The Presidency of George W. Bush: A First Historical Assessment

by Julian E. Zelizer

Overview

An in-depth look at Bush’s presidency by some of America’s top historians

The Presidency of George W. Bush brings together some of today's top American historians to offer the first in-depth look at one of the most controversial U.S. presidencies. Emotions surrounding the Bush presidency continue to run high—conservatives steadfastly defend its achievements, liberals call it a disgrace. This book examines the successes as well as the failures, covering every major aspect of Bush's two terms in office. It puts issues in broad historical context to reveal the forces that shaped and constrained Bush's presidency—and the ways his presidency reshaped the nation.

The Presidency of George W. Bush features contributions by Mary L. Dudziak, Gary Gerstle, David Greenberg, Meg Jacobs, Michael Kazin, Kevin M. Kruse, Nelson Lichtenstein, Fredrik Logevall, Timothy Naftali, James T. Patterson, and the book's editor, Julian E. Zelizer. Each chapter tackles some important aspect of Bush's administration—such as presidential power, law, the war on terror, the Iraq invasion, economic policy, and religion—and helps readers understand why Bush made the decisions he did. Taking readers behind the headlines of momentous events, the contributors show how the quandaries of the Bush presidency were essentially those of conservatism itself, which was confronted by the hard realities of governance. They demonstrate how in fact Bush frequently disappointed the Right, and how Barack Obama's 2008 election victory cast the very tenets of conservatism in doubt.

History will be the ultimate judge of Bush's legacy, and the assessment begins with this book.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780691149011
Publisher:	Princeton University Press
Publication date:	10/03/2010
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	408
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 9.20(h) x 1.00(d)

About the Author

Julian E. Zelizer is professor of history and public affairs at Princeton University. He is the author of Arsenal of Democracy, On Capitol Hill, and Taxing America. He is a frequent contributor to CNN.com, Politico, and the New York Times, among others.

Table of Contents

List of Contributors ix

Acknowledgments xi

Chapter 1: Establishment Conservative: The Presidency of George W. Bush by JULIAN E. ZELIZER 1

Chapter 2: How Conservatives Learned to Stop Worrying and

Love Presidential Power by JULIAN E. ZELIZER 15

Chapter 3: A Sword and a Shield: The Uses of Law in the

Bush Administration by MARY L. DUDZIAK 39

Chapter 4: George W. Bush and the "War on Terror" by TIMOTHY NAFTALI 59

Chapter 5: Anatomy of an Unnecessary War: The Iraq Invasion by FREDRIK LOGEVALL 88

Chapter 6: Transformative Economic Policies: Tax Cutting, Stimuli, and Bailouts by JAMES T. PATTERSON 114

Chapter 7: Wreaking Havoc from Within: George W. Bush's Energy Policy in Historical Perspective by MEG JACOBS 139

Chapter 8: Ideology and Interest on the Social Policy Home Front by NELSON LICHTENSTEIN 169

Chapter 9: Creating Their Own Reality: The Bush Administration

and Expertise in a Polarized Age by DAVID GREENBERG 199

Chapter 10: Compassionate Conservatism: Religion in the Age of George W. Bush by KEVIN M. KRUSE 227

Chapter 11: Minorities, Multiculturalism, and the Presidency of George W. Bush by GARY GERSTLE 252

Chapter 12: From Hubris to Despair: George W. Bush and the Conservative Movement by MICHAEL KAZIN 282

Notes 303

Index 363

What People are Saying About This

Lassiter

George W. Bush once stated that 'we'll all be dead' by the time history casts its judgment on his presidency. Instead, in this engaging and timely portrait of the Bush era, eleven leading scholars assess the 'war on terror,' the resurrection of the imperial presidency, the effects of tax cuts and corporate deregulation, and other foreign and domestic policies promoted by big-government conservatism. While acknowledging the administration's political accomplishments, the contributors to this volume emphasize the ultimate failures of the Bush presidency and the conservative movement's strategies of governance.
— Matthew D. Lassiter, University of Michigan

Alice Kessler-Harris

This is a superb collection of essays. I am impressed with the range of issues they cover and the lucidity with which each essay illuminates a particular topic. Their interleaved and overlapping evidence reminds a general reader of the layers of meaning embedded in every political decision taken by the Bush administration—and the sometimes unfortunate consequences. This is an important and timely book.
— Alice Kessler-Harris, author of "In Pursuit of Equity"

Sugrue

With clarity and precision, some of America's most prominent historians of politics, law, and international relations examine the controversial presidency of George W. Bush. Their assessments of Bush's administration are sober, rigorous, and eye-opening. Together these essays will provide a foundation for the next generation of scholarship on early twenty-first-century America.
— Thomas J. Sugrue, author of "Not Even Past: Barack Obama and the Burden of Race"

