Congratulations to George W. Bush for his Paintings!

I never thought there would ever be an opportunity to congratulate George W. Bush. But there is. When his presidency ended in 2008, he left the White House in January 2009. Mr. Obama was sworn in as 44^th president of the United States. George W. Bush did something never before attempted, he left behind all specters of politics. Even during Mitt Romney run for the office of the presidency in 2012, he stayed away, said very little and immersed himself in doing something that’s relaxing, rewarding and help keep him grounded, away from politics.

George W. Bush embraced painting. The last political gesture, I would bet he had to, was to speak at the opening of his library in Dallas, TX on April 25, 2013. Although asked for comments in several occasions, George W. Bush resisted the idea of making political comment.

Ironically, two of the most prominent members of his cabinet, Dick Cheney – who may have used torture for relaxation – and Donald Rumsfeld – who was only aware of a couple of people who were tortured – , have been out there either drumming the beat of the good job they’ve done during their tenure which eventually led to the killing of bin laden or criticizing Obama for not taking a more bellicose stance with Russia.

Note: there should be a gag order for those two to never speak again, publicly.

During his presidency, it was difficult to be George W. Bush’s fan, especially after the revelation that he led the country to war on false premises, and spent millions of taxpayers’ dollars looking for Weapon of Mass Destruction (WMD) he knew didn’t exist. That was then. Mr. Bush has graciously redeemed his image. It’s not easy to stay away from politics, and yet George W. Bush has managed thus far not to even comment on criticisms directed at him. It takes real mastery.