-Caveat Lector-
George Bush is dumb? That's stupid
Besides, history shows 'wonks' don't make the best presidents
Republican presidential candidate George W. Bush answers questions during a
town hall style event in Langhorne, Pa. last week.
By John H. Fund
MSNBC CONTRIBUTOR
Oct. 16 - "I've been known to mangle up a syl-LA-bull or two myself," said
George W. Bush as he purposefully mispronounced a word in his second debate
with Al Gore. Even Democrats who think of Bush as a "bumbler" must agree
that he exhibits few of the signs of insecurity that often accompany people
who are thrust into roles where they aren't ready.
'In his sophomore year at Harvard, Gore's grades were lower than any
semester recorded on Bush's transcript from Yale.'
- WASHINGTON POST
BUSH EXUDES confidence, purpose and a sense of humor about the
grammatical mistakes that have earned him the nickname "the English patient"
from reporters.
Then is he smart enough to be president? A successful governor of
Texas for six years, Bush has been accused of trading on his father's
prominence by the state's Democrats, but until now they've hardly ever
ventured to suggest he was dim. George W. Bush graduated from Yale and
earned an MBA from Harvard, racking up a respectable academic resume that
was clearly better than Gore's.
A FOR EFFORT
Earlier this year The Washington Post reported that Gore's college
grades were studded with Cs and even a D in one science course. "In his
sophomore year at Harvard, Gore's grades were lower than any semester
recorded on Bush's transcript from Yale," the Post noted. The newspaper went
on to outline Gore's spotty graduate school record. At Vanderbilt's divinity
school he received five Fs out of the eight classes he took before dropping
out. He then enrolled at Vanderbilt's law school, but dropped out after
compiling a mediocre academic record.
"This election is not an IQ test," says Jennifer Braceras, a
columnist for The Boston Globe. "It is about which candidate has better
judgment, and it's clear the affable, authentic and sensible Bush would make
the better leader."
Certainly intelligence or academic accomplishments haven't been a
good gauge of who would make a good president. Jimmy Carter was extremely
bright, but his presidency proved a failure in part because of his inability
to delegate authority (Remember Carter assigning the White House tennis
court times?) and his failure to command loyalty. Ronald Reagan, on the
other hand, was often ridiculed as an "amiable dunce," but historians
increasingly consider him one of the giants of the American presidency.
It is true that Bush became his party's candidate with less relevant
government experience and expertise in political debates than that of any
modern nominee. Some of the rough edges that come from that lack of
experience are painful to watch. But that was also true of Reagan and Harry
Truman before him.
October 3, 2000
At the first presidential debate Bush and Gore discuss issues of character
and who is best qualified to lead the country.
Former Reagan speechwriter Peggy Noonan recounts how in a recent
conversation with Reagan's former Secretary of State George Shultz, he
surprised her when he said he was backing Bush. "Does he have enough
experience?" she wondered. Shultz was impatient. "I've spent time with him,"
he said. "He's like Reagan. He's got it." By that he meant Bush had a
Reaganesque view of how to make things work along with a similar charm.
REAGANESQUE CHARM
I've thought a lot about that anecdote. Of course, Bush has
limitations, as we all do. But perhaps he's on his way to mastering some of
the essential elements of leadership that Reagan had - including a limited,
focused policy agenda and an ability to work well with others. An Opinion
Dynamics poll found that by 84 percent to 6 percent, voters preferred having
a candidate who occasionally misspeaks to one who "makes things up." We all
know who that latter candidate is.
I understand the qualms some people have about Bush, but after
watching Gore's shape-shifting changes of personality and demeanor in the
last two debates I'll take Bush's authenticity over Gore's policy wonkery
any day.
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John H. Fund is a member of the Wall Street Journal editorial board and a
regular contributor to MSNBC on the Internet.
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