I call it as I see it.
Character requires more than just lip service and macho toughness. It requires actions no matter how unpopular. The fact of the matter is that Bush2 caved and was unwilling to buck the system.
Which, of course, is why he risked everything to win the war in Iraq when his own advisors were telling him to pull troops out./sarc
That's what you call character. Having a set of principles and living by them, no matter what the consequence. That's exactly what he did.
And that's why the vast majority of conservatives admire him, even if they don't agree with some of his policies.