Evaluating the Bush presidency

Further to an earlier posting by a fellow blogger about Bush’s legacy, I would draw your attention to a rather good article from US News.

It starts by noting how introspective the 43rd president has become in the fag end days of his time in office:

‘He finally admits that his low standing in the polls does bother him. “Everybody wants to be liked,” the normally thick-skinned president told a December 1 forum on global health. He concedes that many voters backed Democrat Barack Obama on Election Day as a protest against the Bush years. He admits to frustration with his big setbacks, especially the failure to find weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, which was one of his main reasons for going to war there. Similarly, he is disappointed by the failure of Congress to pass his measures to overhaul immigration and Social Security, and he is distressed by the soaring level of federal spending and the continuing partisan warfare in Washington.’

Read further here and consider the following exercises:

Outline what Bush himself is said to be proud of. What does the article view as Bush’s positive legacies. Summarise comment on each of the following headings: The ‘war on terror’ The war in Iraq The financial meltdown Botching Katrina The elevation of Dick Cheney