What happened to the Hopenchange magic?

An emboldened GOP could crank up the impeachment machine, finding grounds where none may exist, just to kick around the idea. The effort to delegitimize Obama as president has been underway since before he took office, and if a new and more conservative majority takes hold on Capitol Hill, the percentage of Americans who question whether Obama was born in the United States will likely rise. Obama is the third president to contend with questions about his legitimacy—Bill Clinton took office with a plurality and had a well-organized and -financed right-wing opposition undermining him from the start, and George W. Bush lost the popular vote and was installed by a Republican-dominated Supreme Court, which had left-wingers up in arms.

Democrats are going through some serious soul-searching. They won their majorities and the White House thanks to Bush and an unpopular war, but without Bush as a foil, maybe they would still be wandering in the political wilderness. There’s a loss of confidence. If Obama has lost his touch, so have they. Can they win elections and gain ground without Bush on the scene? Obama was a prodigy in ’08, mastering the Internet to connect with people and inspiring millions of new voters with his intellect and his personal narrative. But then he came to Washington and joined the government and became legislator in chief.