Al didn't remind us that Bush is only the fourth U.S. president to win in the Electoral College without the popular votes. And Adams, Hayes and Harrison were tainted one-termers. Their meeting in front of cameras in Washington on Tuesday would permit closure to their ferocious 36-day stalemate. Gore's speechwriters, in fact, replayed lofty prose etched on Lincoln's monument. In truth, Bush had the harder task.
Most presidential winners appear before cheering mobs amid confetti and balloons.
But for Bush, there was no triumphant pomp. He appeared in the Texas Legislature in a room somber as a funeral home. Then, he thanked every volunteer, staffer, lawyer, clan member, seemingly the entire state of Texas. Bush quoted Thomas Jefferson after his close win over John Adams 200 years ago. Dubya's speechwriters goofed.