History: How Bush Rates

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Michael Beschloss AUTHOR OF REACHING FOR GLORY: THE SECRET LYNDON JOHNSON TAPES, 1964-1965

A President must make sure that if he is getting the U.S. into a war, it is for a purpose that is worth it. Second, he must make sure that he tells the American people at the outset how costly this might be. In both cases I think Bush has done amazingly well. He told us that it could take years, that people will get impatient, that there may be setbacks, that it will not be easy and that it could cost a lot of blood and treasure.

Something he has done very well is use his voice. One of the biggest weapons in the American arsenal during World War II was Roosevelt's extraordinary bond with the American people. He talked to them over the radio. And they very much believed what he said. In Bush's case, his rhetoric obviously is very different from Roosevelt's, but there is that same kind of bond. When Bush talks you feel he is talking from his gut; you don't hear the sound of pollsters and consultants hovering in the background.

Another part of this story is that we Americans love it when there's a President whom many people disdained, who some people thought lacked any great qualities of leadership, and then suddenly the moment comes and he meets it and surprises us. It goes to the most basic American ideal, which is that to be a great President you don't have to be a bookish scholar, and you don't have to embody everything you might find in a civics book, but rather that the most important attributes are instinct and judgment, principles and values.

Doris Kearns Goodwin AUTHOR OF NO ORDINARY TIME, FRANKLIN AND ELEANOR ROOSEVELT: THE HOME FRONT IN WORLD WAR II

Crisis provides the opportunity for larger deeds, an opportunity to walk on a different stage. But that doesn't mean that Presidents will always make use of that opportunity. I think most Presidents would have taken action after Sept. 11. The question then becomes how it would have been orchestrated and how would it have been communicated to the American public.

George Bush has around him a strong group of foreign policy advisers. They had worked together in the past, they had experience, they knew this part of the world, they knew these problems. That put him in a better position than a rookie President with rookie advisers. But it also showed a strength, that he was willing to put people who had a stronger reputation and more experience into his Administration than he himself had. That action shows a certain self-confidence on the part of a leader. That's what Lincoln did in spades when he put into his Cabinet all the rivals who thought they should have been President instead of him.

David Kennedy PROFESSOR OF AMERICAN HISTORY AT STANFORD UNIVERSITY

The one great example of a successful war President in the 20th century is F.D.R. In addition to his political genius, he very clearly and consistently communicated to the American people what was at stake and why it was important for the U.S. to take part in this struggle. He created and sustained a solid backing of public opinion.