Moving Right Along to a Story of Political Courage

During a recent Brit Hume interview the nation got a glimpse of the man who will soon retire from the presidency.

George W. Bush in this interview exudes a sense of right and strength that US presidents do not often have the opportunity to demonstrate. Abraham Lincoln in the darkest days of the Civil War seemed to stand almost alone with the military fighting for what he saw as right. Ulysses S. Grant while president stood almost alone in his insistence that the United States would stand for justice against the terror of the Ku Klux Klan.

Bush revealed this week that many of his strongest opponents on the War in Iraq came from within his own party. They tried to exert powerful pressure on the president to "cut and run" from Iraq, fearing more for Republican defeats than the collapse of an eventually successful American policy. Bush remembered "The biggest disappointment in the political process, that's been this kind of bitterness by a few people to the point where they don't want to have a logical discussion or a civil discussion about policy," he said. "They just want to tear you down."

George W. Bush will be vindicated by history. Winning in Iraq will help to sway the future to his side, but so will the resiliency he showed in the face of "offensive" critics. We all can learn from an example of a man who made tough decisions and stuck by them. President Bush never cared for popularity, only for doing right. We may disagree with him on some issues, but as time passes, we and most Americans will grow to respect his toughness and courage in the face of critics at home and terror around the world.

When asked how well he was doing as he exits the presidency, he responded,

"I'm better than fine -- I am proud of the accomplishments of this administration," he said. "I know I gave it my all for eight years, and I did not sell my soul for the sake of popularity. And so when I get back home and look in the mirror, I will be proud of what I see."