To a lot of people on the right he was a RINO or pretty close to it. McCain was a centrist as well and the right considered him even more of a RINO. So I don't buy the argument that many are making that the country is looking for a centrist. I think a lot of people on the right are looking for a true conservative not some wishy washy compassionate conservative, and not just the tea party. I also don't think the left was looking for a comprising moderate when they elected Obama.

Iraq is what really hurt Bush though and then of course the near collapse of our finical system didn't help. i think that if the country had not lost faith with him in Iraq his numbers would have held up much better. Odd when you think that he was right about the surge and all the people calling him Dubba were wrong. That could be another reason people hate him, no one likes to be proven wrong by someone they don't respect.