Most evenings between 8 and 10, George Bush excuses himself from the company of friends and family in order to be alone. As he has done for years, he retreats to a private study, now on the second floor of the White House, to read and write cards and thank-you notes to friends, political allies and even perfect strangers. This ever growing list of correspondents has served Bush well in difficult times, and may soon do so again. Last week the President added a new name to his address book: that of Iranian President Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani.
The two men are hardly likely to become pen pals. But as the U.S. Government once again searched for a way to free American hostages held in the Middle East, Bush's communications with Rafsanjani have moved from cautious feelers through intermediaries to more direct, leader-to-leader messages. Working closely with his top foreign policy advisers, the President personally authored several of the diplomatic notes sent to Iran through Swiss embassy channels.
As his Administration explored this latest opening to Iran, Bush was at pains to steer clear of the mistakes that toppled Jimmy Carter's presidency and badly tarnished Ronald Reagan's. While pointedly refusing to offer any quid pro quo, he stepped carefully back from Reagan's stated policy of never negotiating with terrorists. If the hostages come home, Bush hinted, he might consider releasing Iranian assets -- principally undelivered weapons paid for in advance -- that have been frozen by the U.S. since 1979. "Goodwill begets goodwill," he said, quoting his own Inaugural Address.
George Bush's handling of the hostage crisis illustrates some of the main characteristics of his decision-making style:
-- He is a cautious, reactive President, whose first concern in a crisis is to avoid mistakes.
-- Bush cares deeply about a handful of core values -- family, loyalty, service to country -- but regards almost everything else as negotiable.
-- He searches out advice and prefers to choose among alternatives rather than devise his own solutions. "Have Half," his childhood nickname, suits him: he still likes to split the difference.
-- When persuasive leadership is required, Bush instinctively reaches not for a TV camera but for a telephone, working his will among fellow heads of state and Washington insiders rather than through Reagan-like appeals to public opinion.
-- Guided by an inner clock that sometimes frustrates his aides, Bush decides at his own speed and rarely looks back in doubt later.
After seven months as President, Bush has emerged as a much more complex Commander in Chief than expected, a hybrid of presidential personalities served and observed. Bush possesses Lyndon Johnson's penchant for secrecy, without retributive sense of justice. He has Richard Nixon's feel for foreign policy, but so far lacks his mentor's grip on grand strategy. He shares Jimmy Carter's fascination with the fine details of government, but understands better which pieces are most important. Bush says he learned from Reagan the importance of stubborn principle in politics, but he sees more clearly than Reagan the sweet reason of expedient compromise.