Bush & Identity/Persona

[Beatriz Verdasco Vidal]

Hello Patrick,
Welcome to the list. RIght off the top of my head, I suggest you check out George Lakoff, who has written extensively on the language of US politics. Lakoff is a cognitive linguist and does not exactly use CDA, but he certainly deals with meaning and power, so you might find it useful.  He applies conceptual metaphor theory (as laid out by himself and Mark Johnson in their seminal work Metaphors We Live By) to the study of political discourse. 

Some of his books are: Moral Politics: How Liberals and Conservatives Think (2002) and Don't Think of an Elephant: Know Your Values, Frame the Debate (2004). 
Incidentally, you might also want to check out  What's the matter with Kansas? How conservatives won the heart of America, by Thomas Frank, which is neither CDA nor metaphor-theory related, but nevertheless a good study of party dynamics in the US. 

And here's some online links you mind want to start with: 
An online article by Lakoff: "Metaphor, Morality, and Politics, Or, Why Conservatives Have Left Liberals In the Dust," at http://www.wwcd.org/issues/Lakoff.html
An online interview with Lakoff: "How to talk like a conservative (if you must)", at http://www.motherjones.com/news/qa/2004/10/10_401.html
Lakoff on framing: http://www.rockridgeinstitute.org/projects/strategic/simple_framing/view

Hope this is useful. Good luck with your work!

Beatriz