Usual caveat when I'm blogging about this kind of book: I'm a Democrat, though I don't talk politics on this blog except when my reading diary necessitates it.
A Tragic Legacy: How a Good vs. Evil Mentality Destroyed the Bush Presidency (Glenn Greenwald, 2007) is a fairly thorough summary of what I've disliked about Bush from the beginning: his tendency, whether it reflects his true beliefs or is merely a political ploy, to see the world in terms of a Manichean battle of Good vs. Evil. A good president, IMHO, is a principled pragmatist--a man or woman who respects the Constitution and basic moral principles (e.g. no torture, ever) and is firmly devoted to making America and the world a better place, but is willing to compromise and horse-trade to serve those ends. Bush is the opposite--someone so convinced of his own righteousness that he'll sacrifice all the principles an American ought to hold dear in the service of his so-called "Good."
Sigh. Is it January 20, 2009 yet? And will we get there before Bush causes or worsens any more catastrophes?
The really heartbreaking part of this book is reading what Howard Dean and Jim Webb predicted about the Iraq War in late 2002 and early 2003. They were right in every particular, downright prophetic. And Dean in particular was crucified for it, and I've yet to hear any mainstream admission that he was right all along. Sigh again.
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