The Worst President in History?

From Rolling Stone courtesy of Eschaton:

How does any president's reputation sink so low? The reasons are best understood as the reverse of those that produce presidential greatness. In almost every survey of historians dating back to the 1940s, three presidents have emerged as supreme successes: George Washington, Abraham Lincoln and Franklin D. Roosevelt. These were the men who guided the nation through what historians consider its greatest crises: the founding era after the ratification of the Constitution, the Civil War, and the Great Depression and Second World War. Presented with arduous, at times seemingly impossible circumstances, they rallied the nation, governed brilliantly and left the republic more secure than when they entered office.

Calamitous presidents, faced with enormous difficulties -- Buchanan, Andrew Johnson, Hoover and now Bush -- have divided the nation, governed erratically and left the nation worse off. In each case, different factors contributed to the failure: disastrous domestic policies, foreign-policy blunders and military setbacks, executive misconduct, crises of credibility and public trust. Bush, however, is one of the rarities in presidential history: He has not only stumbled badly in every one of these key areas, he has also displayed a weakness common among the greatest presidential failures -- an unswerving adherence to a simplistic ideology that abjures deviation from dogma as heresy, thus preventing any pragmatic adjustment to changing realities. Repeatedly, Bush has undone himself, a failing revealed in each major area of presidential performance.

Click here for the rest.

Of course, prominent historians were calling Bush the worst President ever as early as 2003, but it sounds like there's a consensus forming, and, if you ask me, it's about time. Speaking of time, given the fact that we are now living under the most corrupt, most warlike, and most incompetent leadership in US history, I think it's fair to say that we are also living in extraordinary times. I've long felt like I missed the ride during the 60s, and admired the social activism of the 30s, but it's pretty clear that not only are things as fucked up now as they were then, but that there are countless exciting opportunities to affect this nation's future. Yeah, the time in which we now live is awful, but that's when great things happen. Indeed, now, more than ever perhaps, is the time for Americans to take their citizenship seriously. Our leaders have failed us: it's time for the people to take over.

One further thought: this is the second kickass article from Rolling Stone I've linked here at Real Art. I gave up on that magazine as corporate crap long ago. Maybe I should start checking it out again.

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