When George W. Bush goes on TV tonight to give his farewell address to the nation, it will be primarily to interpret his administration's record. He has made it clear that he believes history will judge his presidency for its intentions and will wait as long as necessary for the results.
Naysayers may scoff, but Bush believes he has been a staunch defender of his principles and has done nothing wrong. He only grudgingly admits to making "cosmetic" mistakes or tactical missteps (see video above) but does not concede having made errors of judgment.
"There's no such thing as short-term history," Bush declared in his final presidential press conference on Monday. "I don't think you can possibly get the full breadth of an administration until time has passed."
That may be true, but it is clear, from what George and Laura Bush have said and done in the last few months, that they both care — deeply — what is thought of this president now, not 100 years from now.
Personally, I find it interesting — if not downright amusing — that Bush seems to believe his greatest error was pressing for privatizing Social Security instead of taking on immigration reform after being re-elected in 2004. As "The Young Turk" points out, the Social Security issue was virtually the only Bush proposal with which the Republican-controlled Congress ever refused to go along. It's a good thing the Republicans didn't let him have his way on that one. Can you imagine how much worse the economic meltdown would have been if people had actually invested their Social Security funds in the stock market?
In defense of the Bush record, the White House has posted, at its website, "100 Things Americans May Not Know About the Bush Administration Record."
Most Americans, however, appear to know all they need to know about this administration's achievements in the last eight years.
Tonight's speech will not change that record.
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