Hey, George — Does the 'W' Stand for Worried?

If George W. Bush is trying to keep his enemies closer, he's got a funny way of showing it. Even while extending another GOP olive branch to Pat Buchanan (well, mostly to his supporters), Bush hinted Wednesday night that the nascent Perot-Buchanan Reform party alliance was an attempt to do to Bush what they did to his father: Bring him down. "I've always thought the 1992 campaign was hard for my dad to get traction in the race because of, first, Patrick J. Buchanan, and then Ross Perot inflicted a series of cuts," the younger Bush said on a campaign stop in California. "I hope the people enter the political process with what's best for the country in mind, not making decisions based on personal vendettas." (Reform party honcho and Perot buddy Russell J. Verney dismissed Bush's remarks as "paranoia.")

Of course, claiming a family feud — instead of admitting that he and his dad were simply prime political targets for the disgruntled — is not the best way for a rich kid to combat a sense of entitlement. Still, Bush's electoral analysis is right on — that's why he also took a moment to flog Donald Trump for the Reform nod, and bash Buchanan's "revisionist history about WWII" for good measure. What, no words for Warren Beatty? The actor pulled a pretty good Hillary in Hollywood on Wednesday night, talking loud — "Is there no protest anymore?" — but staying mum about his own intentions. Beatty's liberal siphon could be as strong as Buchanan's conservative one, but only if he too jumps to the Reform party, which he doesn't sound too likely to do. Meanwhile, Mr. Big Lead might want to keep his eye on his own backyard — that was Nancy Reagan sitting in the front row for John McCain's do at her husband's Presidential Library in Simi Valley. One thing George Sr., the ex-CIA chief, knew well: Just because you're paranoid doesn't mean they're not out to get you.