Vermont Republicans argue Bush's legacy not yet cast
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By Daniel Barlow Vermont Press Bureau - Published: January 20, 2009
MONTPELIER – He's never come here while president, large portions of the state still want him impeached or arrested, and his Democratic successor has Republicans smiling and repeating the "Yes, we can" mantra.
But even in his last day in the White House, President George W. Bush still has his fans in Vermont.
Count Linda Kirker, a state Republican activist from the town of Georgia, among them. She said she values politicians who are guided by principles and believes that Bush made his decisions with the best interests of Americans in mind.
During his eight years in office, Bush kept the country safe from another terrorist attack, elevated school standards with his No Child Left Behind law, increased support for battling AIDS in Africa and helped senior citizens with the price of prescription drugs, she said.
"As time passes, and the long-term effects of the United States' efforts in the Middle East come to light, I believe history will reveal George W. Bush to be one of our wiser presidents who had insight into the world and its challenges, a man of courage [and] respect for our armed forces and all Americans," Kirker said Monday.
Bush is leaving office as one of the most unpopular presidents in recent history (among recent presidents, only Richard Nixon left office with a lower approval rating) – but his popularity is still high among Republicans, particularly conservatives.
A Gallup poll released last week found that about 75 percent of Republicans approved Bush's presidency.
Lynn Corum of Brattleboro believes history will judge Bush more kindly than today's political pundits. She said the outgoing Republican president had a number of successes that will look better several years down the road, including the 2003 invasion of Iraq and his handling of the economy – until his final year in office.
"He freed 23 million people from a ferocious dictator," Corum said. "That's nothing to snub your nose at."
Corum said she and other conservatives see a continuation of some of Bush's key policies under the new Barack Obama administration, including a trend toward lowering taxes, continuing the bail-out of the banks and expanding the military effort in Afghanistan.
"Maybe liberals will swallow these better coming from a Democratic president?" Corum said. "I don't care who is in the White House, as long as these things are getting done."
Still, some Republicans seemed reluctant to talk about the Republican president's legacy as he left office. Rob Roper, the chairman of the Vermont Republican Party, did not return a call for comment on this story Monday, nor did several other state Republican officials.
Gov. James Douglas, who supported Bush in 2000 and 2004 (he even chaired Bush's re-election campaign in Vermont), did not return a call for comment Monday, nor did he mention the outgoing president at his weekly press conference this week – but he did note that he will be attending Obama's inauguration.
Douglas even made a crack to the Bennington Banner newspaper recently that he is looking forward to working with a presidential administration instead of suing one – a reference to the state's battles with Bush's Environmental Protection Agency.
Charity Tensel, who writes at the conservative Vermont Blog She's Right, said Bush's main legacy will be his handling of the Sept. 11 terrorist attack and the war in Iraq – and if that legacy is seen as positive or negative still depends on history unfolding.
"There were no further attacks during Bush's presidency, when everyone predicted there would be," Tensel wrote in an e-mail Monday. "If that proves to be because of his policies, history will view him as a hero. If not, his legacy may be marred by the situation in Iraq."
But Tensel quickly added that she didn't have much praise for Bush's domestic policies, although she doesn't blame the economic recession on his administration as some others do. She said he doesn't deserve a ranking of worst president in history.
"I think he is a good man who did what he thought was right for the country," she said.
Sen. William Doyle, R-Washington, has watched presidential administrations come and go during his decades at the Statehouse. He appreciates Bush for keeping the country safe from another terrorist attack, but quickly shifted the conversation over to Obama.
Doyle said his main regret regarding the Republican presidency is that Bush didn't do enough to push Americans to see past their personal goals and political parties to work together as a country.
A new poll found that 58 percent of people who supported Arizona Sen. John McCain in the November 2008 general election are optimistic about an Obama presidency. Doyle is among that number and will be at Montpelier's inauguration celebration this week.
"Our job is to support the president and hope he is successful," Doyle said.
Contact Daniel Barlow at Daniel.Barlow@timesargus.com.
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