George W. Bush

Bush And Cheney Emerge: Reminders Of How We Became What We Are!

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The emergence of George W. Bush and Dick Cheney from “exile” helps to remind us of how we came to be where we are today!

Bush was on National Geographic Channel, explaining and justifying his administration’s actions before September 11, on September 11, and since. You would think he would be a bit humble about the shortcomings of his administration regarding terrorism and the wars he initiated, but not one bit of apology was offered!

Even worse, Dick Cheney, who is seen overseas as an international war criminal, has been gloating about his attacks in his memoir on Colin Powell, Condoleezza Rice, and George Tenet, and claims no mistakes, no shortcomings, no regrets about the foreign policy of the Bush Administration!

And of course, the man who said as Vice President that deficits did not matter, helped to preside over budget deficits that doubled the national debt, and convinced “fat cats”, corporate leaders and super rich people, that it was patriotic NOT to pay their fair share of taxes!

Adding insult to injury, we have today the former CEO of American Express, Harvey Golub, having the nerve to go on MSNBC this afternoon, and attack Warren Buffett for his assertions that wealthy people should pay higher taxes as part of patriotism, and appreciation for their success in America!

Golub says he earned his salary, worked very hard, and should not be forced to pay higher taxes until it is proved that the government handles money in a better fashion. While no one can criticize that assertion, it must be realized that CEOs are paid outrageous salaries to head major corporations, just at a time when many corporations have no morality or concern about firing their employees, cutting their benefits or pay, or adding more tension and pressure to their jobs!

But really, when a CEO says he works HARD, what does that mean? It means he “barks” orders to his underlings; spends time in his office intimidating others in meetings; uses his time on the phone and pushing papers to make himself look busy; and often could not survive without good staff, which he almost certainly treats in a disrespectful and disdaining manner! All he is concerned about is how much wealth he can acquire, how many perks he can have, and the level of arrogance and abuse that he can practice without accountability!

It is time to stop giving deference to corporate leaders, and start demanding that they do their part for their country, instead of expecting the “peasants” below them to bear the whole burden!

So Bush and Cheney emerging reminds us of the alternative of Barack Obama, and cannot but help make the choice for 2012 much clearer!

The “Joes” And Barack Obama: “Joe The Plumber”, Joe Wilson, And Joe Walsh

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In the age of Barack Obama, we have “Joes”, just about the most common male name, but three of these “Joes” are an embarrassment to their country and to politics!

First of all, we had “Joe The Plumber”, actually Samuel Wurzelbacher, who became a Republican propaganda point for John McCain and Sarah Palin in the 2008 Presidential campaign, making a total fool of himself, and being revealed as NOT being a plumber, regarding the issue of lack of proper licensing in Ohio. Wurzelbacher has made money from the title given him, and has worked as a motivational speaker and commentator since then, without much renown or brilliance being revealed!

Secondly, we had Joe Wilson, Republican Congressman from South Carolina, who had the gall to attack President Obama, when he gave his speech before a joint session of Congress in support of a health care law in 2009. Yelling “You lie”, Wilson refused to apologize after the fact for his insulting behavior, which could not be recalled as having occurred before, but immediately he became a celebrity in right wing circles, and raised quickly a lot of money for his 2010 reelection campaign. Now Joe Wilson has declared that he will NOT attend the joint session of Congress next Thursday when Obama speaks on his jobs program, at a time of the greatest economic crisis since the Great Depression, something caused by the Republican Party during the years of the GOP control of Congress and the Presidency under George W. Bush!

Finally, we have Joe Walsh, Republican Congressman from Illinois, a freshman who has drawn great notice for his insulting, belligerent, and rude behavior, including his constant use of the first name of his interviewer on any cable channel or news show, as he talks over him with non stop attacks on President Obama. He, along with Joe WIlson, has decided NOT to attend the joint session of Congress next Thursday, claiming what Obama is doing is purely political, and he will not be part of it! He also has called Obama “idiotic”, claims he was not vetted by the news media, and that he was elected only because whites who felt guilt about racism hooked onto an intelligent, articulate black man to feel better about their guilt over the past of race relations. Walsh claims that private enterprise knows how to create jobs, but seems unwilling to offer any advice on the topic, but instead simply uses rhetoric to keep public office, so that he can pay the back child support he owes his former wife after his divorce and bankruptcy!

