By Bob Morgan, Jr.

Just before the pomp and excitement of the inauguration of a new president, it might be interesting to look back at the tenure of President George W. Bush.

Mr. Bush, of course, came to office after the very controversial 2000 election which centered around a disputed count in Florida. For six weeks after the election, the outcome seesawed until the United States Supreme Court decided the contest in favor of Mr. Bush.

In retrospect, it would have been better if the camps of Mr. Bush and Mr. Gore had agreed to a timely statewide recount using uniform standards, but this never happened. (Later attempts by newspapers to recreate such a recount indicated that Mr. Bush may have prevailed.) As it was, Mr. Bush, who did not win a plurality of the popular vote, was inaugurated under controversial circumstances.

While Mr. Bush's first months in office were largely uneventful (beyond passage of a major tax reduction bill), the tragic events of September 11, 2001 marked the most dramatic moments of his presidency. After some hesitancy, the president found his voice, both with a bullhorn at the World Trade Center site and in an address to the American people. He then launched an attack in Afghanistan, which quickly ousted the Taliban extremists running that country. Mr. Bush's popularity soared at one point to the 90 percent range.

Mr. Bush, however, launched a controversial invasion of Iraq in the early 2003. The initial aim of the mission, the overthrow of the Saddam Hussein regime, was accomplished quickly and efficiently. Nevertheless, despite claims that there were weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, such weapons were largely absent. In addition, sectarian violence began to break out in many places.

Despite the rising toll in Iraq, Mr. Bush was able to defeat Democrat John Kerry in the 2004 election in a close vote. The contest largely turned on national security issues, and a majority favored the resolute course advocated by Mr. Bush to Mr. Kerry's "flip flops" on foreign policy, as Republicans called them. Mr. Kerry was never quite able to articulate his plan for Iraq,

Mr. Bush's second term did not begin well. He was unsuccessful in his signature issue, social security reform, and was tarred by inadequate response at all governmental levels to the Katrina hurricane. The war in Iraq was increasingly bloody and stalemated. In November 2006, the Democrats regained control of Congress.

In his last two years, Mr. Bush had one resounding success. His "surge" in Iraq, generally derided by his opponents, began to work and the security situation in the country increased markedly. Unfortunately, this success was largely overshadowed by a declining economy in 2008, which led to a Wall Street panic in September and a massive governmental bailout.

Mr. Bush leaves office with very low approval ratings, but it seems likely that history will judge him kinder. Mr. Bush's major personal shortcomings were a lack of ability to articulate his message and occasional lack of intellectual curiosity. Nevertheless, Mr. Bush's vigilance was likely responsible for the absence of another attack on the United States. His signature foreign policy initiative, the war in Iraq, appears headed for considerable success. While the current economy is bad, it is well to remember that Mr. Bush himself inherited a recession and that economic times were mostly good during his tenure. Moreover, both parties share the responsibility for a housing market that encouraged unqualified buyers to purchase homes.

It will be a mixed legacy, but President Bush certainly did his best in the face of difficult times.