Public image of George W. Bush
George W. Bush, the 43rd president of the United States, has elicited a variety of public perceptions regarding his policies, personality and performance as a head of state. In the United States and elsewhere, journalists, polling organizations and others have documented the expression of an evolving array of opinions of President Bush. Time magazine named George W. Bush as its Person of the Year for 2000[1] and 2004,[2] citing him as the most influential person during these two years.
The approval ratings of George W. Bush ranged from a record high to a record low. Bush began his presidency with ratings near 60%.[3] In the time of national crisis following the September 11 attacks, polls showed approval ratings greater than 85%, peaking in at 92%,[4] as well as a steady 80–90% approval for about four months after the attacks.[5] Afterward, his ratings steadily declined as the economy suffered and the Iraq War initiated by his administration continued. By early 2006, his average rating was near 40%, and in July 2008, a poll indicated a low of 22%.[3][6][7]
Background[edit]
At the beginning of his first term, Bush's reputation suffered due to his narrow victory in Florida and the attendant controversy surrounding his electoral college victory, which included accusations of vote suppression and tampering. While routinely criticized by Democrats, Bush was also sometimes criticized by Republicans. A number of American celebrities and sports and media personalities engaged in heated criticism of Bush.
Bush was also subject to criticism in the international community for his foreign policy. Street protests sometimes occurred during Bush's diplomatic visits to other countries. His policies were the subject of heated criticism in the 2002 elections in Germany[8] and the 2006 elections in Canada.[9]
Support among conservatives[edit]
Bush has enjoyed strong support among Republicans and Americans holding conservative views, and for the 2004 election, 95–98% of the Republican electorate approved of and voted for Bush, a figure exceeding the approval of Ronald Reagan. This support waned, however, due mostly to Republicans' growing frustration with Bush on the issues of spending and illegal immigration. Some Republicans even began criticizing Bush on his policies in Iraq, Iran, and the Palestinian territories.[10]
Personal image[edit]
Country image[edit]
Raised in West Texas, Bush's accent, vacations on his Texas ranch, and penchant for country metaphors contribute to his folksy, American cowboy image.[11][12] "I think people look at him and think John Wayne", says Piers Morgan, editor of the British Daily Mirror.[13] It has been suggested that Bush's accent was a deliberate and active choice, as a way of distinguishing himself from his family's traditionally wealthy, intellectual, Northeastern image, and anchoring himself to his Texas roots.[14] Both supporters and detractors have pointed to his country persona as reasons for their support or criticism.[12]
Vision[edit]
In contrast to his father, George H. W. Bush, who was perceived as having troubles with an overarching unifying theme, Bush embraced larger visions and was seen as a man of larger ideas and associated huge risks.[15]
Intellectual capacity[edit]
Bush's intellectual capacities were questioned by the media[16] which speculated about his IQ.
A hoax report claiming Bush had the lowest IQ of any American President of the last 50 years circulated in 2001.[17][18]
Though no official IQ test score for Bush has been found, the score he received on his SAT during his final year of preparatory school at the exclusive Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts, is known. He scored 1206, which Steve Sailer correlated to an IQ of 120. The score that Bush received on his qualifying test for the military suggests that his IQ was in the mid-120s, placing him in the 95th percentile of the population for intelligence.[19] An article published in the journal Political Psychology estimated Bush's IQ at 125.[20] The same study estimated the IQ of Bush's predecessor Bill Clinton at 149.[17] The study's director noted that "Bush may be 'much smarter' than the findings imply". A lecturer in American politics at
Warwick University said: "A major part of [Bush's] public persona, to some extent, I think deliberately, is that he is not an intellectual. But he went to Yale, he has had an exclusive upbringing and he is by no means a dimwit."[18][21][22]
Bush's detractors tended to focus on various linguistic errors made by him during his public speeches, colloquially known as Bushisms.[23] His mispronunciation of certain words was ridiculed in the media and in popular culture. Even as early as the 2000 presidential debates, it was the subject of a Saturday Night Live sketch (see Strategery).[24] Perhaps his most famous nonstandard pronunciation is that of nuclear, pronouncing it /ˈnukjələr/ NOO-kyə-lər instead of /ˈnukliər/ NOO-klee-ər, although he is not the only American president to have done this. Merriam-Webster lists this as a variant but nonstandard pronunciation of nuclear.[25][26]
Bush derangement syndrome neologism[edit]
American pundit and psychiatrist[123] Charles Krauthammer, noting the reaction of liberals to George W. Bush and his policies, in a 2003 column coined the term Bush derangement syndrome to describe "the acute onset of paranoia in otherwise normal people in reaction to the policies, the presidency—nay—the very existence of George W. Bush".[123][124] While Krauthammer's column was somewhat tongue-in-cheek (e.g., "What is worrying epidemiologists about the Dean incident, however, is that heretofore no case had been reported in Vermont, or any other dairy state"), the term indicates a belief that some extreme criticisms of Bush are of emotional origin rather than based in fact or logic. The term has been adopted by writers across the political spectrum[125][126][127]
and is most closely associated with liberal reaction to Bush policies past and present.[124][126][127][128]
The neologism is not unique to Bush,[129] with several commentators borrowing Krauthammer's coinage to define Thatcher derangement syndrome,[130][131] in reference to Margaret Thatcher, referring to the extremely vitriolic reactions Thatcher evokes among British leftists,[132] both during and following her tenure as Britain's prime minister,[132] and most notably distinguished in the aftermath of her death in 2013.[133] Similarly, the term Trump derangement syndrome was coined to refer to perceived irrational criticism of Donald Trump.