The idea that any member of Congress refuses to attend a joint session of Congress to listen to a President is mind boggling, and there is no historical record of such a snub being done before!

These three “Joes” cannot match the intellect, the brilliance, the sincerity, the decency of our President, and every principled American should condemn the despicable, disrespectful behavior they have demonstrated against our President! Instead of attempting to come to the aid of their country, they would rather just throw darts and zingers at our Commander in Chief and wish for his downfall!

A Moment Of Reckoning For Barack Obama: Acting Aggressively, But Realistically!

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As we reach Labor Day next Monday, the economy is the number one issue, and it is only 14 months to Election Day.

The economy has stalled in relation to job growth, the first time to have no job growth since February 1945. We are likely going into a deep recession, although one could argue that we have never left the Great Recession, which supposedly ended in 2009.

This is an extremely tough time for President Obama and the nation, and he MUST act aggressively, but also realistically about the economic situation.

People have been speculating in the news media about the “What Ifs”, if Hillary Clinton had won the Presidency, or of John McCain had defeated Obama in 2008.

This is pointless, as we must live with reality, but to believe that Hillary Clinton, who had already gained the hatred of Republicans and the Right Wing conservatives, would somehow have magically produced a better economy and more support from the opposition party is to dwell in fantasizing on a major scale!

And to believe that John McCain, who had reportedly had plans to select former Texas Senator Phil Gramm, one of the architects of the financial disaster through his corrupt connections, to be his Treasury Secretary, tells legions about what he would have done regarding the economy. And having Sarah Palin, rather than Joe Biden, as an adviser on foreign policy, is enough to make anyone have nightmares!

So, as Michael Beschloss, the historian, told Obama at a retreat recently, he must make it clear to the American people that he is fighting difficult forces, not all of which can be controlled, and that things are going to get better, and that a lot of the responsibility for the mess we are in is due, not only to the Republicans led by the Bush Administration, which put us in the financial crisis, but also by Republicans now who are willing to sacrifice high unemployment as a way to convince voters that they should switch back to the failed policies of the past!

So, as Beschloss told Obama, fight like hell like Franklin D. Roosevelt, who faced much higher unemployment rates, but was reelected, by making it clear that the GOP hates him, and he accepted their hate and would fight them tooth and nail for what must be done! Obama can no longer be “Mr. Nice Guy”, but must instead “give them hell”, as Harry Truman did in 1948!

So therefore, a very bold, aggressive jobs plan MUST be offered by Obama next Thursday, even if it seems likely that nothing will be done by the Republican House of Representatives! Use the plan against them in the upcoming Presidential campaign as an issue if they will not budge, and make it clear to voters that it is because of the Republicans that nothing can be done! Emphasize education, health care, infrastructure projects, and energy programs, making it clear these are the future of America, now, or after the Election of 2012, with a rejuvenated Democratic majority, at least in the House of Representatives, if not the Senate!

And as part of this strategy, Obama has already, through his Justice Department, decided to pursue those corrupt, evil banks that helped to cause the housing crisis, and have been continuing their harm in the mortgage market by their dirty, corrupt tactics even up to the present! These banks include Deutsche Bank, J P Morgan Chase, and Bank of America. The executives who run these banks, and others that have proved to be greedy and selfish, having no concern for the American people, need to be prosecuted and sent to prison, held accountable for their evil actions, and finally, it looks as if the administration is starting to show its muscle in this regard!

And the unpopular decision today to delay the smog standards proposed by the Environmental Protection Agency to 2013, while highly regrettable, seem reasonable now with the high unemployment rate and the stagnant economy. But it should be seen only as a DELAY, not an abandonment, of higher environmental standards for business and industry, and hopefully, with a Democratic President and Congress in 2013, the crackdown on the pollution standards can be revisited!

Ironic: Stalemate On Capitol Hill Would Nearly Balance The Budget By Lack Of Action, Raising Taxes On The Wealthy And Corporations!

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It has recently been recognized that the budget stalemate on Capitol Hill could actually have a great result at the end of 2012, just in time for the inauguration of the new Presidential term!

