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"You may not agree with some tough decisions I have made. But I hope you can agree that I was willing to make the tough decisions..."
Last night about halfway into his thirteen minutes of prepared farewell remarks President George W. Bush uttered those words and for many watching it was all downhill from there.
With his recent approval ratings the lowest of any U.S. president in modern history it's clear that many Americans soured on President Bush, particularly during his second term in office.
But a lot of those same Americans tuned in anyway to say goodbye to the president, their president, who for all his missteps still commanded the great honor and respect due his office.
In return they may have expected, certainly not remorse or regret, but maybe just a little something like acknowledgement, some small sense of a new lesson learned or a new perspective gained. A little salve for a multitude of wounds.
Instead, what they saw was simply more of the same. President Bush reciting from a list of prepared accomplishments with his best "take me as I am or don't take me at all" demeanor perfectly intact.
He offered no fresh revelations and, unless one considers his advice to the country to "never let down our guard" somehow inspirational, little more in the way of a vision of his continued hope for the nation's future.
But in the end perhaps it truly was a fitting finale.
During his two-terms in office it was often reported that President Bush hardly seemed more at peace than when he was driving his pickup truck around his family's ranch in Crawford, Texas.
There is little doubt that he is a true cowboy at heart. And so what he gave to the American people was a cowboy's finish--a lone ranger, head held high, face fixed, riding off into the sunset...back to the ranch.
Goodbye President Bush, and may peace be with you.
