History will say that we misunderestimated George W Bush

uk ^ | June 21 2008 | Andrew Roberts

[knighthawk]

As he leaves the White House at the end of his second term, the President has a poll rating of only 23 per cent, and is widely disliked and even despised. His foreign policy has been judged a failure, especially in view of the long, painful, costly war that he declared, which is still not over.

He doesn't get on with his own party's presidential candidate, who is clearly distancing himself, and had lost many of his closest friends and staff to scandals and forced resignations. The New Republic, a hugely influential political magazine, writes that his historical reputation will be as bad as that of President Harding, the disastrous president of the Great Depression.

[knighthawk]

Ping

[SampleMan]

Footnote: Harry S. Truman

[vbmoneyspender]

The New Republic, a hugely influential political magazine,

The Brits really do have a great sense of humor - or is it humour.

[LS]

I said here many times that within six months of the administration of either McCain or Obama, people will long for the "good old days" of G.W. Bush. It's pretty obvious his poll numbers are low because 1) Republicans are mad at him for spending, illegals, and Medicare drugs and that has kept his numbers from being in the high 40% range no matter what else; and 2) indies and blue dog Dems are mad at him for the mortgage crisis and the gas prices. While his fiscal/monetary policies had something to do with that, most of it is just the market and some stupid lending/borrowing.

But the guy in charge gets the credit or blame.

[vietvet67]

Have always believed that history would be kind to President Bush. My opinion has not changed..

[jeffc]

Consider also how the poll questions are phrased and who they REALLY ask . . .

[McLynnan]

The overthrow and execution of a foul tyrant, Saddam Hussein; the liberation of the Afghan people from the Taliban; the smashing of the terrorist networks of al-Qa'eda in that country and elsewhere and, finally, the protection of the American people from any further atrocities on US soil since 9/11, is a legacy of which to be proud.

This is his legacy and it's a darned good one. I hope he lives long enough to see his vindication.

[saganite]

“Give Iraq five, ten or twenty years, and Bush’s decision to undertake the surge - courageously taken in the face of all bien pensant and “expert” opinion on both sides of the Atlantic - will rank alongside some of Harry Truman’s great decisions of 1945-53”.

“If that happens, the time will come when George W Bush will be able to say what Lord Salisbury called the four cruellest yet sweetest words in the English language: “I told you so.”

[Rca2000]

I do not expect that “history” will be kind to GWB, because the way things are headed now, it will be a “Hate crime” to do so.

[Jeff Head]

I do not have to wait on history.

Outside of an outragous immigration policy...and it is outragous, Bush has hemmed in the largest state sponsor of terror on the planet, defeated two abjectly tyranical and enemy regimes in the process and freed 50+ million people.

In so doing he has sowed the seeds in the Middle East for the potential of the most profound change in that region in thousands of years...towards republican principles and more liberty, and away from a 14th century tyranical, totalitarian, animalistic, sadistic, suicidal, and maniacal idoelogy.

For all of this he will be remembered well and extolled.

Oh...did I forget to mention? At a time when we suffered a brutal and stunning surprise attack, when everyone expected more and more suicidal, jihadist attacks, he has, through his policies and the hard work of our own military and other governmental agencies, particularly intelligence and LEO, prevented any other major attack on this soil. That will not escape the historical perspective as well.

And now, waiting in the wings, we have this abject marxist with strong militant black and Islamic appeasing overtones, wanting to "fill in". God forbid!

THE GREAT SEAL OF OBAMANATION



THE AUDACITY OF TRUTH ABOUT BARACK HUSSEIN OBAMA

[Theodore R.]

My brother is already saying “I miss GW” in anticipation of disaster awaiting early in 2009.

[StAthanasiustheGreat]

The New Republic has a bad historian apparently because the President during the Great Depression was Herbert Hoover, not Warren G. Harding. In fact, there was another president before Hoover. Typical bad research by liberals.

[masadaman]

Stupid me. I thought that Hoover not Harding got credit for the Great Depression.

[RightWhale]

Some historians will say that, some won’t. History itself does not exist and does not speak. Pres Polar Bear Bush has not done everything he was told to do. But, he has done quite a bit and been fairly successful, even this late in his term.

[JennysCool]

My admiration for the President hasn’t wavered, even with the MASSIVE Lib-Media effort to make people dislike him. None of us have ANY idea of the challenges he has had to meet in fighting what must often be a covert war on terror. We may discover someday that his actions, and those of other members of his Administration, saved the country more than once, but had to be kept secret for intelligence reasons.

Of course, even if that was the case, and was revealed, the Drive-Bys would just drive on by.

[Reagan Man]

>>>>>The New Republic, a hugely influential political magazine...

Ridiculous.

[OldNavyVet]

I like to remind people putting down G.W. Bush that seven states seceded from the Union in the period between Lincoln’s election and inauguration.

In actuality, if American sticks qith GW’s plans, he might later be counted as one of America’s greatest Presidents.

[avacado]

Excellent article!

"Historians will appreciate how any War Against Terror that allowed Saddam to remain in place would have been an absurd travesty."

"When the rise of al-Qa'eda is considered by historians like Philip Bobbitt and William Shawcross, it will be President Clinton's repeated refusal to act effectively in the 1990s, rather than President Bush's tough response after 9/11, that will be held up as culpable."

"Give Iraq five, ten or twenty years, and Bush's decision to undertake the surge - courageously taken in the face of all bien pensant and "expert" opinion on both sides of the Atlantic - will rank alongside some of Harry Truman's great decisions of 1945-53."

If that happens, the time will come when George W Bush will be able to say what Lord Salisbury called the four cruellest yet sweetest words in the English language: "I told you so."

God Bless GWB. We watched a major piece of world history under his steadfast leadership!

[Cicero]

Yes. Harding had nothing to do with the Depression. Hoover got the blame for the next 50 or 60 years, endlessly villainized by the mainstream press and liberal historians. But it was, in fact, FDR who managed to prolong the depression. It would have ended by the mid 30s if not for his Communist stupidities.