Ira Katznelson

Analytically shrewd and historically rich, this harvest of a book convenes a group of leading historians to assess the country's recent past. Ranging from tax cuts to terrorism, and encompassing questions of ideology, multiculturalism, and presidential capacity, the contributions to this volume establish the scope and agenda for future studies of George W. Bush's tumultuous presidency.
— Ira Katznelson, Columbia University

From the Publisher

"An all-star cast of historians examines the perplexing presidency of George W. Bush—the 'compassionate conservative' who frequently ended up allied with the hard right, the 'uniter' who presided over one of the nation's most divisive political eras, the advocate of 'humility' on the world stage who fiercely championed unilateral presidential powers. After the journalists and pundits have had their say, the historians are here to put Bush's tumultuous tenure in historical perspective. An essential resource for anyone seeking to understand contemporary American politics."—Jacob S. Hacker, coauthor of Winner-Take-All Politics and Off Center

"With clarity and precision, some of America's most prominent historians of politics, law, and international relations examine the controversial presidency of George W. Bush. Their assessments of Bush's administration are sober, rigorous, and eye-opening. Together these essays will provide a foundation for the next generation of scholarship on early twenty-first-century America."—Thomas J. Sugrue, author of Not Even Past: Barack Obama and the Burden of Race

"George W. Bush once stated that 'we'll all be dead' by the time history casts its judgment on his presidency. Instead, in this engaging and timely portrait of the Bush era, eleven leading scholars assess the 'war on terror,' the resurrection of the imperial presidency, the effects of tax cuts and corporate deregulation, and other foreign and domestic policies promoted by big-government conservatism. While acknowledging the administration's political accomplishments, the contributors to this volume emphasize the ultimate failures of the Bush presidency and the conservative movement's strategies of governance."—Matthew D. Lassiter, University of Michigan

"Analytically shrewd and historically rich, this harvest of a book convenes a group of leading historians to assess the country's recent past. Ranging from tax cuts to terrorism, and encompassing questions of ideology, multiculturalism, and presidential capacity, the contributions to this volume establish the scope and agenda for future studies of George W. Bush's tumultuous presidency."—Ira Katznelson, Columbia University

"This impressive collection features brilliant essays by some of America's best historians on the presidency of George W. Bush. It's all here—from the Bush v. Gore Supreme Court decision that sealed Bush's first-term victory to the stunning financial crisis that closed his tenure in office. This stimulating and highly accessible volume is must reading for scholars, journalists, and concerned citizens."—Eric M. Patashnik, author of Reforms at Risk

"This is a superb collection of essays. I am impressed with the range of issues they cover and the lucidity with which each essay illuminates a particular topic. Their interleaved and overlapping evidence reminds a general reader of the layers of meaning embedded in every political decision taken by the Bush administration—and the sometimes unfortunate consequences. This is an important and timely book."—Alice Kessler-Harris, author of In Pursuit of Equity

Hacker

An all-star cast of historians examines the perplexing presidency of George W. Bush—the 'compassionate conservative' who frequently ended up allied with the hard right, the 'uniter' who presided over one of the nation's most divisive political eras, the advocate of 'humility' on the world stage who fiercely championed unilateral presidential powers. After the journalists and pundits have had their say, the historians are here to put Bush's tumultuous tenure in historical perspective. An essential resource for anyone seeking to understand contemporary American politics.
— Jacob S. Hacker, coauthor of "Winner-Take-All Politics" and "Off Center"

Patashnik

This impressive collection features brilliant essays by some of America's best historians on the presidency of George W. Bush. It's all here—from the Bush v. Gore Supreme Court decision that sealed Bush's first-term victory to the stunning financial crisis that closed his tenure in office. This stimulating and highly accessible volume is must reading for scholars, journalists, and concerned citizens.
— Eric M. Patashnik, author of "Reforms at Risk"

Editorial Reviews

"An interesting collection of essays."—-Nicholas Lemann, New Republic

"Julian E. Zelizer, an academic from Princeton and political commentator for CNN and The New York Times, has endeavoured to telescope the assessment of George W. Bush's presidency. Indeed, Zelizer and his distinguished fellow contributors, all senior academics from prestigious institutions ranging from Georgetown's Michael Kazin to Brown's James T. Patterson, make a virtue of their early conclusions about the 43rd president by highlighting that this is a first historical assessment. By and large they have written a critical but penetrating analysis of the years 2001 to 2009. A strength of this book is that it seeks to place the Bush presidency in the context of earlier Republican administrations."—-Stephen Loosley, Australian

From the Publisher

"A collaboration of distinguished scholars, this collection of a dozen essays evaluating the presidency of George W. Bush analyzes his performance in foreign and domestic policy."