Since 2006, surveys of professional historians have given the Bush presidency low marks. A 2006 Siena College poll of 744 professors reported the following results:[141]
Thomas Kelly, professor emeritus of American studies at Siena College, said: "President Bush would seem to have small hope for high marks from the current generation of practicing historians and political scientists. In this case, current public opinion polls actually seem to cut the President more slack than the experts do." Dr. Douglas Lonnstrom, Siena College
professor of statistics and director of the Siena Research Institute, stated: "In our 2002 presidential rating, with a group of experts comparable to this current poll, President Bush ranked 23rd of 42 presidents. That was shortly after 9/11. Clearly, the professors do not think things have gone well for him in the past few years. These are the experts that teach college students today and will write the history of this era tomorrow."[141]
In 2008, the History News Network conducted an unscientific poll among 109 professional historians. That poll found that, among those professional historians, 98% believe that the George W. Bush presidency is a failure, and that 61% believe it to be the worst in history.[142] Another poll done in 2009 by C-SPAN among 65 professional historians ranks Bush 36 of 42 former presidents.[143]
A 2010 Siena College poll of 238 Presidential scholars found that Bush was ranked 39th out of 43, with poor ratings in handling of the economy, communication, ability to compromise, foreign policy accomplishments and intelligence.[144]
Notable critical works about Bush[edit]
Fahrenheit 9/11[edit]
In 2004, Michael Moore released his documentary Fahrenheit 9/11, which went on to become the highest-grossing political documentary of all time.[145] The film is critical of Bush and the War on Terrorism. Christopher Hitchens and Ed Koch have criticized Fahrenheit 9/11 as dishonest and inaccurate.[146][147]
W.[edit]
In 2008, director Oliver Stone, a noted liberal and Democrat who is known as a critic of Republican policymakers including Bush, directed a biographical film about Bush entitled W., featuring Josh Brolin in the title role.[148] W. was appraised as a surprisingly even-handed and restrained treatment of Bush and his policies, given Bush's incredibly low popularity around the time of the film's release.[149][150]
Vice[edit]
In 2018, director Adam McKay, who had previously directed The Big Short in 2015, released Vice, a biopic on George W. Bush's Vice President Dick Cheney, with Christian Bale in the lead role, and Sam Rockwell in the role of George W. Bush. Although primarily focusing on Cheney, Adam McKay remains overtly critical of George W. Bush and his administration. The film portrays Bush as an ambitious former alcoholic seeking only to "impress his father, and shows him as malleable and boastful".[151]
Post-presidential image[edit]
Miss Me Yet? billboard[edit]
In February 2010 a roadside billboard appeared featuring an image of George W. Bush and a caption with the words "MISS ME YET?". The billboard was initially spotted on Interstate 35 in Wyoming, Minnesota but soon other billboards like it popped up around the country.[152][153] It was first considered to be an internet hoax, but has been confirmed as a real advertisement.[154] The Billboard has led to other Bush-themed merchandise with the catchphrase "Miss Me Yet?" from agencies such as CafePress,[155] and the image plus the related caption has become an internet meme.
The billboard was mentioned on Rush Limbaugh's talk radio show as some callers mentioned the billboard did exist.[156] It was later discovered to have been created and sponsored by an anonymous source who wanted to remain that way as per the billboard owner Schubert & Hoey Outdoor Advertising.[154] According to the billboard owner, the sign was purchased by a group of small business owners located in the seven-county metropolitan area.[157] Later, Mike Rivard, one of the six business owners from Minnesota, came forward and told Fox News that one of the reasons why they did it was they thought it was a hilarious message, and the image they used was found online.[158]
Effect of Decision Points memoir[edit]
Journalists from several media sources opined that the publication of Bush's memoir Decision Points in November 2010 was intended to or would have the effect of improving his post presidential image.[159]
Ranking of George W. Bush as US President[edit]
After he left office, George W. Bush has been ranked between 31st (by USPC ) and 39th (by Siena Research Institute[160]) out of 44 presidents in the history of the US. However, following the election of Donald Trump as the 45th president of the United States, 61% of Americans in 2018 said they had a favorable view of Bush, compared to 33% when he left office.[161] Also in 2018, 54% of Democrats viewed Bush favourably.[161]