AP Photo

In early 2008, the French Foreign Minister, Bernard Kouchner, was asked whether the United States could repair the damage it had suffered to its reputation during the Bush presidency. His reply: “the magic is over….It will never be as it was before.”

Kouchner was not alone in his analysis. Former presidential candidate Howard Dean thought it would take decades to restore America’s prestige. Gore Vidal reportedly said it would take closer to a century.