The Early Bush Administration

Early on in the Bush administration, I felt a certain wary optimism. I didn't agree with his platform on many things, but there were a few key things I did agree with, so I watched. And waited. There were some good signs at first. He chose many moderates for his cabinet, like Colin Powell and several middle-of-the-road Republican governors. He increased the military budget, which was sorely needed after the Clinton administration's policy of funding peacekeeping operations by shifting money from training and procurement.

But there were signs of trouble already on the horizon. Perhaps the earliest was the faith-based initiatives office. His administration was just as weak-willed as his predecessors about confronting China, and took a meek stance after the Chinese forced an American plane in international airspace to land, and held both plane and crew captive. Then there was the virtual ban on stem cell research funding.

Then came 9/11, and the world changed.