Joseph Nye

Judging the Capacity to Govern

George W. Bush promised compassionate conservatism and a humble foreign policy, but governed differently. Woodrow Wilson and Lyndon Johnson campaigned on the promise of peace, but shortly after their election, took the country to war. Does this make a mockery of democracy? How can voters make intelligent judgments when campaigns are so carefully scripted and slickly promoted?

(Boston Globe, March 14, 2008)