Proving F. Scott Wrong

This post was inspired by a piece on Chris Matthews' show this morning. He referred to F. Scott Fitzgerald's assertion that "there are no second acts in American life," and spotlighted his own admiration for the truly world-changing work that Bill Clinton has been doing since leaving the Presidency. Esquire magazine has a cover story this month written by Joe Conason on what he's calling Clinton's "Third Term," his crusade through the Clinton Global Initiative to combat AIDS around the world.

I've read the article and it's fascinating. Bill Clinton continues to be a major force in the world - he's largely taken himself out of capital-P Politics, and is instead really trying to use his influence and resources to save lives. He cites Jimmy Carter as his own mentor/model on what can be done post-presidency, and the parallels are clear. I was reinspired myself a few weeks ago when Jimmy Carter was making his rounds on the talk shows with his new book, since Carter really does seem to be the ideal model for what someone with that level of power and access can accomplish. Who better to take on the "world's greatest problems, from war to pollution..." than an ex-President. (Sorry for the Evita reference, it just popped in there.) The SNL cartoon aside, this is a very small pool of gentlemen who really have the opportunity and the ability to be change agents.

I had a lengthy conversation with my mother (whom I turn to with any questions about 1960's-80's history that I never learned in school) about modern Presidents and what they have done after leaving office. I'm familiar with Clinton, Carter, and George H. W. Bush, of course, but I was a little fuzzy on what Nixon did after leaving office. I remember when he passed away, I was a freshman in college then, but my only memory of him really growing up was the lingering legacy of Watergate and not anything that he was doing as a statesman. But Mom told me more about his continued efforts to build good relations with China, and how that did help restore his reputation and remove some of the stain of Watergate. Interesting.

It is inpsiring (or at least to someone who wants to be a believer, like me) to see what these leaders are able to accomplish once they no longer have to live within the bounds of partisan politics and agendas. After the next 3 years and the planning/fundraising for the Library and all are done, I'm interested to see what Bush 43 does with his time. He'll also be a young ex-President with the possiblity of several decades in which to pursue whatever he wants. The cynic in me expects him to just join the Carlyle Group or something similar. But I wouldn't mind being surprised to see him take on some of the issues that have come up in his Presidency -- domestic infrastructure, poverty, public health. We'll be watching.

FYI, If anyone wants to read that subscription-only Esquire article let me know and I can share it....