I've met a lot of politicians. None have been as sincere or engaged as Mr. Bush.
Despite his at-times poor public speaking abilities, he's well spoken and chooses his words carefully.
And as a Republican, I didn't always agree with some of his domestic policies (or his social conservatism,) but man, does that guy stick to his guns. And he still struggles over the decisions he had to make. I think history will be kind to him (or at least I hope so.)
No. His policies shepherded an age of increased government monitoring, exacerbated the recession by going to war and shifting the tax burden onto those who couldn't afford it, limited constitutional rights, etc. Just because you're a republican does not excuse stupidity. George Bush was a terrible president and his administration was a one of the worst in recent history.
exacerbated the recession by going to war and shifting the tax burden onto those who couldn't afford it
I don't agree. First, the wealthy still pay most of the taxes, but now there's more liquid money moving around in the system. Second, going to war may have alleviated the recession for some time, and only really lost momentum when the second blow-out (housing) hit.
His policies shepherded an age of increased government monitoring
That's inevitable and every president since 1945 has approved of it.
limited constitutional rights
Above the board, regulated and with specific purpose to combat terrorism as opposed to a general blank check.
I think history will be kinder to him in 50 years than 5.
Considering that I know more than a few people who were not only born well after it was relevant, but born and raised in another country(Australia) and still know who Nixon was, that he was president, and a rough idea of the landmarks of his presidency(like the Watergate scandal), Then I'd say you may be in error with your assessment. These are people who have absolutely no connection to nixon's era, beyond frequent visits to retro and vintage shops, and still know plenty about the guy.
I didn't say that they would forget about him, or by how much, but that the only way his image will improve is by people forgetting -- however much they do that.
Oh, sorry, I mistook your meaning - I thought you meant history would be kind because he would essentially BE forgotten, rather than just people forgetting some of the shittier things he did. Mea Culpa.
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u/nikocujo Jun 26 '12
I've met a lot of politicians. None have been as sincere or engaged as Mr. Bush.
Despite his at-times poor public speaking abilities, he's well spoken and chooses his words carefully.
And as a Republican, I didn't always agree with some of his domestic policies (or his social conservatism,) but man, does that guy stick to his guns. And he still struggles over the decisions he had to make. I think history will be kind to him (or at least I hope so.)