Starcrossed President Bush

The New York Times published this report today about President Bush's tenuous hold on immigration reform. His remarks in Georgia last week seem to have backfired.
The Times notes:


Mr. Bush’s comments to federal law enforcement trainees in Georgia on Tuesday, in which he took the rare step of going after conservative critics in terms usually reserved for Democrats, has charged the Republican ferment, specifically his suggestion that those opposed to the plan “don’t want to do what’s right for America.”
Presidential aides said later that Mr. Bush did not mean to impugn anyone’s patriotism, and that he had ad-libbed the line during a passionate address on an issue he holds dear.
But days later, Mr. Cornyn still seemed rankled. “I honestly don’t know whether it was scripted or unscripted,” he said. “But I think it was uncalled for.”

TK: President Bush hung back last year on immigration, while this year he is energetic and determined. Unfortunately for agriculture, his dimming popularity in his own party don't bode well for swift action on immigration.