It Could Have Been Worse

Like a lot of people, I've got a bright yellow "W: Worst President Ever" bumper sticker on my car. Jimmy Carter jumped on the "Worst Ever" bandwagon by saying that "I think as far as the adverse impact on the nation around the world, this administration has been the worst in history." In other words, the Bush administration is the worst ever because the invasion of Iraq and their general foreign policy have been such an unmitigated disaster. But he goes further and here is where you have to wonder if things could have gotten even worse. Carter is just as disturbed by the "overt reversal of America's basic values" embodied in the torture policy, Guantanamo, warrantless wiretapping, and other forms of Bush lawlessness. Given the unpopularity of the Bush administration, it is likely that Bush's assault on "basic American values" will be reversed when a Democratic president takes office in 2009. But what if the invasion of Iraq had been more successful. Would that mean that the Bush administration's "reversal of America's basic values" would have been successful as well? Perhaps there is a silver lining to American failure in Iraq after all.