so it is with Bush.

Given the catastrophe in Iraq, the pathetic progress of the so called “war on terror” and the scandals besetting his administration, you’d expect his approval ratings to have nose-dived. Yet a recent poll puts them at 34.6% - not brilliant, it’s true - but a fall of only 1 % from this time last year. To understand why, just look at what Blair wanted during his time in office: new regulation, monitoring, enforcement, censorship system for online journalism — hey, just like China!

Bush isn’t looking good but compared to Blair, he’s a marvel.