Black Box Report

With his tenure in office in the final stretch, and perhaps sensing the need to achieve something positive during his presidency, George W. Bush decided to go to the Middle East and make a bid for that Holy Grail of presidential accomplishments: peace in the Middle East. Mr. Bush is very confident this will happen by the end of his term. Everyone else? Not so much:

It's difficult to find a soul who isn't skeptical about Bush's Mid-East tour - both its purpose and the fact the tour is intended to improve on a mess whose perpetuation the visitor, Bush, is considered to be largely responsible for.

Oh, I don't know. You know what they say about Bush, don't misunderestimate him. He's a uniter, not a divider:

The fact is, Bush's genius for bringing people together has already had an impact on the Middle East. Apparently he is soundly hated by both pro- and anti-Hamas forces alike.

It's telling that with the incredibly volatile situation in the region, made moreso by his own foreign policy, Bush waits until now to even attempt some first-hand diplomacy. And even though he's endorsed full statehood for Palestinians, even they don't think Bush can get it done. An op-ed in the Lebanon Daily Star calls it too little, too late:

His belated push for Middle East peace during his final months in office is about as likely to succeed as the efforts of a lazy student who whittles away an entire semester in fraternity halls before cramming at the last minute for final exams.

Why should he treat the Middle East any differently than Yale?

So, if we go out on a limb and predict Bush will not achieve peace in the Middle East, what has the trip accomplished?

Most agree that it is, at best, a photo op, a vacation. Most also agree that this trip should have come seven years ago. But that would have taken real statesmanship: the ability to talk, but more importantly, the ability to listen and weigh opinions before making decisions. The ability to project a version of American power that does not bully and humiliate, but inspires hope and resolves conflict. The ability to create common ground, not a distinctly American form of sectarian conflict.

Let Bush’s trip, as one snapshot of the culmination of decades of American foreign policy failures, stand as an example for our next president of exactly how not to behave on the international stage.

"How not to behave..." Now that sounds like his legacy.