The reason is that the so called “Bush tax cuts” expire then, and if the Democratic Senate and Republican House do not cooperate on budget issues, and if President Obama determines he will make no deals with the GOP, as he has done too often in the past, the accomplishment will be that trillions of dollars will be raised through taxation, and the nation will come close to balancing the budget!

The deficit would be cut by almost 40 percent under the circumstances of NOT having any legislation, and the richest 5 percent of the population, who received half the entire benefit of the Bush tax cuts, would have to pay up in major ways, about time!

The tax rates would go back to those of the Clinton Presidency, when 23 million new jobs were created, as compared to 3 million under George W. Bush!

If Congress does nothing, a total of $7 trillion in revenue will be available over the next ten years, solving most of the problem of growing debt by increased taxation!

So the attitude of the Obama Administration and the Democratic Party should be to stall, create gridlock and stalemate, which the Republicans have been excellent at doing, and turn the tables on the Republicans and their wealthy taxpayer-corporation supporters! If the elite could pay even higher tax rates under Dwight D. Eisenhower and Ronald Reagan, more so than even under Bill Clinton, and economic growth was the result, the answer is to “Bring It On!”

George W. Bush To Rick Perry: The Potential Further Deterioration Of The American Presidency In The Election Of 2012!

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Much has been written about the faults and shortcomings of the George W. Bush Presidency, but we are now faced with another Texas Governor who could, if elected, make us wish for the “good old days” of Bush 43, and certainly for the “very good old days” of Bush 41, and even to wish for a “Bush 45 (Jeb Bush)”!

The Bush family and their supporters are clearly vigorously opposed to a President Rick Perry. Jeb Bush has been indirectly critical of the GOP Presidential field, saying instead of just attacking President Obama, real alternatives to his policies are needed, a swipe at Rick Perry. His son, Jeb Bush, Jr. has formally endorsed Jon Huntsman, and Huntsman met with the elder President Bush at his home in Kennebunkport, Maine, before entering the race. Bad blood has existed between the second President Bush and Perry, who was his Lieutenant Governor and succeeded him when Bush became President in 2001. Karl Rove, adviser to the second Bush, has been vehemently against Perry, as he and the Bush family were when Perry ran in the 2010 GOP primary for another term against Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison.

George W. Bush promoted “compassionate conservatism”, and while that is often ridiculed, in fact, for all its faults, Bush’s administration DID promote a prescription drug plan for seniors, although it was not funded by taxes and has added to the national debt. Bush also was not, and his family are not, supporters of the Tea Party movement, which in many ways, are a reaction against steps taken by Bush in the economic crisis of 2008–2009.

Now we have Rick Perry, who has threatened Ben Bernanke of the Federal Reserve Board, an appointee of Bush. He has had the gall to say Barack Obama does not love America, even though Obama’s record of going after terrorists successfully far outdoes the eight years of Bush and Dick Cheney. Perry has also attacked Social Security, calling it a Ponzi scheme, and is trying to stir younger Americans to rise up against paying the Social Security tax, which effect would be to bring the whole system down and deny senior citizens the safety net that has worked well for 75 years, and is in good shape, even without any modification, for 25 more years, and with some tinkering, will be just fine for the long run!

Under Perry, the number of poor Texans, growth in minimum wage jobs, decline of educational funds and standards, and percentages of people with no health care coverage, has magnified, while under Bush, many of the statistics showed much more positive results. And one cannot just say that the Great Recession beginning in 2008 caused these downturns, as they were occurring all along during the past ten and a half years of Perry’s Governorship!

Perry has also had more people executed, including those on which there was doubt, than under Bush, and he is proud of this, as if that is an accomplishment! And the people around Perry make Bush’s “people” look brilliant by comparison!

The only virtue Perry would bring to the White House would be to make us “appreciate” George W. Bush for the first time, as the further deterioration of the Presidency would be in full swing!

Obama Successes In Midst Of Difficult Times!

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Barack Obama has had a rough August, what with the battle over the debt ceiling, the lowering of the Triple A credit rating by Standard and Poor’s, the resulting stock market disarray, and the growing discontent in the polls with the unemployment crisis.

