A SOLDIER'S PERSPECTIVE
THE WEB'S LEADING MILITARY BLOG SINCE 2004
I was working on a post along these lines and hinted at it during my congratulatory post to Obama. However, Wall Street Journal writer Jeffrey Scott Shapiro says it much better than I ever could.
Earlier this year, 12,000 people in San Francisco signed a petition in support of a proposition on a local ballot to rename an Oceanside sewage plant after George W. Bush. The proposition is only one example of the classless disrespect many Americans have shown the president.
According to recent Gallup polls, the president’s average approval rating is below 30% — down from his 90% approval in the wake of 9/11. Mr. Bush has endured relentless attacks from the left while facing abandonment from the right.
This is the price Mr. Bush is paying for trying to work with both Democrats and Republicans. During his 2004 victory speech, the president reached out to voters who supported his opponent, John Kerry, and said, “Today, I want to speak to every person who voted for my opponent. To make this nation stronger and better, I will need your support, and I will work to earn it. I will do all I can do to deserve your trust.”
Those bipartisan efforts have been met with crushing resistance from both political parties.
The president’s original Supreme Court choice of Harriet Miers alarmed Republicans, while his final nomination of Samuel Alito angered Democrats. His solutions to reform the immigration system alienated traditional conservatives, while his refusal to retreat in Iraq has enraged liberals who have unrealistic expectations about the challenges we face there.
It seems that no matter what Mr. Bush does, he is blamed for everything. He remains despised by the left while continuously disappointing the right.
Yet it should seem obvious that many of our country’s current problems either existed long before Mr. Bush ever came to office, or are beyond his control. Perhaps if Americans stopped being so divisive, and congressional leaders came together to work with the president on some of these problems, he would actually have had a fighting chance of solving them.
Like the president said in his 2004 victory speech, “We have one country, one Constitution and one future that binds us. And when we come together and work together, there is no limit to the greatness of America.”
To be sure, Mr. Bush is not completely alone. His low approval ratings put him in the good company of former Democratic President Harry S. Truman, whose own approval rating sank to 22% shortly before he left office. Despite Mr. Truman’s low numbers, a 2005 Wall Street Journal poll found that he was ranked the seventh most popular president in history.
Read the rest at the WSJ site.
(34) Readers Comments
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CommanderMom
Thanks for the post CJ~I wholeheartedly have always agreed this thinking, along with many family, friends, and neighbors. Amen. He’s had our respect for the tough deck he was dealt and always will.
Critical Facts
Bush has been an unmitigated disaster since the day he stepped into the WH. Perhaps if he had exhibited a modicum of humility and willingness not to pander to the whacko right wing and to actually endorse the spirit of bipartisanship, things would have turned out differently. I have absolutely no compassion for bush, other than that I would extend to any human being. He brought the current mess to his doorstep and, unfortunately, the doorstep of the American people. Bush would do the right thing by leaving office today and letting Obama have a head start! Good riddance!
SK
CF, if nothing else you have just exhibited the biggest differences between you and CJ. CJ is gracious, and he has class.
Terri
I totally agree SK. Unfortunately for President Bush, he’s had to deal with people like CF throughout his entire 8 years of Presidency.
MissBirdlegs in AL
I stopped in here earlier today and felt my blood pressure spike at CF’s usual rancor and thickheadedness. Hey, CF – your new President is supposedly all about ‘hope and change’. I ‘hoped’ you’d ‘change’ your attitude a bit, but as I suspected, no. I imagine everything that goes wrong in the next few years you’ll continue to put on Pres. Bush’s shoulders. You should have more respect for yourself and other people. You should be ashamed – you’re an embarrassment to true Americans everywhere, as are so many of your ilk.
Sorry, CJ – just had to do that. Feel free to delete this if you want.
sue
Thanks for sharing that CJ!
rc
While I haven’t agreed with Bush on anything, through out his 8 years in the White House, I find my self appalled by the rancour being dished out by the Democrats (a party that I have supported for many years, but will no longer… and that’s another story…)and the blame game being played by the Republicans.
