I never liked Ali. I thought of him as a clown and a buffoon as well as a poor sportsman. The way sportswriters and media drool over this guy is disgusting. Then they'll write about what a boor T.O. is - the modern day Ali.
Some of the comments on this thread are pathetic whines of computer keyboard jockeys.....the same cry babies who claim Martin Luther King to be an evil un-American Communist.
Ali was the progenitor of all the self-absorbed, poor sportsmanship athletes that came thereafter. See Terrell Owens, Randy Moss, et al.
I agree with your comments and characterization of Ali completely. However, it is apparently in President Bush's character to not exalt himself above others. I saw it prominently in the Clinton portrait dedication ceremony. You can disagree with it, but I think he sees it as a Christian directive. I am not sure I agree with it either, but this is how Bush treats people, and there probably is something to be said for it.