Worst. President. Ever?
The Washington Post asked four guys whether Bush is the worst president in history. It’s a silly question, of course, but elicited really interesting responses: Foner Brinkley Cannato Greenberg.
Brinkley is my favorite of these. He concludes that although Bush is probably not the worst, “He has joined Hoover as a case study on how not to be president.”
I am certainly not convinced W is the worst ever, if only because “worst” is such a rich term with so many possible axes (and axes to grind). So, I’ve put together my own list to weigh the pros and cons, in no particular order…
Positive |
Negative |
Resolute | Personality: Stubborn. Incurious. Not fact-based. Non-nuanced. Incapable of seeing multiple points of view. Believes he knows what God wants. |
Resting heart rate of 44 | Iraq |
Debt | |
Global warming | |
Economic gap | |
Punitive educational reforms | |
Security, lack of (real) | |
Anti-science | |
Subversion of Constitution (imperial presidency, disregard of personal liberties, erosion of church-state separation, 2000 election) | |
Misc.: Disturbing Oedipal psychology. Unwarranted Texas accent. Nicknames. Patronizing neck rubs of world leaders (female). Smirk. |
Categories: Uncategorized dw