Exiting the presidency with a low 30s approval rating, a war you started, corruption

There are living people who remember Truman’s Presidency and still revile him.

I’ll go on record and say that Bush will be reviled by a large majority of the world from now until the day I die.

And, over time, he will actually be seen as worse, not better.

What I find so amazing about the Bush presidency is that the guy is so clearly a dumbass. He’s just plain bad at his job – a terrible politician and a poor leader. All you had to do was watch one public Bush speaking engagement and this was so incredibly obvious. A president who can’t deliver a basic speech or hold a simple press conference without tripping over his words? It’s fucking embarrassing, is what it is.

This was as clear to me in 2000 and 2004 as it is now. Not sure why it took so many years for the rest of the American public (or 51%, I guess) to figure out that hey, Bush kinda sucks at his job. Granted, 9-11 put the fear of God in a lot of people, and Kerry was a terrible candidate, but still – WTF?

And for those of you that voted for Bush: seriously, what the fuck were you thinking? Forget republican/democrat, forget the issues – try to elect someone who is at the very least a competent politician and credible leader. That’s all I really give a crap about. LEADERSHIP.

But if it took Bush to get Obama, maybe it’s all been worth it. Good riddance.

There’s a plausible theory that talking like an idiot is all an act, because people eat up that hillbilly plain-speakin’ thing. He wasn’t doing it in the mid-1990s.

Feels like the 9-11 truthers to me. Nobody could keep an act up for 8 full years, and deliver it consistently.

I tend to agree that Bush will probably be seen as worse, rather than better. However, if democracy takes root and flourishes in the middle east, it would not surprise me at all to see Bush’s approval ratings do a Truman-like turnaround.

I don’t think that’s particularly likely, but who the hell thought containment would work?

Oh really?

“Well, of course not, don’t be ridi-cool-us.”

All due respect, there’s a difference between being the leader of the free world, and a professional comedian.

Well, not in the case of Bush, but normally, I mean.

Well, what changed then? Did he have a stroke or something? It’s just odd.

Quoting Jason McCullough from this thread: http://www.quartertothree.com/game-talk/showthread.php?p=1604417

"Let me try to summarize:

  1. People were mad at Truman about Korea.
  2. However, it turned out Korea from a 50 year timeframe wasn’t “that bad”, because eventually people forget about all the dead soldiers, and at least he didn’t lose.
  3. It turns out all the other stuff Truman did other than Korea - basically setting up the framework for the Cold War - was a great idea.
  4. Therefore, Truman is highly rated now."

That’s a pretty good high level assessment…if you really want to get into it I would imaging the Truman book is a good place to start.

Seeing Bush fly off in that chopper was one of the high points of my day.

That’s interesting. Don’t former Presidents usually ride away in a limo?

Baseless conjecture: his people wanted to spare him the embarrassment of being pelted with rotten fruit as his first post-presidency act.

Bush couldn’t walk the parade route during his first inauguration due to all the protests talking place in Washington DC, so there’s a fitting symmetry…

There was also the dementia theory, which I think is more likely.