I remember watching the Watergate hearings, and cheering loudly while watching that asshole's resignation speech on TV. In fact, I kept that little black & white TV as a souvenir. After he resigned I was so relieved, assuming we'd never have such a douche as a president ever again.

But then there was Ronald Reagan. By his second term I was starting to miss Nixon, just a little bit.

Bush I was more annoying than truly loathsome, but I was very glad when Clinton handed him his ass.

Bush II, however, was even worse than Nixon or Reagan. He was far dumber than Nixon and more craven and cowardly than either of them. When his second term was over and he slithered back to Texas I thought, once again, that he was the worst possible president and we'll never see a worse one. And Cheney, who was almost certainly calling the shots most of the time, is pure evil.

Had John McCain been elected I don't think he would have been worse than Bush - though he'd have been pretty bad - but holy moly, did we dodge a bullet! If he had won and the strain of the job did him in, Sarah Palin's presidency would have been horrific beyond comprehension.

Fast forward to 2011 and the GOP primaries. Every last one of them was a terrifying mix of stupidity, lunacy and evil. Even Bush II started to look almost normal compared to these mutants. Romney and Ryan prove that the GOP has become utterly debased. It is not a legitimate political party any more. I don't know what it is, but it scares me.