EDITORIAL

Maybe President Barack Obama is on to something. His smooth reversal on opening the door for possible prosecution of former officials with the administration of George W. Bush—those who devised the legal authority for severe interrogation of terrorists—could be the start of something big.

Ultimately, Bush might find himself on the hot seat for being a part of the torture-based grillings.

Perhaps it would allow the proposed congressional probe to look a little deeper into all presidential failures.

Going back, Bill Clinton was never effectively chastised for having seduced a young woman in the White House.

Of far greater consequence, Clinton allowed Osama bin Laden to roam free and plan the 9/11 attacks that surpassed the first World Trade Center bombing in 1993.

As the 42nd U.S. president, Clinton oversaw the giveaway of this country's manufacturing base. It was on his watch that America suffered defeats and indignities at the hands of enemies—two bombings of American embassies in Africa in 1998 and the horror of dead American soldiers being dragged through the streets of Mogadishu in 1993.

President George H.W. Bush could be reprimanded for lying. Wasn't it he who said, "Read my lips, no new taxes"— and then proceeded to hike the taxes?

President Ronald Reagan's War on Drugs failed to stem the flow of drugs into this country, despite the $1.7 billion allotted to eliminate the problem, while his policies on the treatment of mental illness resulted in a flood of homeless persons on the streets.

President Jimmy Carter should be investigated for allowing the Iranian government in 1979 to hold American hostages for 444 days after they were dragged out of the embassy by so-called students.

Handing over control of the Panama Canal to Panama was hardly Carter's finest moment.

President Gerald Ford, who rose to the office because his predecessor resigned in disgrace, would seem to escape blame, although many resented his pardon of Richard Nixon. At least Nixon paid a price by losing the presidency because of the Watergate scandal.

Presidents Lyndon Johnson and John F. Kennedy should be admonished posthumously for their part in the Vietnam War. We never should have gone there in the first place—only to have it escalate to disastrous proportions.

Kennedy's mishandling of the Bay of Pigs affair, which cemented Castro's takeover of Cuba, is worthy of a probe.

How about holding President Eisenhower responsible for the deaths of thousands of U.S. Soldiers in the D-Day landing while he was head of the Army?

Let's not forget to rebuke President Harry Truman for the devastation and civilian deaths caused by dropping two atom bombs on Japan.

The list is endless. President Obama had best take care in opening the door to presidential castigation.