The failure of the George W. Bush presidency has nothing at all to do with the unpopular Iraq War, the mess in Afghanistan, the incompetence of his administration in the handling of Katrina, an Attorney General run amok, cronyism, the economic tsunami facing America or even Number 43’s inability to read the pulse of America.

OK, they all have something to do with George W. Bush leaving the White House with the lowest approval ratings of any president ever in the history of the Republic.

But as long and as dismaying a list of problems associated with the years of Bush 43 are, none measures up to George W. Bush’s greatest failure: his decision to distance himself from the very people who hired him to lead.

Think back to Election 2000 and the puckish George W. standing on the stage with his opponent, the wooden Al Gore and remember the fun, smart, playful Bush. The electorate related to Bush’s charm, they found solace in the belief that he was a lot like them.

We knew that “W” had never quite measured up to Big Daddy. And his path to the White House had been filled with failures and personal indulgence. But that made him all the more like us. That he had seemingly conquered his demons made him that more appealing. Bush offered us hope that we, too, could overcome our weaknesses and go on to greater deeds.

We cared little that presidential scholars as well as the media warned us that George W. appeared intellectually incurious. The label “lightweight,” dogged Bush the Younger long before his election to the highest office in the land. After all, he was the son of a president and the brother of a successful governor; he did own a favorite baseball team even if he had sold one of the great players of all time.

Nevertheless, Bush became number 43 in part because of his seductive and endearing playful nature. But all of that soon changed. The President’s charm quickly retreated dying a final death September 11, 2001. Bush succumbed to the weight of the job and its built-in hitch: The American presidency is the most isolated job in the world, the very flaw that if not conquered conquers presidencies even faster than a failed economy can.

The legendary Bush humor was rapidly replaced by boorishness, an uncomfortable to watch insouciance. Bush’s swagger became the stuff of which legends are made. The President’s early to bed we don’t know when you rise off-putting. Compassionate conservatism turned into bullying evangelism. Bush fancied himself as a Jesus in Chief, the savior of women from their unclean natures; only Delilah’s succumb to abortions.  

As the war in Iraq escalated, the Bushs' rarely frequented local restaurants. State dinners were few and far between. Bad instinct had the President retreat in a wartime culture just when Americans so very much needed so much more from their leader. Instead, we were weighted down with images of 43’s early morning jogs, then his bike riding. And how many photo ops were we forced to watch of Bush burning bush on his Crawford ranch?

Oh, occasionally we’d catch a reminding glimpse of the amusing Bush. But more and more as the days went on and the years passed what remained of the man who had been elected President was someone Americans could no longer relate to. The man who had once been much like us no longer existed. The extrovert became the introvert. The accessible became the insular. George W. Bush, the stranger.

Presidential historians will write of the George W. Bush presidency for years to come. They will write of the Neo-cons, 9/11, Iraq and all the other aspects of the 43rd President’s eight-year term as leader of the country. But unless they speak to the Grand Retreat they will have missed the very crux of the real reason Bush the Second’s presidency will be considered a failure.

Time might prove kind to the Iraq War. The seeming incompetence in handling the result of Katrina, a force of destruction previously never seen on our shores might take on a different color. The implosion of the American economy could be attributed to a natural realignment of economic forces, a cyclical part of a capitalist society.

But in taking an historical look at Bush 43’s presidency, it will be the disconnect between the leader and the people that will doom George W. Bush’s presidency in our history books.

Americans want their presidents to be team players. We don’t want them to be better than us or worst than us, but aligned with us. A president who seems at cross-purposes with his people is a president people stop thinking about as the leader of their team. The president becomes the enemy, as George W. Bush did.

Yesterday, Harvard University awarded Senator Ted Kennedy an honorary degree from his alma mater in recognition of a career spanning almost 50 years of distinguished public service.

Ted Kennedy, like George W. Bush, was the wayward son who made good. The grandfather of the Senate, the cancer-stricken Kennedy was wistful in his remarks as he accepted the reward.

"I have also learned lessons in the school of life,” Kennedy said. “We should take issues seriously, but never take ourselves too seriously, that political differences may make us opponents, but should never make us enemies, that battles rage and then quiet.'' In his remarks, Kennedy also invoked President-elect Barack Obama, and the significance of the recent election.

"We elected a 44th president who, by virtue of his race, could have been legally owned by 16 presidents of the United States previously. We judged him, as Martin Luther King said, not by the color of his skin, but by the content of his character and the capacity of his leadership. For America, this is not just a culmination, but a new beginning..."

...And a warning, to Number 44, to learn from the lesson of his predecessor: Beware of taking yourself too seriously. Don't lose your sense of humor. And never, ever forget the people who honored you with the job to lead Team America.

All Content Copyright ©2007-2008.
Reprints only by permission from Halli Casser-Jayne/The CJ Political Report

CLICK HERE TO COMMENT & SEE WHAT OTHERS HAVE TO SAY or
WRITE TO Halli@thecjpoliticalreport.com