Last week, some readers asked me what I plan to write about after Mr. Bush leaves office, and my answer was that there is plenty to write about in the aftermath of Mr. Bush. The mess the world finds itself in is not about to disappear anytime soon. I honestly believe that the current president has been insignificant in the scheme of things, and my pieces over the last five years have reflected that.

In my mind, the problem has not been with Mr. Bush per se for, after all, he remains a simple man, who in spite of graduate degrees from Ivy League institutions, has not demonstrated a profound understanding of politics, economics or culture. And what he did know was so narrowly defined by religious constraints that it was for all intents and purposes quite obsolete.

My gripe has been with the Republican Party for permitting itself to be hijacked by so-called neo-conservatives. Politically born in the ‘70s during the Nixon administration, the neo-cons emerged during the tenure of Mr. Reagan and George H.W. Bush. However, much of their plans met with only partial successes due to the unwillingness of the latter two presidents to defer to them on central issues confronting the country. They finally hit the jackpot with Bush II after a long and arduous search.

Listening to one of the radio shows that, according to the presenter, was “designed to drive liberals insane,” I was reminded that Bush is vacating the office as one of the most unpopular and despised of America’s presidents, but these guys are still here. Their leaders have arranged for themselves cushy jobs in an array of think tanks, as well as consultants or lobbyists. Their influence is far from over and has merely been moved underground where they feel most comfortable until the next opportunity presents itself to find another George W. to provide them the reins of power without accountability on a platter. In my view, the threat of terrorism to the United States and the world is insignificant when compared to the danger posed by these troglodytes.

Barack Obama will be facing a stiff headwind during the first four years and, irrespective of the lineup of experts he assembled from both parties to run the country, he will find himself handicapped by one obstacle after another. His first major policy test will not be posed by a foreign challenge but by a domestic one.

It is important not to forget that 48 percent of Americans, many of whom are young, didn’t vote for Obama and of these, 25 percent still think Bush is an excellent president. How was that possible? The answer can be found in the power of the media. In the past eight years, the leaders in power promoted and supported the growth of small television and radio media outlets into formidable networks that have become their voices and propaganda machines.

Some people will believe and buy anything if packaged in an ideologically adequate format.

Eight years of this rule has divided and turned America against itself. And if Americans expect Obama to wave a magic wand and heal it, they are sadly mistaken because all he can do is show them how. Only Americans can reclaim their country and its freedom, as well as ensure that this never happens again.