It was a fairly typical lunch at an academic conference in the East after the New Hampshire primary in 2008. There was a smattering of endowed professorships and international reputations at the table, perhaps eight academics in all. Along with the sweet tea and penne pasta came the inevitable skewering of George W. Bush.
"Never has a president experienced such horrible poll approval numbers in the midst of a war," one professor quipped.
"That is, if you overlook Harry Truman," I interjected into an uncomfortable silence.
It was going to be that kind of meal.