GREAT MINDS THINK ALIKE: RELIAPUNDIT AND JONAH GOLDBERG

JONAH TODAY (AT THE CORNER AND HIS BIGTIME SYNDICATED COLUMN):

Most of the criticisms aimed at McCain can be directed at President Bush himself.

... Campaign-finance reform is a great example... George W. Bush. The president signed the McCain-Feingold bill ...

Amnesty for illegal immigrants? To be sure, McCain was a big player last year in pushing legislation many on the right detest. But the biggest player of all was, again, Bush.

... Didn't McCain say something about Justice Samuel Alito being too conservative? they ask. Well, didn't Bush's instincts guide him to naming White House insider Harriet Miers before conservatives revolted and forced him to choose again?

...President Bush who pushed through the biggest expansion of the welfare state since the Great Society with his prescription drug benefit — a plan McCain opposed and promises to scale back.

RELIAPUNDIT - LAST WEEK:

YA SEE: GW BUSH IS A LIB:

* HE WAS FOR AMNESTY.
* HE WAS FOR MIERS.
* HE PUSHED FOR AND WON THE LARGEST EXPANSION OF MEDICARE SINCE LBJ.
* HE PUSHED FOR AND WON THE LARGEST EXPANSION OF EDUCATION SPENDING EVER.
* HE PUSHED FOR AND WON THE MOST MONEY FOR AFRICA EVER.
* HE PUSHED FOR AND WON THE MOST MONEY FOR AIDS - AN STD - THAN EVER.
* AT LEAST HE GOT THE WAR RIGHT.

YUP: LIKE MCCAIN, DUBYA IS A LIB.

MCCAIN IS JUST A LITTLE MORE OF A DEFICIT HAWK AND A TIGHT-WAD.

IN CASE YOU THINK I'M BEING AND EGOTIST BY POINTING THE SIMILARITY OF HIS RECENT POST TO MY OLDER ONE, LET ME POINT OUT THAT JONAH HIMSELF DID THE SAME THING TODAY:

Not Quite Just In [Jonah Goldberg]

From the great minds think alike dept.

Cal Thomas opens his column today: "This just in: Ronald Reagan is dead and he's not coming back."

Here's how I opened mine, back in October: "Ronald Reagan is dead, and he’s not coming back."

02/12 07:45 AM

GREAT MINDS THINK ALIKE: RELIAPUNDIT AND JONAH.

• MY UNDERLYING POINT IS TWO-FOLD: WE HAVEN'T HAD A CONSERVATIVE PRESIDENT SINCE REAGAN.
• AND MCCAIN IS ONLY SLIGHTLY TO THE LEFT OF BUSH.
• TOO BAD THERE ISN'T GONNA BE A CONSERVATIVE AT THE TOP OF ANY TICKET AGAIN THIS FALL.
• THIS FACT MAY DISHEARTEN GOP VOTERS AND HAND THE WHITE HOUSE TO THE COMMIE DOVES.

GULP.