Who Is George Bush?

Four years ago the Bushies made much of Al Gore's shifting personnas. To hear them tell it, Gore's overwhelming desire to be President engendered a win at all costs, say anything approach that, ironically, disqualified him from being worthy of the office. Gore, they claimed, went to great lengths to conceal who he was in order to make himself more palatable to the electorate.

Ironic. Now (and probably in 2000 as well) it is George Bush whose personality and traits must be concealed and re-worked for public consumption. The New York Times provides a glimpse.

Bush is consistently portrayed as an above-the-fray, compassionate conservative, eager to change the tone of political discourse. He "makes it a practice as president to speak disdainfully of politics and politicians as he travels the country, presenting himself as an outsider in the city where he lives." Yet that doesn't quite reconcile with the reality that "Mr. Bush has, along with Mr. Rove, been a driving force behind the attacks that have become a hallmark of his campaign." Is Bush the genial, common, everyman we've been spoon fed to believe he is? Maybe not:

One aide said a common scene in the White House these days was Mr. Bush, after reading the morning news accounts of the campaign, shouting, as he did a few weeks ago, "Hit him - we need to hit back."

Further evidence of Bush's shifting mien -- not to say flip flopping -- comes when considering his meda habits. Bush, we've been told for the past five years (see Brit Hume interview for but one example), doesn't bother with current events and newspapers. Yet:

On weekdays, aides say, the campaign essentially begins in the White House residence, where Mr. Bush rises at 5 a.m. to read the newspapers and check on the political news.

By 7 a.m., when he is in the Oval Office, aides say, Mr. Bush will frequently tell them about an article they have not seen and tell them to call the reporter and complain.

And then there's this:

Mr. Bush's advisers said he approached the campaign much the same way he approached the presidency. He was not, one said, a "micromanager," and was most interested in the broader strategic decisions made by the campaign.

Followed, two grafs later, with this decidedly micromanaging vignette:

He is involved in deciding the daily theme or attack of the day. While the vast majority of what he says is written by speechwriters, aides say he does write some of his own lines - usually attacks on his Democratic opponent.

Which is it? Does Bush read the papers or not? Is he the political genius this article portrays or the Texas hayseed that Bush himself likes to portray with his halting, convoluted syntax? Is Bush a master strategist who eschews micro management or the meddling tactician described by his aides? Is he the reluctant politician or the conniving back room operator eager for the fight? Is Bush a compassionate conservative or a frothing attack dog who revels in peppering his speeches with self-authored belligerence?

Who is George W. Bush? And can we trust the presidency to someone who lacks a strong sense of self and feels the need to reinvent himself during campaign season?