Choice

Ultimately, the verdict of this thought-provoking anthology is that the Bush presidency, while certainly polarizing from a partisan perspective, was historically significant in terms of the development of American politics, policy, and institutions. If Zelizer and his colleagues do not have all the answers, they have certainly helped to provide a starting point for future studies of the obvious flaws and surprising virtues of this pivotal administration.

Canadian Journal of History - Andrew L. Johns

[T]he measured judgements of these essays are a welcome corrective for a presidency, and a president, that too often slide toward lurid caricature in public debate. Laying bare the appalling flaws and overlooked virtues of the Bush presidency, this judicious and informative collection is an impressive opening salvo in what is likely to be a long war.

49th Parallel - Patrick Andelic

Julian E. Zelizer, an academic from Princeton and political commentator for CNN and The New York Times, has endeavoured to telescope the assessment of George W. Bush's presidency. Indeed, Zelizer and his distinguished fellow contributors, all senior academics from prestigious institutions ranging from Georgetown's Michael Kazin to Brown's James T. Patterson, make a virtue of their early conclusions about the 43rd president by highlighting that this is a first historical assessment. By and large they have written a critical but penetrating analysis of the years 2001 to 2009. A strength of this book is that it seeks to place the Bush presidency in the context of earlier Republican administrations.

Australian - Stephen Loosley

An interesting collection of essays.

New Republic - Nicholas Lemann

[T]he measured judgements of these essays are a welcome corrective for a presidency, and a president, that too often slide toward lurid caricature in public debate. Laying bare the appalling flaws and overlooked virtues of the Bush presidency, this judicious and informative collection is an impressive opening salvo in what is likely to be a long war.
— Patrick Andelic

49th Parallel

Julian E. Zelizer, an academic from Princeton and political commentator for CNN and The New York Times, has endeavoured to telescope the assessment of George W. Bush's presidency. Indeed, Zelizer and his distinguished fellow contributors, all senior academics from prestigious institutions ranging from Georgetown's Michael Kazin to Brown's James T. Patterson, make a virtue of their early conclusions about the 43rd president by highlighting that this is a first historical assessment. By and large they have written a critical but penetrating analysis of the years 2001 to 2009. A strength of this book is that it seeks to place the Bush presidency in the context of earlier Republican administrations.
— Stephen Loosley

Australian

An interesting collection of essays.
— Nicholas Lemann

New Republic

Zelizer (history & public affairs, Princeton Univ.; Jimmy Carter) has gathered an A-list of American historians who present a detailed analysis of the presidency of George W. Bush. Each essay examines a particular facet of Bush's two terms, including such topics as terrorism, faith-based initiatives, energy policy, education, and the war in Iraq. Most of the 12 contributions are scholarly assessments without the partisan political rhetoric found on newspaper op-ed pages or cable TV news shows. Some of the essays, particularly those on the war in Iraq and Afghanistan, go over territory that will be familiar to most readers. The more interesting chapters, one by Zelizer, delve into Bush's place in the American conservative movement. Another thought-provoking treatise is David Greenberg's (history, journalism, & media studies, Rutgers Univ.) study of the Bush administration's denigration of professional expertise on subjects such as global warming, judicial nominations, and evolution. VERDICT It may be too soon for many readers to consider a historical analysis of the George W. Bush presidency. But Zelizer's work provides a valuable benchmark for historians to build upon.—Robert Bruce Slater, Stroudsburg, PA

Library Journal

Distinguished historians from MIT, Georgetown, Princeton, and other leading universities recount, almost exclusively, George W. Bush's failures, from the poorly planned and falsely fomented war in Iraq to the slow, tragic response to Hurricane Katrina. While none of the writers try for complete remove, they do an admirable job of bolstering their opinions with facts and even occasionally assess a rare success. Kevin M. Kruse, for instance, examines Bush's well-funded fight against AIDS in Africa, but also the collapse of his faith-based charitable programs. In "Minorities, Multiculturalism and the President of George W. Bush," Gary Gerstle shows keen insight into Bush's relationship with Latinos and African-Americans, writing that Bush "proved surprisingly cavalier about the discharge of even basic government duties," words that will no doubt remind readers of the disintegration of the American economy at the end of Bush's second term. Despite its title, this isn't the first assessment of this divisive president, but it may be the most reactionary.
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