With Bush, "people are expecting some kind of repair work," professor says

[Liberal_in_LA]

http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/12/05/bush.post.presid...

Bush must navigate a treacherous post-presidency Ex-presidents of recent administrations have stepped into high-profile positions

George Bush is leaving the White House with lowest approval ratings in history

Bush has expressed interest in writing a memoir and hitting the lecture circuit

With Bush, "people are expecting some kind of repair work," professor says

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Although ex-presidents in Adams' day quickly descended into obscurity after their years in the Oval Office, today the transition away from serving as the leader of the free world is high-profile, potentially very lucrative and, above all, a difficult job in itself.

This is especially true for Bush, historians and political observers say. He not only must oversee the construction of a presidential library and begin writing his memoirs, but he also must grapple with salvaging a legacy mired in the lowest presidential approval ratings in history.

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But the public's overwhelming disdain for the president may delay a speaking tour and Bush ascent to the corporate boardroom.

"He is a president where people are expecting some kind of repair work," said Julian Zelizer, a professor of history and public affairs at Princeton. "If he just goes on the speaking circuit and focuses his time making huge money, that would only tarnish a presidency that only has a low approval rating."

[saltpoint]

1. Good luck to his publicist. Talk about yer thankless tasks...

I believe there is a very strong chance that Bush will die in alcoholic obscurity, very much like Franklin Pierce.

[madeline_con]

7. "Bush will die in alcoholic obscurity..."

What a lovely thought to dream on. Thank you.

[saltpoint]

8. Hi, madeline_con. Well of course I'm just guessing.

But that actually happened to Franklin Pierce, who had been boozing it up big time while he was still in office.

Pierce lost control of a horse he was on because he was drunk. The horse reared and wound up injuring a woman watching the procession. Told that his horse had hurt the woman, Pierce replied, "Well I'm not surprised. You know how I am when I've had a snootful."

I suspect that Dubya has been slurpin' the sauce as well. He must have some dim sense that historians are about to rake him over the coals.

He's earned it, though, and may turn to the bottle to numb himself.

[RainDog]

2. I think he should have an extended tour of The Hague

Cell block #9.

Bush is to America what pedophile priests are to the Catholic church.

[Webster Green]

3. They ought to string that mutherfucker up..

He likes that wild west shit. It would be fitting.

Legacy?

[OffWithTheirHeads]

4. That pathetic creature will be treated as a pariah

every where he goes. Still, it's not 1/10th the punishment he deserves.

[lumberjack_jeff]

5. "delay a speaking tour and a Bush ascent to the corporate boardroom"

I wish we could go back to the days when we pretended that being president was something other than a rung leading to the corporate boardroom.

[GregD]

6. So I was at the bar tonight with friends and some drunk chick is next to me

whining about "why do all you people hate Bush so much?"

Literally all six of us at the table jumped down her throat and slung repeated refrains about lying to start the war, trashing the Constitution, stealing elections, destroying the economy, torture and so on. It was unbelieveable.

Turns out she's an Air Force nurse and thinks he's an idiot, but doesn't understand all the pent up anger.

I about fell out of my chair.