Journalists, scholars judge Bush presidency

   Leading scholars of the U.S. presidency and journalists will gather for a conference on "The George W. Bush Presidency: An Early Assessment" Friday and Saturday at Princeton University.
   The event will run from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Friday and from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday in Room 104 of the Computer Science Building.
   "The presidency of George W. Bush has been fascinating, controversial and unexpectedly eventful," said conference organizer Fred Greenstein, professor of politics emeritus and chairman of the Program in Leadership Studies in the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs.
   "There are no shortages of defenses of and critiques of Bush and his presidency, but there has been more heat than illumination," Professor Greenstein said.
   Scholars from around the country will present papers at four of the sessions. The plan is for the papers to be published in a scholarly volume.
   A fifth session, scheduled for 1 p.m. Friday, will feature a roundtable discussion of journalists who have covered the Bush presidency, including Dan Balz of The Washington Post, Carl Cannon of National Journal, Jeanne Cummings of The Wall Street Journal and Todd Purdum of The New York Times. Mike McCurry, former press secretary to President Bill Clinton, also will participate in the roundtable.
   The conference is free and open to the public. It is sponsored by the Program in Leadership Studies, the Center for the Study of Democratic Politics, the Center of International Studies and the Woodrow Wilson School.