Every person has only so much attention to give, and politics and government takes up only a fraction of what it did 25 years ago.

This is easy to say with the benefit of hindsight, but I think it once again points out how very important style of leadership, that is the way he does what he does, is to his perception.

Research has shown that the perceived style of leadership is by far the most important thing to most voters in evaluating officeholders and candidates.

People just automatically say 'If this guy is George and Barbara Bush's son, we don't have any question about those personal qualities that we were fooled on by Clinton.'

Another cause for the increase in alienation and cynicism is a feeling that too many policy decisions that affect individuals have been taken out of any system that has accountability or that they can influence.

It is my belief that it is not the fact that he traveled as much as he did during the past few months as much as what he said and how he said it that hurt him.

Many citizens see all the leadership of these large institutions together in a conspiracy against them rather than in any adversary relationship with each other.