And yet, Obama has succeeded in recent days in a number of areas, which should raise his public opinion polls somewhat.

First, he has accomplished in combination with the Arab League, NATO, and UN backing, with the overthrow of Libyan dictator Moammar Gaddafi, although the leader is not yet accounted for.

Second, the number two man in the Al Qaeda terrorist leadership, after the death of Osama Bin Laden, has been murdered in Pakistan, indicating further disruption in Al Qaeda leadership, and making some think Al Qaeda may never be the same. This comes on top of the successful elimination of numerous other Al Qaeda and Taliban operatives over the past couple of years by the Obama Administration!

Finally, it is already evident that Obama’s government has responded far better on Hurricane Irene than George W. Bush did on Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans in 2006. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is doing a superb job, and the same can be said for the Department of Homeland Security under Secretary Janet Napolitano!

So in the midst of much criticism and bad times, there are some developments to applaud, and to prove once again, the ups and the downs of being President of the United States!

Former Vice President Dick Cheney’s Memoir: Confirmation Of An Evil Man With No Apologies Or Regrets!

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Former Vice President Dick Cheney, arguably the most powerful Vice President in the history of the nation, and also the most controversial and despised, is coming out with his memoir of his life working as Chief of Staff to Gerald Ford, significant member of the House of Representatives from Wyoming, Secretary of Defense under the first President Bush, and Vice President under the second President Bush.

Cheney, regarded as a war criminal for his support of water boarding, considered torture under international law, has no apologies for that and still endorses it as a method to use with terrorist suspects, despite the condemnation of most civilized Americans, including Senator John McCain, himself a victim of torture methods while a prisoner of war during the Vietnam War.

He also is getting revenge on all he worked with, including former Secretary of State Colin Powell, former CIA head George Tenet, and former National Security Adviser and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. He revels that his memoir would “have heads exploding all over Washington” , with a broad smile on his face, making him look the equivalent of what we imagine the devil might look like!

This disgraceful, mean spirited man was once considered mainstream, until September 11, when he seems to have gone maniacal, changing in his whole outlook and relationships with others in a way that makes one wonder if he is certifiably mentally ill!

The tragedy is that his legacy harms the image of the United States overseas, and nothing will make him look as a decent and honest man, considering his great gaining of wealth from a corrupt corporation, Haliburton, even while he was Vice President. This man who evaded the draft in the 1960s has become the image of the man who is always looking for another place to bomb and invade. And of course, he recklessly shot a friend in the face, and never apologized for that either!

Cheney does not deserve our respect; rather, our disdain and condemnation, and he will go down as one of the great villains of America’s long history!

And what he represents will not help to improve the image of the man who took him on for the Vice Presidency for two terms: President George W. Bush. Bush will have a lot to answer for in history, not the least this monster he gave too much authority and power to because of his own inadequacies!

And to think, George W. Bush should never have been President if only the Florida vote count had been finished fairly, except for unconstitutional intervention by the majority Republican Supreme Court, denying Vice President Al Gore his rightful win for the Oval Office!

Libya Success Proof Of Obama’s NEW Foreign Policy Being A Success!

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The overthrow of the Gaddafi regime in Libya, even if Gaddafi himself is still at large as the author writes, is a triumph of major proportions for President Obama, and adds to his image of fighting against terrorism and international outlaws in unison with the international community, rather than going “Lone Ranger” as George W. Bush did in Iraq!

Despite all the critics who said Barack Obama was defying the War Powers Act, which he was not; and that the Libyan Civil War should not have been intervened in, as many Republicans declared; or the criticism that we had led from behind, rather than use our own air power and troops on the ground, as John McCain, Lindsey Graham and Joe Lieberman stated; Barack Obama did PRECISELY the right thing in working with the Arab League, the United Nations, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, and with the full backing of his Secretary or State Hillary Clinton and his UN Ambassador Susan Rice in undermining Gaddafi, working with the Libyan rebels, and yet NOT committing ground forces or major American air attacks and spending large amounts of money on the involvement!

So not one person was killed who wore an American uniform; not one plane was lost; and only about $1 billion was spent on this crisis, by the latest estimate!

This outdoes the Kosovo intervention against Serbia in 1999 under President Bill Clinton, where no one was killed and only one plane was shot down and lost!

