Notes From D.R. | Random Thoughts on the Passing Scene

Can anyone deny that, despite the way he is currently perceived, George W. Bush will be regarded by objective historians as a more influential and accomplished President than his predecessor, Bill Clinton?

Six years after he left office, it’s still hard to discern anything significant about Clinton’s legacy. The Clinton Administration was defined by what it could not accomplish (i.e., the establishment of universal health care) and what it was unwilling to accomplish (i.e., an active assault on terrorism in the wake of the 1993 World Trade Center bombing). Clinton did have a few victories of note–NAFTA, the 1996 welfare-reform effort, the placement of Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Stephen Breyer on the US Supreme Court–but failures such as the 1993 Somalia fiasco and the 1998 Lewinsky scandal have outweighed Clinton’s successes in the national consciousness.

Some would certainly argue that the Iraq War will damage Bush’s legacy in the same way Clinton’s scandals injured his. Of course, the counter-argument is that, if Iraq does indeed become a fully-functioning democracy, Bush’s controversial decision to remove Saddam Hussein will be regarded as an act of absolute genius. Even if history does not validate the Iraq War, Bush will still have to be regarded as a Commander-in-Chief who did significant damage to the infrastructure of Middle Eastern terrorism, a reformer of a federal judiciary widely viewed as having strayed from Constitutional parameters, and a racial progressive who led the most diverse Cabinet in United States history.

Regardless of one’s personal opinion of Bush, it’s hard to deny that he was the catalyst for a reinvigoration of American politics. Staunch supporters and outraged opponents surged into the arena of ideas during his tenure, trading insights and insults on talk radio and in the blogosphere. He re-energized both the left and the right: "progressives" were able to raise millions by proclaiming Bush the ultimate villain, and social conservatives who spent most of the 1990s at odds with the GOP returned to the party in force, convinced that the Bush Administration would protect traditional values.

Bush had an impact upon American politics that Clinton could only wish for. While Clinton was a galvanizing figure in his own right, he could never summon the people’s passion in favor of or against his efforts the way Bush can. The 43rd President has made politics fascinating again: he has encouraged unprecedented numbers of Americans to pay close attention to what goes on in Washington, D.C. The Clinton Administration was, at bottom, entertainment; the Bush Administration is, in so many ways, far more serious.

Every President silently hopes to influence the course of history. Clinton couldn’t achieve this goal. Bush unquestionably has.

UPDATE: Bill O’Reilly on Bush.