George W. Bush:An Early Farewell

Eight years as president and now almost nobody likes him.

Thirty-seven days before the end of his presidency, Bush paid a surprise visit to Iraq and was attacked by “flying shoes”. Compared to all of his predecessors, it seems that George W. Bush’s eight-year presidency will be difficult to end on good terms.

“There really seems to be an overwhelming consensus that this is a failed presidency,” said Charles Walcott, a presidency expert at Virginia Tech. This comment is the last thing Bush wants to hear.

Freezing then Burning

Ever since November 6th, there has been a sharp contrast in the American political world. On one side, there is the newly elected Obama, busy holding press conferences and introducing, one after the other, members of his administration; on the other side, there is a rather dull Bush hanging on for the very last period of his stay in the White House. Bush came in with a unique start and is now expecting a unique ending.

We all know that because of a very small difference in the number of votes of the Electoral College, Bush had a narrow victory in 2000. If Gore wasn’t such a “gentleman”, no one would have been able to tell how that election could have ended.

Soon Bush will leave the White House, but the U.S. is engaged in two wars and is facing a financial crisis. That is a very rare situation compared to how Bush’s predecessors left office. What Bush has been through in the past eight years is hardly comparable.

After 9/11, Bush made himself a strong “anti-terrorism” president and won the highest popularity rating ever in the history of America (92%) with that image. President Truman and President Bush Sr., during the post-WWII and post-Gulf War periods respectively, did not even come close to President George W. Bush’s approval rating. Eight years later, now surrounded by critics, facing blame and ridicule, Bush’s approval rating has dropped to 24%, the lowest ever in 60 years. Such a roller coaster ride is unique for Bush.

The same has happened with the popularity of the Iraq War. At the very beginning, 80% of Americans supported sending troops to Iraq. Nevertheless, this was a gamble right from the beginning, that ended up wrong in the end. As of September 2008, the U.S. is severely in debt because of the Iraq War, a debt made worse by the recent sub-prime mortgage crisis.

Now the rating is completely the opposite, with 80% of American people against the Iraq War. Perhaps Bush is really sad, deep inside, but as U.S. president and Commander in Chief, he cannot shirk his responsibility.

How bad is the “Worst President”?

One hundred and nine scholars have considered Bush the worst president in the history of America. Time magazine considers Bush useless in the last days of his presidency. According to U.S. public opinion, the question is not whether the Bush administration had poor judgment or not, but rather how poor it actually was.

Bush had two “highlights” during his presidency. The first: since 9/11 there have not been any serious terrorist attacks. This is certainly because of Bush’s efforts. And the second: although the country is experiencing a financial crisis, it is not anything like the Great Depression that occurred in the 1930s. Some credit should be given to Bush for that as well.

One way or the other, all these merits are now balanced by his missteps. There are many terms that remind us of the negative legacy of Bush, such as the “butterfly ballot”, Wiretapping-Gate, Hurricane Katrina, the firing U.S. attorneys, Walter Reed hospital, Weapons of Mass Destruction, Abu Ghraib prison, Spygate, water torture, Guantanamo, and economic recession.

A real hard injury of the Bush administration is that America’s international prestige has been severely sabotaged by his promotion of cowboy-like “Bushism”.

Waiting for retirement.

Facing blame and harsh critics, Bush has been unusually calm.

Everyday, while flipping through newspapers, all Karl Rove reads are negative reports about the Bush administration. As the counselor to the president, Rove must feel depressed. “But the President always told us, ‘forget about criticism. After we all die, history will judge,’” he said.

Bush rode his bicycle with reporters and got right back up after falling down; he hugged President Hu Jintao of the PRC* with passion and asked him during the break of their meeting for tickets to the Olympic basketball games; he stood behind the ruins of 9/11 and aroused everyone’s emotions; and now he “reflected” on his mistakes.

He has also tried to make his successor understand that as president, the most important thing is that “unexpected things do happen.”

He then told Obama, “if there’s anything I can do, just let me know.”

Now, Bush is quietly waiting for the day he moves out of the White House. He wishes to live in retreat after he leaves his post, returning to Texas where he can get some fresh air. But he still has plans: making money, giving speeches, building his library, writing a memoir–nothing too different from other former presidents. Mrs. Bush, who used to teach, is looking forward to returning to the education sector and fighting for the rights and interests of Afghanistan women.

Bush used to be a vagabond. With the example of his old man, however, he had to pursue the path his family wanted: get married, have children and then follow his father’s career path. Bush has his father and destiny to thank anyway. He has a good wife supporting him who has been there for him all these years; this should be great comfort for a man over 60 years old. At least when he falls off the mountain bike, he won’t worry that no one will be there to pick him up.

*People’s Republic of China