Bush’s statement announcing the commutation reminded me of nothing so much as his Aug. 9, 2001, speech on stem-cell research. In both cases he went through each side’s arguments with explicit respect before explaining what he was going to do. In both cases he tried to split the difference on a question where all-or-nothing camps had dominated the debate. (In the 2001 case, Bush offered federal funding for research on stem-cell lines derived from embryos who had been killed prior to that date.) The result was muted criticism mixed with applause from conservatives in both cases. The liberal reaction this time is much stronger, which I think reflects how much history we now have with Bush. Another difference: In 2001, the administration was sufficiently young that Bush could get points for thoughtfulness with people who were on the fence on stem cells. People aren’t open to Bush in that way any more.