The Republicans may be unwilling to give Barack Obama credit, but his new foreign policy of collaboration with other nations has been a major success, and he deserves full credit for what has happened!

So even in the midst of economic troubles that the President faces, which threaten his reelection, one must hail the President’s outstanding record in foreign policy and ask again: Other than Jon Huntsman, what are the credentials in foreign policy of ANY of the other GOP Presidential candidates? The answer, unlike with John McCain in 2008, is ABSOLUTELY NONE!

So again, if the Republicans have any common sense, in more ways than one, they will make Jon Huntsman their Presidential nominee, and if so, Barack Obama will have some sleepless nights during the fall campaign of 2012!

Jeb Bush’s Advice To Republican Presidential Candidates: Stop Being So Negative About Obama And Offer Positive Alternatives Instead!

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Jeb Bush, former Republican Governor of Florida, brother of former President George W. Bush, and son of former President George H.W. Bush, was on Fox News Channel yesterday, offering good advice to the Republican Presidential field: stop being so negative about Barack Obama, blaming him for everything, much of which is not his doing!

In other words, Bush said it is fine to criticize Obama on making the economic conditions worse, but do not use ridiculous arguments or attacks on Obama. Or as former Congressman Harold Ford, Democrat of Tennessee, said on MSNBC this morning, it is not appropriate to blame Obama for your coffee spilling or your children being sick!

Unfortunately, there has been too much reckless criticism of Obama since Day One, and all it has done is help make the opposition party look preposterous and lacking in substance. As Bush said, the candidates must offer POSITIVE alternatives and a real program of goals if they wish to be able to compete with Obama in the Presidential Election of 2012!

Without naming names, it seems obvious that Jeb Bush is sending the message of the Bush family that they are not happy with Rick Perry and Michele Bachmann, not enthused about Mitt Romney, and most supportive of Jon Huntsman. This interview with Jeb Bush comes after his younger son, Jeb Jr, endorsed Huntsman.

And although he makes clear that he is not running for President himself, it still seems to many that Jeb Bush MIGHT enter the race if Huntsman cannot gain support, and if Rick Perry or Michele Bachmann seem likely to co-opt the race, since the Bushes clearly believe that either of them would be a disaster for the Republican Party!

As many have said, if Jeb did not have the last name of Bush, he probably would already have been running!

So his interview with Fox only adds more to the cauldron of Republican Presidential politics!

Reality: The Bush Economic Collapse Of 2008 Will Be With Us, No Matter What Policy Is Pursued, Until The End Of This Decade!

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Politics abound as the Presidential Election of 2012 beckons, with the Republican Party claiming that the floundering recovery is due to Barack Obama, which is the furthest thing from the truth!

This economic disaster, which is called the Great Recession and is supposedly over, is really the second Great Depression and is far from over, and it would be no different if John McCain had been in the White House, and in fact, probably would be worse!

Economists almost unanimously agree that the Economic Stimulus legislation pushed through by the Obama Administration in 2009 saved the country from a worse situation, and a clear second Great Depression!

And now the end of stimulus funds, and the mad dash to cut spending, most economists agree, will cause a double dip recession, which will effectively bring about what everyone fears–a second Great Depression, which will drag on into at least 2019-2020!

So it means even if the GOP wins the Presidency this time or in 2016, we are not going to be returning to pre–2008 economic figures and unemployment levels for effectively an entire decade!

Economists are saying this economic recovery will be one of the longest, and most difficult in American history, and remind us of the Great Depression from 1929-1939, only ultimately resolved by World War II spending!

This severe recession, if you want to call it that, is worse because of the housing collapse, the taxation policy, and the lack of regulation of banks and corporations, all due to the terrible policies of the Bush Administration over eight years, and we are going to pay the price for the greed and selfishness of the Congress and the White House for a long, long time!

The social disruption that is likely as people realize there is no quick fix , but that the Republicans have learned nothing from their blunders and short sightedness in the first decade of the 21st century, is scary to accept as likely!

Instead of uniting to revive the economy and cut social suffering, they would rather just protect the rich and the corporations and preach religion as the answer, which is most certainly NOT the answer to our plight!