Poole: How Republicans can make the transition

By Adam Poole

Friday, December 5, 2008

25 percent. That is President Bush’s current job approval rating, a striking drop from his high of 90 percent following the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11. Now, the only approval ratings lower than his are of the Democratic Congress, (18 percent) and Michael Vick — barely.

During troubled times, Americans look for someone to blame. The easiest target, whether he is actually responsible or not, is the president and the Bush administration has seen its share of troubled times.

As a Republican, I am often asked for my opinion of Bush and, like many Republicans, I haven’t always been terribly enthusiastic about some of the president’s policies. He has gotten a bad rap and, now that his term is coming to an end, I’d like to offer some fair criticism of the last eight years.

Bush has not been the perfect president or the perfect Republican. I am truly looking forward to hearing a president properly pronounce the word “nuclear”. The treatment that others have afforded him, however, has been ignorant at best, sometimes disgraceful.

For example, the Iraqi front in the War on Terror was handled poorly in its first years but rather than criticizing our management, many on the left insisted that we should never have gone, even going so far as to call it a war for oil.

This would be a fair debate if the war were over, but until then it is vital that we stand together as one nation. History will judge the legitimacy of the war, and I believe that it will be much fairer than we have been. In the meantime, we must ensure victory and our security.

I am encouraged to see that Obama has asked Defense Secretary Robert Gates to stay on the job in the new administration. They will, no doubt, be at odds on occasion, but with Gates on the job, I hope that our withdrawal from Iraq will be conducted at the proper time.

In any event, I am prepared to get behind the next president for the sake of our nation and am confident that Republicans will be more decent in our criticisms of Obama than many Democrats have been of Bush these past eight years.

So, how will things be different in the next administration? In an interview with CNN, Bush said that “It is good for our country that people have hope in the system and feel vested in the future and President-elect Obama has a great opportunity.” He is quite right.

Whether deserved or not, Bush’s low approval ratings have made it difficult for him to be an effective leader. Obama, on the other hand, will enjoy a great deal of good will and, to quote Bush once more, “I really do wish him all the best … it is good for the country that the president succeeds.”

— — Poole is a Wichita senior in psychology and political science.

Comments

Abita (anonymous) says...

First, in sentences that start with a number, spell out the number. (check the lede)

It's interesting to hear more candid interviews with Bush and his staff now that they are transitioning out of office. One thing to take note of is that nothing was really as simple as we thought it was. Bush made mistakes but he was working in very difficult and complicated circumstances without the benefit of omniscience or hindsight to make decisions. I'm glad to see many conservative columnists like Mr. Poole point out that we aught to keep this in mind with our new president.

December 5, 2008 at 8:42 a.m. ( | suggest removal )

em1 (anonymous) says...

Well said. History will be the ultimate judge of Bush, and I think you're right when you say that it might just be a bit fairer than we have. It's easy to forget that WWI had about the same level of public support in the US as this war has received. We'll never know what would have been if we had finished that war without a premature armistice. Looking back though, the picture is a little clearer than it was to the American people in 1917. History could very well judge this war the same way. We'll have to wait and see.

December 5, 2008 at 8:47 a.m. ( | suggest removal )

juniper08 (anonymous) says...

blah

December 7, 2008 at 5:59 p.m. ( | suggest removal )

jason2007 (anonymous) says...

Democratically-controlled Congress' current approval rating: 18 percent.

The Executive branch is only one facet of the government pie. Congress, Constitutionally-speaking, has much more power than the President if they choose to exercise it yet the President is blamed more. Why is that? I point at a population of people who are illiterate when it comes to Civics.

Bush conducted military action in the Middle East yet Congress handed him a blank check and has since not cut off funding. Congress has multiple oversight committees now chaired by Dems which are responsible for at least raising a red flag when nefarious issues are about to nail the public over the head (e.g., the economic meltdown) yet the President is blamed.

I could care less about the approval ratings, to be honest. They reflect a public that is more interested in American Idol than how the American government operates.

December 8, 2008 at 9:59 a.m. ( | suggest removal )

Hendrix321 (anonymous) says...

I think the only way that the Republican Party can start to regain credibility among its own base is to start living up to its conservative credentials on spending. I abandoned the Republican Party about a year ago, the final straw being when it became utterly apparent to me that they don't give a damn about cutting spending or cutting the national debt. I know I'm not alone there. The Republican base is splintered and factionalized, and the party must restart by figuring out exactly what it stands for and living up to it. Look at the 1994 House elections and the "contract with America". Newt Gingrich and the incoming Republicans clearly defined what they wanted to do, it was ideologically consistent, and they framed it in populist terms. It's not so hard. Instead, we have a GOP that simply reacts to everything the Democrats do, and is going along with all these bailouts and such. It won't work.

December 8, 2008 at 11:17 a.m. ( | suggest removal )

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