Presidents after leaving office

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In the U.S., when a president leaves office, some spend more time in the public eye than others. These days, Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton are always in the public eye (Bill mostly because Hillary is secretary of state). George H.W. Bush (Bush Sr.) is still fairly active, but not as much due to health reasons. Yet George W. Bush has almost never been seen since he left office.

I realize that even in the three years since he left office, he is still the subject of a lot of criticism (whether something was his fault or not). Yet even Richard Nixon was largely forgiven despite Watergate, yet GWB is still seen as the devil incarnate.

I don't think Bush is thought of as the devil incarnate, I just think Bush really doesn't want to be involved in politics anymore. His wife's book was really well received and a lot of people I know that I wouldn't of expected warmed up to him. I guess it makes things easier when your successor is essentially the same if not worse.

I think that as time moves on, you will see more of Bush II in the public eye. He was highly controversial and the US is still intertwined in many of the policies he pushed forward. As the wars wind down, the divisiveness fades and the Middle East stabilizes, I suspect you might see him step forward and reflect on his impact ... both the good and the bad. Like him or not, he is probably the most significant President the US has seen in the last several administrations.

Nixon wasn't really pardoned by the American public until the 1980s. I say dubya is probably going to stay out of the public eye for the next 5 years at the very least.

I think Dubya has had a greater negative impact than Nixon

The Indiana University newspaper had an interesting editorial opinion about Nixon just this week:
Nixon's Spirit of Moderation
I found it admirable that the young guy who wrote this took an objective look at Nixon's legacy. Nearly four decades after Watergate, there still aren't many journalists who will do that. Not in print, anyway.

The main difference between Nixon and any other president is he got caught. Though Watergate was certainly a dishonorable fiasco and Nixon was not completely honest on a lot of other things I'd say there have been far, far worse presidents

Neither can match Jimmy Carter in the negative impact department.

ruveyn

Which negative impact?

He gutted our military and he screwed up completely in dealing with Iran. Under Jimmy's watch Americans were held prisoner for 444 days. It took RWR to spring them. Jimmy Carter was a disgrace. He was the Looser in the White House.

ruveyn

Not so much gutted as froze pay increases, to curtail government spending. He also created 8 million jobs, handled an energy crisis and had an ill received but needed talk with America. Further on the military, he reduced troop levels on foreign soil and took US nukes out of South Korea. Carter's dealings with the Iranian hostage crisis did have an outcome which today is described as one of the most important arbitration bodies in the history of international law.

As opposed to W who sent the country into a deep recession, gutted government income while increasing the expenditures with a war on false pretense and created bad blood with just about every ally America has, I know who I'd prefer.