‘FIVE PRESIDENTS’ – A Legacy of Leadership

The last time the American political system had a Republican incumbent beaten by a Democrat was in 1992. President George H.W. Bush, fresh off soaring ratings in the spring from his handling of Desert Storm and, he thought, coasting to a second term, was side-winded by Ross Perot, whose competing run split the vote and elected Bill Clinton to the presidency. (As I recall, the economy tanked in the fall run-up to the election, which didn’t help.) President Gerald Ford's legacy, hovering eternally in the shadow of his pardon of President Richard Nixon, cleared a path for President Jimmy Carter. Carter’s handling of the Iran hostage crisis helped pave the way for the Ronald Reagan/Bush years and led to the first time either party held the office for three consecutive terms since Franklin Delano Roosevelt.