On Friday, we wrote:

There's a twinge of biased anger in this Knight Ridder piece titled, "Bush, Republicans reduce John Kerry to a punch line", but let's face it, the success of the convention may have been the ultimate rope-a-dope by President Bush.

Since January, Bush endured a year where he was beaten up over 30 year old phony AWOL charges. (And before the Swift Boat Vets raised the stakes, you can't help but think they surfaced partially with the hopes of making Kerry look better in comparison, and shut down debate about his service record.) The first lady had disingenuously headlined articles written about her thoughts on gay marriage. That the gay marriage issue was brought up so forcefully in both Massachusetts and in San Francisco simultaneously (where it's illegal, but that didn't stop a newly elected mayor) in this election year was probably not a coincidence.

Then the partisan 9/11 Commission. Then Fahrenheit 9/11, and the endless anti-Bush tomes at bookstores, and endless attacks first by Howard Dean, then Al Gore, and then Senator Kerry.

The silence from the White House was brutal to endure for those of us who wanted to see the president fight back. But it paid off this week.

As Clinton told George Stephanopoulos, he believes in killing people when they are hurting you politically. In fact, Democrats are now furious with John Kerry because he didn’t attack the Swift Vets immediately as Clinton would have.

I think there are two good reasons why Bush chooses to avoid the Clinton model of immediate, full scale counterattack. First, he has a very good understanding of his enemies. Second, he knows what cards he has.

Bush is blessed to have liberal Democrats (including the news media) as his enemy. I’m convinced that he can read them like a book. He lets them rant and rave without challenge because he knows they will overplay their hand. He also understands that the news media has enlisted in the Democratic cause and will eagerly join the attack. The feedback Democrats get from their media allies only serves to encourage them to attack with greater and greater ferocity until they have gone way too far. They interpret Bush’s lack of response as an indication that their attack is succeeding. After all, they wouldn’t take that kind of abuse if they had a way to respond. So they conclude that Bush is wounded and they press forward for the kill. Only to find themselves outflanked and vulnerable when Bush finally responds at the appropriate moment.

He also understands that the alliance of the media with the Democrats means that a Clinton type savage counterattack is not a viable option for him. Clinton could use it because the media eagerly joined in his assault. Bush would not have that same assistance. Instead, he chooses to use the wrath of the enemy against itself. Since the media serves as an enormous bullhorn to amplify the Democrats’ vitriol, it would be unwise to engage them on their terms in a conventional war. Better to stay out of the fray and let them scorch the earth until they have exhausted themselves.

Which brings us to the second big difference between Bush and Clinton – Bush has the cards. Clinton couldn’t allow allegations against him to get a full hearing because they would cause him tremendous damage. The truth can hurt when it is allowed to shine. Bush can afford to wait because he knows what the real facts are and he has faith that regular Americans will accept them when he speaks directly to them without interference from the media. The conventions and the debates give him that direct, unfiltered access to the people.