Bryan Hilliard is Assistant Professor of Philosophy at New England College. He is the coeditor (with Tom Lansford, J. L. Walsh, and Patrick Hayden) of Debating Environmental Regimes. Tom Lansford is Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of Southern Mississippi on the Gulf Coast. Robert P. Watson is Associate Professor of Political Science at Florida Atlantic University. He is the author and editor of several books, including Life in the White House: A Social History of the First Family and the President's House, published by SUNY Press.

"This clear, concise, and easy-to-read book is an important contribution to early assessments of Bush and presidential leadership at the start of the twenty-first century." - Lori Cox Han, author of Governing from Center Stage: White House Communication Strategies During the Television Age of Politics"

• Preface Introduction Robert P. Watson, Bryan Hilliard, and Tom Lansford Part 1: Leadership and Character 1. The Arbiter of Fate: The Presidential Character of George W. BushBill Kirtley 2. Compassionate Conservativism Meets CommunitarianismW. W. Riggs 3. The Embryonic Stem Cell Debate and the Battle between Politics and EthicsBryan Hilliard Part 2: Domestic Policy 4. An Early Assessment of President George W. Bush and the EnvironmentGlen Sussman and Byron W. Daynes 5. Vigor and Vacillation: An Early Assessment of Bush's Economic PolicyChris J. Dolan 6. Ironing Out Reelection: George W. Bush and the Politics of SteelDouglas M. Brattebo 7. The Politics behind Bush's No Child Left Behind Initiative: Ideas, Elections, and Top-DownEducation ReformRobert Maranto, with Laura Coppeto Part 3: Foreign Policy and the War on Terror 8. The Bush Doctrine: Redefining the U.S. Role in World Politics for the Twenty-first Century?Cameron G. Thies 9. A United Front? The Bush Administration, Coalition Diplomacy, and the Military Campaign in AfghanistanTom Lansford 10. The Bush Military Tribunal: Relying on the Nazi Saboteur CaseLouis Fisher 11. The War on Terrorism and Homeland Security: Presidential and Congressional ChallengesRichard S. Conley Part 4: The Bush Administration 12. The Bush White House: Comparisons with Previous White HousesBradley H. Patterson Jr. 13. Vice President Dick Cheney: Trendsetter or Just Your Typical Veep?Jack Lechelt 14. "Comforter in Chief": The Transformation of First Lady Laura BushRobert P. Watson ConclusionRobert P. Watson, Tom Lansford, and Bryan Hilliard Appendix About the Contributors Index