What should voters and students who are anti-political and non-political think of the president? In September 1948, when I was in college, most students did not know much about politics. The Democrats were voting for Harry S. Truman, but admitted he was less well-informed than Franklin Roosevelt. The Republicans assumed Thomas Dewey was smarter than Truman. In any case, the students all respected the Office of the President.
Lyndon Johnson, in 1968, by his lies about the Indochina war, created a credibility gap between the people and his office. Richard Nixon, because of his power grabbing, became associated with Republican Party crimes committed at the Watergate Hotel and degraded the office still further.
History probably will record that George Bush 43 failed because of his imperialist military actions carried out in Afghanistan and Iraq, which will leave him in disgrace. It seems obvious that the American democratic constitution has been in decay for some time.
The outcome of the 2006 Congressional election may change the political tone ' but not by much, even if the Democrats win both Houses. The American confrontation with Islam and the Arab states will still be in debate in 2008.Robert H. Whealey is a professor emeritus in the Department of History.
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Letter to the Editor
