Goodbye, Mr. President

It's President George W. Bush's last full day in office. It's time to say goodbye to the 43rd Chief Executive.

I'd have to say I'm glad for the 22nd amendment. Eight years is enough of anybody. Still, it's normal to reflect.

After taking time to learn about our 33rd President I gained perspective on the last eight years of the Bush administration. Harry Truman was a president who also was accused of waging unnecessary war. He was accused of being ignorant. He was accused of being the puppet of other men. He was at record low approval ratings in his last year. In 1953 the general public, for the most part, was glad to see him go.

Almost 60 years later, he's ranked the 7th greatest President in history.

Sure, there's a big difference between Presidents Bush and Truman, but the lesson remains: History will tell the tale. President Bush understands this and has expressed it many times over the last few weeks.

I know there's been a lot of "stuff" thrown around pretty much ever since we heard of GW. Most of it is ill-informed and reactionary. The fact is we don't know the whole story. We weren't in Sarasota County when Andy Card told the President what had happened in New York. We weren't standing on the pile of rubble with a megaphone searching for something to say to the broken and bereaved.

We didn't have to make a decision when our allies backed off of Resolution 1441. We didn't have to deal with having our reputation attacked--whether erroneously or vindictively--by the biggest television network in America. We didn't have movies made about us telling a gleeful story of how we were assassinated.

I don't know how I would have reacted. I certainly don't know if the President reacted correctly. However, I do know that if your view of George W. Bush was formed by Saturday Night Live, I don't want to hear about it. If you've never heard of Resolution 1441, I'm sorry, but I'm not going to take you seriously. Never taken the time to read an American history book? I'm afraid I don't have the time to listen to your opinion on politics.

Twenty-two years after Truman left office, a song called "Harry Truman" entered the pop charts pining for the return of the late President. They missed his style. Makes you think, doesn't it?