George W. Bush is being hailed as the anti-Trump. But let's not forget what he actually did as president.

Before you applaud George W. Bush, remember his presidency

George Bush addresses the nation on Iraq, Sept. 13, 2007.
(Image credit: Aude Guerrucci-Pool/Getty Images)

Ex-presidents don't make a lot of speeches about current politics, so when they do, it's usually headline-making news. And when an ex-president makes a speech that's intensely critical of a sitting president from his own party, it's understandably an even bigger deal.

That's what George W. Bush did on Thursday. Even though he never mentioned Donald Trump by name, his implication was clear. Bush's speech was an eloquent, even inspiring call to a more humane brand of politics — one his party has enthusiastically turned its back on. "Discontent deepened and sharpened partisan conflicts," Bush said. "Bigotry seems emboldened. Our politics seems more vulnerable to conspiracy theories and outright fabrication." He insisted that "our identity as a nation — unlike many other nations — is not determined by geography or ethnicity, by soil or blood," going on to say that "this means that people of every race, religion, and ethnicity can be fully and equally American. It means that bigotry or white supremacy in any form is blasphemy against the American creed."

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Paul Waldman

Paul Waldman is a senior writer with The American Prospect magazine and a blogger for The Washington Post. His writing has appeared in dozens of newspapers, magazines, and web sites, and he is the author or co-author of four books on media and politics.