This day couldn't have come sooner.

I had no sympathy when this man was jeered by the crowds before the inaurguation ceremony in front of the world. He truly deserved it. Too many lives perished under his Presidency and too many people suffered the consequence of decisions that seemed not clearly thought through. Bush lacked any leadership credentials. That's not good enough when you're considered by many to be the most powerful man on the planet. I'm struggling to understand how one of the most powerful countries in the world is now in so much trouble financially.

I don't think anything positive has come out of Bush's eight year administration. Not even his plight to help AID's and HIV in Africa can outweigh the catastrophic handling and response to Hurricane Katrina, Guatanamo Bay, The Iraq War or even 9/11. During those times Bush had more than one opportunity to shine and prove people wrong, but he did the complete opposite.

I know exactly how history is going to remember this man and I don't see anything positive. I don't even think President Bush himself realised just how much responsibility and power he had when he was in office. Proof of that was his final press interview in front of the world's media last week.

The final nail in the coffin was his arrogance and swagger when he had his last press interview amongst the world's media not fully realising that the world was actually watching. Again an opportunity to make people remember him in a positive light and he blew it again. Even then he didn't admit to any mistakes. He carried on with the self-righteous behaviour of a child who had been cornered who did something terribly wrong, but was too proud and arrogant to admit any wrong-doing. Disgraceful.

Yesterday when Barrack and Michelle Obama waved Bush and his family "Goodbye" and wished them well on his plane back to Texas was a moment to truly behold.
What an idiot.

In a way I feel bad for him. He left the Presidency on a fairly negative note. He never really recovered from all the bad publicity he got from the handling of Katrina or the War in Iraq. The collapse of the financial markets pretty much sealed the deal on the negative legacy. It must be hard leaving under a cloud. I'm not giving Bush any excuses, his legacy was strictly his doing, but I certainly can feel for the man.

And Barack Obama certainly didn't shy away from challenging Bush's legacy in his speech. He said that "the time to push away unpleasant decisions has passed". That was the sharpest jab.

How the history books remember Bush remains to be seen, but there's a good chance that history won't give him a positive verdict. Too many failures on too many fronts.

I can't help but to believe that he feels a great sense of relief that its over. Regardless of whether or not you think he was deserving of his fate, there is no denying he was treated like a punching bag (as was his predecessor). The degree of personalization in the game of American politics will have a long term effect on the quality of the participants who enter the fray.

President Bush's second term hasn't ended on a high note, and I know most Americans are happy to see him off. While I don't agree with him on a lot of his politics, Bush seems like a decent individual. It was pretty cool to see Laura Bush and he interacting so positively with Barack and Michele Obama. I think George Bush immediately becomes a lot more likable now that he no longer is responsible for much of our government's decision making.