The man who is President Bush *UPDATED*

I’ve always liked President Bush, even when I thought I was a Democrat. I liked him even back in 2000, I cast my vote for Al Gore (yes, I did). Then, I was happy to tell people that I’d rather have Bush for my next door neighbor than my President, with the reverse being true for Gore — I could never imagine just shooting the bull with that man.

Now that he has been our President, we can see that Bush has weathered more in the last 8 years than most Presidents and he has consistently comported himself with dignity. He hasn’t attacked his opponents; he hasn’t engaged in scandalous behavior, personal or political; and he has never lost sigh of his goals. I haven’t agreed with all of his goals, although I’ve agreed with most. I think he’s kept his eye on the most important ball, which is world terrorism, while getting confused regarding Israel — a confusion that is the less forgivable given that Israel has always been the canary in the coal mine when it comes to Islamic terrorism. As they are, so shall we be. I also think he made government bigger, rather than smaller (a very un-conservative thing to have done), but I know Gore (or Kerry) would have done the same, only much more so. Indeed, even in those areas in which I disapprove of Bush’s conduct, Gore (or Kerry) would have earned infinitely more of my disapproval. And as for those areas in which I think Bush did well — as to those, I can’t even contemplate a Gore or Kerry presidency.

In any event, given the contumely continuously heaped on someone I believe has been a good President and someone I’ve never doubted is a good man, it was with real delight that I read the Anchoress’s heartfelt homage to President Bush.

UPDATECheck out the last paragraph of this Obama-centric story about the SOTU address to see again what a good person George Bush is.