The Bush Presidency

[Direckshun]

A week or two ago, patteeu and I were rehashing some of the accomplishments and disasters of the Bush administration.

It's been four years since the guy was in office, and seemingly a year or two since I'd had an in-depth conversation about his Presidency.

This was a week or so after I offered my extensive list of accomplishments of first-term Obama, and I know I'm not exactly the audience Bush was playing to, but if you had to carve out a list of things Bush had done over two terms, it is truly striking exactly how shitty his Presidency was.

• Lost the popular vote in his first election.
• Largest domestic terrorist strike on American soil in American history.
• Two rounds of huge tax cuts that disproportionately benefited the wealthy that now even Republicans on this board want to see gone for everybody.
• Medicare Part D, not altogether a bad program but exploded the deficit.
• The beginning of the longest war in American history in Afghanistan, with an undersized troop presence.
• The war in Iraq. Yeah.
• A massive, federal expansion of education policy -- literally called No Child Left Behind.
• John Roberts (slam dunk), Harriet Miers (****ing disaster town), Samuel Alito (partisan selection).
• Attempted to privatize social security.
• Oversaw a complete cratering of our economy built on reckless Wall Street abuse and a home ownership bubble.
• Dramatically worsened American standing diplomatically, largely due to the Iraq War.
• Authorized "enhanced interrogation."
• Appointed Ben Bernanke to the Fed, a move that conservatives now despise.
• Presided over the cluster**** of Hurricane Katrina.
• Initiated a domestic wiretapping program that forewent judicial oversight.
• The Patriot Act in general.
• Surged American troops and resources (bribes) in Iraq in an attempt to get Iraq under control.
• Captured Saddam Hussein and facilitated his trial at the hands of the Iraqis.
• Took our surplus at the turn of the century and turned it into a trillion-dollar deficit.
• A nobel attempt at immigration reform that was shot down by his own party.
• Initiated a $700 billion bailout of Wall Street following the catastrophic economic collapse at the end of his administration.
• Pushed an attempt to ban gay marriage in the Constitution.
• Vetoed embryonic stem cell research.
• Provided unprecedented support to Africa to combat AIDS.
• Created the Department of Homeland Security, a bureaucratic boondoggle that doesn't make us any safer.
• Openly supported a two-state solution in Israel, but did little to accomplish it.
• Had a shoe tossed at him.

Obviously not all bad. But a lot of it is ****ing horrendous.

[J Diddy]

Originally Posted by CoMoChief

No it's because most liberals think like children.

and you are an example of a conservative who acts like one. Quit your crying, take the clown shoes off, and be civil you ****ing moron.

[HonestChieffan]

****er cut down the cherry tree in White House lawn that was planted by Mary Todd Lincoln as his first act in the War On Women. Fu george just fu

[Chief Faithful]

I don't understand how there is a budget deficit when there has not been a budget since Bush.

[FishingRod]

"Two rounds of huge tax cuts that disproportionately benefited the wealthy that now even Republicans on this board want to see gone for everybody. "


One can’t help but marvel at the chutzpa it takes that after a decade of whining about how the Middle class and poor didn’t get anything out of these cuts now, they are untouchable because they really help the little guy.

[J Diddy]

Originally Posted by Chief Faithful

I don't understand how there is a budget deficit when there has not been a budget since Bush.

Sure makes it easier.

[patteeu]

When Bush left office, he left his successor at least four works in progress:

1. The Iraq war had been won, but it was going to take some ongoing effort to foster a Western-friendly, freedom-preserving government.

2. Taming Afghanistan was always a questionable prospect, but thanks to intelligence gains made possible by our work in the region, our interrogation practices, and the initiation of cross-border drone strikes, the noose around Osama bin Laden and senior al Qaeda leaderships' necks was getting tighter.

3. The liberation of the Iraqi people, along with the freedom message preached by the Bush administration made the middle east ripe for the subsequent Arab Spring.

4. Quick action by the Bush administration in the form of TARP prevented a banking meltdown that might have dragged our economy down to Depression depths.

Unfortunately, followup by Barack Obama was seriously deficient. Four chances to benefit the country and the early returns suggest he only scored on one of them.

1. It remains to be seen how Iraq will work out in the long run, but at this point it appears that Barack Obama will have snatched defeat from the jaws of victory. He failed to negotiate of Status of Forces agreement leading to a more precipitous withdrawal than necessary or desirable.

2. Kudos to the Obama administration for knocking off bin Laden and keeping the pressure on al Qaeda in AfPak.

3. The Arab Spring has been seriously mishandled by the Obama administration. He was quick to abandon allies and those who were cooperative and slow to confront enemies. Egypt has been lost to the Islamist group that inspired al Qaeda more than any other. Libya is a basket case and Syria is in flames. Meanwhile, potential revolution in Iran has been put down. War threatens the entire region due to the instability in Syria. It's hard to imagine how things could have gone worse.

4. After Bush averted an economic disaster, Barack Obama failed to build the recovery he promised us. His stimulus prodded the economy along at an anemic rate, partly because shovel-ready jobs on presumably necessary infrastructure turned into temporary government employee protection programs and extensions of unemployment benefits. Four years later, we're still limping along.

