Oliver Stone has weighed in. So has Jon Stewart, many times. Rolling Stone asked the question provocatively on its cover in 2006. More important, you — and probably everyone you know — has an opinion.
What kind of president was George W. Bush?
Michael Genovese, Loyola Chair of Leadership and professor of political science at Loyola Marymount University, will deliver the keynote address at a conference of political experts that will begin the scholarly work of assessing the newest former U.S. president.
“Evaluating the George W. Bush Presidency,” hosted by the University of Hawai’i at Hilo, will bring together political science scholars, journalists, researchers and others to discuss the lasting influence of the 43rd president.
In an interview with Hawaii Public Radio, Genovese said that while “it’s easy to bash” the unpopular former president, the Bush administration had a clear impact on the direction of the country.
“Like him or hate him, love him or loathe him, he mattered,” Genovese said. “He was consequential in that because of actions he took, because of his leadership, because of his decision-making, a lot of things changed. We are very different at the end of the eight years than we were at the beginning.”
He also noted that it’s important to set aside preconceived notions – including, presumably, late-night comedians’ monologues – about President George W. Bush, especially since the full effect of many of his policies and decisions has not yet been revealed.
“When a president leaves office with 20-some-odd percent popularity, it’s easy to bash them, and you’ll be very popular with the crowd,” Genovese said. “But that’s not useful. We need to take this seriously in order to be taken seriously.”
Genovese has authored or co-authored 16 books, including The Paradoxes of the American Presidency with Thomas Cronin of Colorado College. The third edition of that work was released in July, updated with information from the 2008 presidential campaign.
The conference in Hawaii, July 29-31, will look at numerous aspects of the Bush presidency, including terrorism and civil liberties, media relations, and environmental policy.