For much of the post-World War II era, the popularity of a president was largely determined by his success in foreign policy and in handling foreign crises. With the ending of the Cold War at the end of the 1980s, skills in handling domestic issues became equally important for presidents and their staffs. Presidents Bush (I) and Clinton are perfect examples of this; Bush’s popularity was sky-high after his Desert Storm victory, yet he ended up being defeated by Bill Clinton largely because of economic problems that developed in the closing years of his term. Despite a mountain of personal and ethical issues that surrounded him, President Clinton was able to keep high approval ratings because of a continuing successful economy.
THE 1988 ELECTION
Republican advertisements in 1988 touted George Bush as “the most qualified man of our times” to be president. Bush has served as a congressman, as the American ambassador to the United Nations, and as the director of the CIA. The New Right had never been entirely comfortable with Bush during his eight years as Reagan’s vice president; to appease them, he nominated Senator Dan Quayle, a staunch conservative, as his vice presidential nominee.
The Democrats nominated Massachusetts Governor Michael Dukakis as their candidate. Dukakis campaigned on his experience as a governor, touting the “Massachusetts miracle” that had pulled the state out of its economic doldrums. Televisions during the 1988 campaign were glutted with negative advertisements, the most notable being one that linked Dukakis to Willie Horton, a black man who raped a woman while taking advantage of a furlough program established in Massachusetts by the Governor. Bush won the election rather handily, despite being behind Dukakis in early polls.