I'm intrigued by the fact that Bush's big push right now is on the subject of immigration, given that it's yet another issue on which his approach is unpopular with ordinary Americans. A guest-worker program is going to be a tough sell, especially to his base. It's bizarre, really -- this is how he decides to try to bounce back from his fall in the polls?

Clinton, under these conditions, would have looked for a safe small-bore issue with across-the-board appeal -- more cops, school uniforms, the V-chip. Bush is stubbornly sticking to his list of hard-sell agenda items -- this is what he wants to do, dammit, and he doesn't care what anyone thinks. He'll never get the votes for his immigration plan -- and it's as if he doesn't care. It's as if he's chosen a fight that he can't win without political capital because it fools him into thinking he has political capital. He seems almost Walter Mittyish -- a loser who needs to fantasize that he's a winner.