Former President George W. Bush has written a piece about George Washington, ostensibly for the President’s Day holiday:

As America’s first president, Washington knew “the first of everything in our situation will serve to establish a precedent.” So after two terms in office, with a distrust of long-seated rulers still fresh on America’s soul, Washington chose not to run again for president. And by once again relinquishing power rather than holding on to it, he ensured America wouldn’t become a monarchy, or worse.

Our first leader helped define not only the character of the presidency but the character of the country. Washington modeled what it means to put the good of the nation over self-interest and selfish ambition. He embodied integrity and modeled why it’s worth aspiring to. And he carried himself with dignity and self-restraint, honoring the office without allowing it to become invested with near-mythical powers.

Bush goes out of his way to avoid mentioning anything about current events in his essay. I suppose you can read into that whatever you want. Plenty of people are reading it as some thinly veiled criticism of the current president. Others see it as little more than a history lesson about the first president.

I read it as confirmation of George W. Bush’s cowardice.

Bush was tested immediately upon entering office in 2001, with the 9/11 attack. The country rallied around him, largely supporting his rhetoric and the retaliation against Afghanistan. He seemed to be the right leader for the moment.

Fast forward to 2008, and he left office deeply unpopular and has largely stayed out of politics ever since. Maintaining the informal practice of presidents not criticizing their successors, Bush has stayed quiet even while Trump has attacked the Bush family and the Constitution. Why?

This is Bush’s moment to actually demonstrate courage - not the kind of performative, risk-free gestures from 2001, but real moral courage that would cost him something politically. Bush has the unique standing as a former Republican president who could speak with real authority about democratic norms and institutional integrity.

The parallel to the Substack piece is stark: just as Bush sent others to fight while staying safe, he’s now staying silent while others - election workers, judges, civil servants, even his own former officials - bear the actual costs of standing up to Trump’s attacks on democratic institutions. He’s choosing personal safety (any remaining reputation within the party, his post-presidential comfort out-of-the-spotlight) over the kind of leadership the moment requires. Even Mike Pence has managed the bare minimum and criticized his former boss. It’s long past time for Bush to speak out publicly against Trump; did he not swear an oath to “preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States”?

I worked on President Bush’s re-election campaign in 2004, and then spent two years serving in his administration. I did not agree with every single policy (who possibly could?) but he was my president, he was mostly aligned with my own beliefs of the time, and he was generally thought to be a leader of good character. None of these things can be said of the current president.

I’m beginning to wonder if they could still be said of Bush?