In an article published in PopPolitics magazine, Jim Curtis reassesses George W. Bush’s presidency — and life — as an extreme form of American individualism.  Taking the worst (or best?) from such varied icons as Ralph Waldo Emerson and Frank Sinatra, Bush lives in a very comfortable, very American, bubble:

Now that George W. Bush’s career in politics is over, the time has come to figure out how he created the persona that mesmerized so many people for such a long time, and how he can remain in denial about the effects of his disastrous years in office.

Although he was a self-made man, he lacked serious professional or business credentials. He wasn’t talented enough to create a persona for himself, as Cary Grant did, and he wasn’t smart to do what Bill Clinton did - tweak the persona he grew up with. So, how did he do it?

He borrowed a persona that was readily available to him, one that met with the approval of the men at the country clubs and private compounds where he grew up. Bush modeled his public persona on that of Frank Sinatra.

Taking on this persona solved some crucial problems for Bush, both in relation to his father and to the rest of the world. More than anything else, Bush was the product of the marriage of politics and show business.

“When I get out of here, I’m getting off the stage,” Bush said at his last press conference. “I believe there ought to be one person in the klieg lights at a time, and I’ve had my time in the klieg lights.”

He thought of himself first and foremost, not as a politician, but as a performer. And not just any performer, but as a star — like Sinatra.

Continue reading “Ralph, Frank and George: The Persisting Cultural Logic of American Individualism.”