Marc Thiessen, Mr. Bush’s speechwriter, asserts that, in a few years, #43 will be remembered as fondly as Truman is, noting that “Mr. Bush increased defense spending by nearly 73%, the largest increase since the Truman administration.” He attempts to justify the failures in the previous administration by claiming that “Mr. Bush often told his staff that a president’s job is not to chase popularity, but to do what is right”–not to do what the populace elected him to do, but to satisfy his own agenda.
Mr. Thiessen attempts to put in positive light Mr. Bush’s (1) rejection of embryonic stem cell research–the research into regenerative tissue; (2) appointment of Justice Samuel Alito; (3) vetoes of Children’s Health Care initiative; (4) banning of most forms of abortion; (5) signing of the Patriot Act; and (6) little war in Iraq. What do you think? Will Mr. Bush’s legacy a decade down the line as bright as Mr. Thiessen asserts it will be?