Bush May Be Leaving Office More Unpopular Than Nixon, But So did Truman
An interesting bit of historical perspective from Politico:
With 71 days left in office, President Bush is less popular than President Nixon was at the time of his resignation, according to data released Monday by CNN and Opinion Research Corporation.
I actually think the chart that is posted with the article reveals another bit of interesting historical perspective:
G.W. Bush 76% Now
Clinton 54% September, 1994
G.H.W. Bush 60% July, 1992
Reagan 56% January, 1983
Carter 59% June, 1979
Ford 46% April, 1975; November, 1975; December, 1975
Nixon 66% August, 1974
Johnson 52% March, 1968 and August, 1968
Kennedy 30% November, 1963
Eisenhower 36% March, 1958
Truman 67% January, 1952
Note the name at the bottom of the list. Harry S. Truman.
Note also that Truman is the only other President listed there with approval ratings lower than Nixon.
And finally, note that Truman is cited by many (including both Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama) as one of the best Presidents in this nation’s history.
What does that tell us? Probably that Presidents are best judged historically and not contemporaneously. It’s just too hard to be objective when you can still feel the heat of partisan fervor.
In the long run, I think a lot of things Bush did (invasion and liberation of Iraq and Afghanistan) will be looked upon with great favor by objective students of history. I also think some of the things he did (expansion of Medicare entitlements, for instance) will be seen as blunders.
Ultimately, I don’t think he’ll ever be seen as a great President. But neither will history put him with Nixon.
If it does, that would be a gross injustice.
