Miers losing ground?

Remember how the more Bush talked about Social Security the less people liked what they heard. Well it would appear that Harriet Miers is having the same problem. This from the National Review Online:

The Miers Support Team: Gloomy and Demoralized

Strategists working with the White House in support of the Supreme Court nomination of Harriet Miers are becoming increasingly demoralized and pessimistic about the nomination's prospects on Capitol Hill in the wake of Miers's meetings with several Republican and Democratic senators. On a conference call held this morning, they even discussed whether Miers should simply stop visiting with lawmakers, lest any further damage be done — and so that time spent in such get-acquainted sessions will not cut into Miers's intensive preparation for her confirmation hearing.

The administration may be finding out that when you try to sell a lemon another test drive doesn't help and in fact only makes things work. Bush didn't expect any resistance from the Republicans, up to this point he's gotten what he wanted. But times have changed. Even his "political capitol" with Republicans is fading as fast as his poll numbers as the midterm elections approach. The NRO has this:

"It's been a gradual descent into almost silence," says a second source of the calls. "The meetings with the senators are going terribly. On a scale of one to 100, they are in negative territory. The thought now is that they have to end....Obviously the smart thing to do would be to withdraw the nomination and have a do-over as soon as possible. But the White House is so irrational that who knows? As of this morning, there is a sort of pig-headed resolve to press forward, cancel the meetings with senators if necessary, and bone up for the hearings."

"Bone up for the hearings", Is there a Constitutional Law for Dummies I wonder. It's also interesting for a White House staffer to refer to it as being "irrational". And then there is this great quote:

In summary, says the first source, "People have been looking for ways to support this. There are a lot of us who would like to find a reason to be encouraged. Every time I try to accommodate myself to this nomination, folks at the White House say idiotic things that piss me off, like that spin on Rove's part about her supposed deep involvement in judicial selection for three years, which is just not accurate."

"Demoralization and pessimism?" the source continues. "That's been a constant. We're in the various stages of grief."

First "irrational" and then "folks at the White House say idiotic things"; this certainly sounds like a White House coming apart at the seams to me.