At least Lyndon Johnson was introspective. That’s the takeaway from Peter Baker’s big Washington Post exploration of George W. Bush’s “tranquility” in the midst of the compounding disasters of his presidency, from Iraq to Katrina to Alberto Gonzales. Enduring what Baker calls “the most drastic political collapse in a generation,” Bush holes up in the White House, turning down appearances where he might face public disapproval, as when he declined to throw out the first pitch for the Washington Nationals’ opening day. Even when he calls historians to the White House to discuss precedents for Iraq war strategy or the “nature of good and evil in the post-Sept. 11 world,” he remains surprisingly confident:
This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at https://talkingpointsmemo.com/?p=180494