Presidents Day got me thinking about W. and his legacy. I recently declared him the worst president ever--which had to sting, you know it did--but Bush, as we know, is banking on history to redeem him. Granting that it is unlikely that historians will ever view Bush as anything more than a poor president, is it possible that the people may one day come around and we'll find ourselves living in a time when the name Bush is not synonymous with "what was I thinking?" Will my 85 year-old eyes find myself looking at that smirk on a shiny quarter?
I'm asking you, loyal reader, can you think of a president or a war that was hated at the time, but in retrospect now looks really good? Lincoln and the Civil War are very obvious, although I think at the time of the actual war, it was decently popular.
Anything else? Anyone want to make a case for Truman? Spanish-American?
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
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I'd argue that American entry into WWI wasn't seen in too good a light at the time but has looked better with distance. You did have Wilson campaigning for re-election on remaining neutral (while surreptitiously sending arms to Britain and trying to negotiate a seat at any post-settlement bargaining table), a pretty sophisticated propaganda campaign, and an intimidation campaign against those who opposed the war.
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