Richard Nixon resigned before he could be impeached. Then he was pardoned by Ford and never faced a judge or jury or any form of public justice. Except for being disbarred by the State of New York, he received little institutional punishment. But his name and his presidency are linked forever with the sobriquet "Tricky Dick" and that is fitting considering all the other punishment he escaped for the wrong he had done.
By what political nickname does George Walker Bush deserve to be remembered? What ignominious nickname will follow him in life and death, defining forever his place in history? Daily Kos can and should have a hand in determining that piece of his legacy.
In response to Meteor Blades excellent diary marking five years of prisoners at Gitmo, a poster took MB to task for the use of "Dubyanocchio", claiming that we should hold ourselves to a higher standard and be above that sort of name calling.
I said in response that ridicule is an art form that has been used to bring down tyrants since the dawn of recorded history (and probably even before that). Since we are better than our opponents at various forms of artistic expression (including satire and comedy) I believe we should use every advantage available to us.
Personally, I usually stick with GWB, GDub, Dubya and other plays on his name rather than the more colorful descriptors that are out there, although I will admit to a fondness for "Worst President Ever." I've heard anecdotally that some of his people are very sensitive about "Smirking Chimp" (a rumor given additional credence by Tony Snow's reference to smirking on January 4 when addressing the White House Press Corps).
In the poll I have included some of the names I see most often that I think have a chance to follow GWB throughout history even after his presidency finally, mercifully, comes to an end; the kind of name that even respectable news outlets may eventually adopt and acknowledge, such that we might someday read or hear:
George W. Bush, affectionately called Bush 43 by his supporters but referred to by his political opponents as "Worst President Ever", dedicated his presidential library today; the small invited gathering of well-heeled supporters was greatly outnumbered by a large crowd of protesters representing a cross-section of the majority of the American people.
Do you use any of these names in your diaries or comments or conversations? Which ones do you have on your bumper stickers and t-shirts and buttons? Are there some that you think are just too far over the line? Obviously the poll doesn't have enough spaces to include the multitude of names that are out there. I found a Table Talk thread from the summer of 2001 has 470 posts. Another list appears on the About.com political humor page. Democratic Underground has a very long list compiled in November 2005 that is frequently copied to other websites. If you have a favorite that is not included, please mention it in the comments.
Obviously the ones with profanity, and Godwin's Law variations like BusHitler or Bu{swastika}h (substitute a swastika for the "s") and Wussolini (just turn the M upside down) will never go mainstream. But as his reign of terror comes to a close, and as more and more people wake up to how awful Bush has been and how ridicule is the least of what he deserves for the wrong he has done, one name is likely to percolate to the top of the list pretty soon.
So what will be the GWB equivalent of "Tricky Dick"? If you could be the one to decide which label of ridicule will forever define George W. Bush and his place in political history, what name would you choose?