If history is any indicator, the current yearnings by some Democrats for the days when George W. Bush was president mirror the way Republicans felt for former President Bill Clinton when Barack Obama was president, according to The Atlantic.
In an article published Tuesday, the magazine suggested the cause for the turnaround in both cases represented "both difference and distance," given the acrimonious nature of the relationship a party has when the opposing party holds the presidency.
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., recently told the magazine, "Did we ever think we would see the day when we would say, 'Please bring back George W. Bush'?"
"We really did work together," she said, adding Bush was someone Democrats could make a deal with.
This is especially striking considering the former president had an "historically unprecedented" low approval rating after leaving office. The article offered several reasons for the change of heart over Bush.
"His refusal to endorse Donald Trump, his decision to skip the Republican National Convention, and rumors that he supported Hillary Clinton in the 2016 election softened feelings about him," the Atlantic explained.
Republicans behaved in like manner over Clinton when Obama was president, where "they were actively yearning for his return," despite the disagreements, investigations, and an impeachment that took place during his administration.
The New York Times in 2010 reported that Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, said Clinton would "go down in history as a better president" than Obama.
And, current Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, R-Wis., said at the time "I enjoy Bill Clinton. The first two years of his term were one thing, but the rest of his presidency was tempered with moderation, and the nation benefited."
Down the road, The Atlantic posits the possibility President Donald Trump may also benefit from the same treatment one day, for instance should Texas Republican Sen. Ted Cruz become president, where Democrats may end up "complaining that unlike President Cruz, Trump was at least a pragmatist who was willing to negotiate."
"You can be surprised. But don't be too surprised," the article predicted.
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