"he's also trying to rehabilitate his reputation among Republicans as a spendthrift."

Is it just me, or does this sentence say that Bush is trying to solidify in the minds of Republicans that he's a big wasteful spender? I don't think he needs to do this; whether he wants to is another matter.

spend-thrift n. One who spends money recklessly or wastefully.

Good job. I didn't catch that. It is a confusing word I remember having to look up to believe when I first heard it.

No, it's fine as written, though slightly ambiguous. He got a bad reputation as a spendthrift and it needs rehabilitating. If it had been written "rehabilitate his reputation among Republicans as a wastrel" it would have passed without comment.

In any event, the author is clearly aware of the meaning of the word, as Bush never had a reputation for fiscal discipline to start out with.

Yes, the problem word in the sentence really is "rehabilitate."

Spendthrift is a perfect word to use when discussing George W. Bush's Presidency.

It has the outward appearance of one meaning, while it's true meaning is the exact opposite.

yes, it is misleading. It should either be "rehabilitate..... reputation as a (fiscal conservative) " or "(correct/reverse/overcome)...­. reputation as a spendthrift".

That is, we expect Bush would want to rehabilitate a good reputation, or negate a bad one. This sentence has Bush trying to rehabilitate a bad reputation. As in "Bush is trying to rehabilitate his reputation as drunk."

I am confident that his reputation as a drunk is much better than his reputation as a President.