The Architect of Disaster

When G.W. Bush labeled Karl Rove “the architect,” it was for his 2004 re-election and Rove’s career-long dedication to Bush’s advancement.  But Bush’s narrow re-election victory (2 percent popular vote and 281 electoral votes) must be paired with Rove’s frequent election disasters.

In 2006, he argued that the mid-term election would be a choice between Republican and Democratic candidates and not a referendum on the Bush final term.  Wrong.  Democrats swept into power on the start of the anti-Bush wave that crested in the Barack Obama win in 2008.

This year Rove reversed his position and argued the race would be a referendum on Obama.  Instead, it was mostly a choice between Mitt Romney and Obama, which Obama won.  A host of Republican Senate candidates also lost in campaigns, where many were seen as an unacceptable choice.

Rove’s crack up on Fox News election night was an indication of the parallel universe of in-house polls and false assumptions he was existing in.  He was also surprised by the 2006 disaster.

Will Republican big contributors give him $300 million in 2014 or 2016?