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After his powers as the Commander in Chief the presidency is a relatively weak institution. That is not to say that the Bush presidency has not tipped to scales back towards a strength of office unseen since before Watergate. But the real power lays with the Congress. Disaster will emanate from the Congress, if at all.
One might bear in mind that the nation found it necessary to experience the cathartic effects of the Carter presidency before it could elect Ronald Reagan. The American people may on occasion be foolish but it is not a terminal condition. Lincoln said that, "you may fool all of the people some of the time, and some of the people all of the time, but you cannot fool all of the people all of the time".
Let us also remember that President Bush was largely a popular president for much of his eight years. One can expect a President Obama to commence his term with a less than astounding approval rating. And it's not easy to revolutionize the government and the society that the original revolution wrought.
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