One more thing the Bush administration left us with that seems to be bearing fruit now is it's all-of-the-above approach to domestic energy. While Obama has tried multiple approaches to limit carbon-based energy, the Bush policies stimulating development and technological advances have overcome those obstacles and seem to have us headed toward positive energy territory as a net energy exporter over the long term.

[BucEyedPea]

Originally Posted by patteeu

3. The liberation of the Iraqi people, along with the freedom message preached by the Bush administration made the middle east ripe for the subsequent Arab Spring.

The Sunnis of Iraq don't feel liberated. They don't like the Shi'ite's torturing them.

[Bump]

Originally Posted by Direckshun

A week or two ago, patteeu and I were rehashing some of the accomplishments and disasters of the Bush administration.

It's been four years since the guy was in office, and seemingly a year or two since I'd had an in-depth conversation about his Presidency.

This was a week or so after I offered my extensive list of accomplishments of first-term Obama, and I know I'm not exactly the audience Bush was playing to, but if you had to carve out a list of things Bush had done over two terms, it is truly striking exactly how shitty his Presidency was.

• Lost the popular vote in his first election.
• Largest domestic terrorist strike on American soil in American history.
• Two rounds of huge tax cuts that disproportionately benefited the wealthy that now even Republicans on this board want to see gone for everybody.
• Medicare Part D, not altogether a bad program but exploded the deficit.
• The beginning of the longest war in American history in Afghanistan, with an undersized troop presence.
• The war in Iraq. Yeah.
• A massive, federal expansion of education policy -- literally called No Child Left Behind.
• John Roberts (slam dunk), Harriet Miers (****ing disaster town), Samuel Alito (partisan selection).
• Attempted to privatize social security.
• Oversaw a complete cratering of our economy built on reckless Wall Street abuse and a home ownership bubble.
• Dramatically worsened American standing diplomatically, largely due to the Iraq War.
• Authorized "enhanced interrogation."
• Appointed Ben Bernanke to the Fed, a move that conservatives now despise.
• Presided over the cluster**** of Hurricane Katrina.
• Initiated a domestic wiretapping program that forewent judicial oversight.
• The Patriot Act in general.
• Surged American troops and resources (bribes) in Iraq in an attempt to get Iraq under control.
• Captured Saddam Hussein and facilitated his trial at the hands of the Iraqis.
• Took our surplus at the turn of the century and turned it into a trillion-dollar deficit.
• A nobel attempt at immigration reform that was shot down by his own party.
• Initiated a $700 billion bailout of Wall Street following the catastrophic economic collapse at the end of his administration.
• Pushed an attempt to ban gay marriage in the Constitution.
• Vetoed embryonic stem cell research.
• Provided unprecedented support to Africa to combat AIDS.
• Created the Department of Homeland Security, a bureaucratic boondoggle that doesn't make us any safer.
• Openly supported a two-state solution in Israel, but did little to accomplish it.
• Had a shoe tossed at him.

Obviously not all bad. But a lot of it is ****ing horrendous.

according to a lot of right wingers, he's the greatest American president ever. I don't get it, but I just think they think whichever republican that in office is the greatest ever. They seem to blindly follow, ask no questions and believe everything they say. I guess that's why religion goes hand in hand with the right.

[Dave]

Originally Posted by J Diddy

I'm confused. You're talking about debt, right?

Yep. Wrong word.

[vailpass]

Originally Posted by Bump

according to a lot of right wingers, he's the greatest American president ever. I don't get it, but I just think they think whichever republican that in office is the greatest ever. They seem to blindly follow, ask no questions and believe everything they say. I guess that's why religion goes hand in hand with the right.

Oh sweet irony.

[DaFace]

Originally Posted by vailpass

The Bush Presidency

Looking better every day for the last 4 years.

I agree with that, actually. Though I don't think Obama has been near as bad as some like to believe either.

[Calcountry]

Originally Posted by Dave

Deficit grew 6 trillion under Obama.

That is more than during Bush's term.

Yes, but that was Bush's fault. So was Benghazi, and so was the way Hurricane Sandy was handled.

[aturnis]

Originally Posted by FishingRod

"Two rounds of huge tax cuts that disproportionately benefited the wealthy that now even Republicans on this board want to see gone for everybody. "


One can’t help but marvel at the chutzpa it takes that after a decade of whining about how the Middle class and poor didn’t get anything out of these cuts now, they are untouchable because they really help the little guy.

Ten years now the gubment has had to prove that tax cuts for the rich stimulate the economy. How's that going?

[aturnis]

Originally Posted by Calcountry

Yes, but that was Bush's fault. So was Benghazi, and so was the way Hurricane Sandy was handled.

Thought you right wingers were all for disasters being handled by the states? Isn't that pretty much what's happening?

[patteeu]

Originally Posted by aturnis

Ten years now the gubment has had to prove that tax cuts for the rich stimulate the economy. How's that going?

The Bush tax cuts were an across-the-board cut, not a cut for the rich.

We could answer your question if we knew what the economic growth rate would be without them.