I remember well in the 1980's the great friendship between Tip O'Neill and Ronald Reagan. They would go after each other tooth and nail, but they had an unwritten rule that after 5:00 the fighting would stop, and Tip often went by the White House to have a drink with Reagan.
During the Reagan tributes at the time of his death, there were recollections of the Friday evenings when Reagan would call O'Neill to the White House and order the White House steward to secure cold bottles of beer and Guinness. There was laughter and an occasional duet of "Danny Boy," echoing outside the windows of the Oval Office at night.
Don't mind the constant scrutiny of the President, whether Bush or Obama. It would be unpatriotic if we didn't have the constant voice of the loyal opposition. As citizens in a free state, we are obligated to question, and seek out and consider criticisms of the executive office, but we need not buy into them. It's how democracy works. The dangerous people are those that accept everything the President says without question.