Grow up, people. You are no longer 5 years old and this is not a play ground. CF… YOU and people like you are what is driving people like myself out of partisan politics. People like yourself, in BOTH parties. It’s a shame really. Now, CF, here’s the cluex4 that you seem to be looking for… Bush cannot be impeached, resign, or even be tried for treason for the things that he did as president, for one simple fact. Though he may have acted the idiot, he did these things AS president. Whether or not you agreed, he did his job to the best of his aibilities.
Bush may not have been the greatest president. And I agree that he had some real defining moments, I also believe that he did not live up to the potential that was seen in him. I don’t know that anyone really could have, but I do know that I expected more out of my president.
Fearless
I have lived almost three quarters of a century hearing “It’s all Hoover’s fault!” Now my grand children will head ” It’s George Bush’s fault.” Thanks for defending America Mr. President!
May G D BLESS AMEREICA!
NY-David
I actually compare the contempt of Bush to what the Republicans heaped on Jimmy Carter after his departure. I’m no fan of Bush, and he did bring on a lot of this himself due to not leveling with the rest of us. To his credit, he made his father look genius.
In the future few years, there will be many things blamed on Bush and I’ll start with a peace-time economy when we are trying to fight two wars.
As such, I wouldn’t show him any personal disrespect, like go out of my way to name a sewage plant after him. Just give him his footnote in history and move on.
Go figure.
NY-David
Mickey
I happen to agree with most of the comments and that PRESIDENT BUSH deserves respect. CJ, you have done a great job trying to get that point across. However, CF reminds me of my sons Father-in law who had the nerve to turn away the Patriot Guard rider from a Fallen Hero’s ride home and services. Or even had the nerve to hand Peace button out a Fallen Hero’s Service and invited Cindy Sheehan to protest his burial at ANC. So to me CF and a small few are no better that Cindy S in her protest of her son’s Honor and Respect. What jerks!!!!
Like I said before with this new administration God help this country.
God Bless President Bush and all of our Military who serve the USA. and Forgive the idiots who want to sour this country.
sue
Mickey I’m so sorry. Jason is a Hero, and will always be remembered as such. Voices that try to degrade the memory of our Heroes by belittling their mission, our Country and our President, do not speak for all of us.
Sharon
As one of you stated, no former president deserves disrespect. It is a tough job and not one of us will ever know that kind of responsibility. Also, contrary to what one remarked, neither should anyone assume that the president was untruthful. Who are you that you have more information than what was provided to our commander-in-chief? Every president inherits the conditions that are at hand when they take office, and these conditions take years in coming. They do not deserve our blame for what IS, only our deep respect for trying to the best of their abilities to improve the things that ARE in the country at large. Like Mickey, I am very concerned for the future of my country led by the newly elected administration. And I feel sorry for CF because he is headed for a major letdown when Obama tries to live up to the Messiah-like image he has created in the minds of his supporters. It is too bad that he was elected on his mantra of “change” and not because of how he stands on the issues. Truthfully, no one really knows what he WILL stand for because no one knows what he HAS stood for, if anything, in the past. He has no real record. Just ask the residents of Illinois. When Obama fails the unrealistic expectations of the many who supported him, I wonder to who or what CF and others like him will assign the blame. I pray that then God will help them to see the errors inherent in their critical and intolerant way of thinking and to join together with all loyal Americans in order to fix our country’s problems as opposed to just fixing the blame.
Donna
Some people hate President Bush and their opinions are just that and are not based on fact. They just hate him…period. What would happen if we all did that to Obama. I will give President-Elect Obama the respect he deserves as president unlike the Bush haters!
Jenna
It is so good to hear this. I have been feeling nothing but hate from everyone since president-elect Obama was announced last week.
Doug
Which side was it calling the other “socialist” “Marxist” and “Muslim”? I don’t think Obama even called McCain “old”. One side was about fear, the other change. We chose change, simple as that.
Sharon (not from above)
CF,
Before Bush set foot in office, there were those in our Congress who vowed never to side with him on any issue because they said he “stole the election.” Every democrat who voted for the war turned on him when it appeared to hurt their chances politically. You may believe Bush was a total disaster; that is your right. But own up to reality. Check back to 2003 when the White House warned about the problems with Freddie/Fannie for starters.
Critical Facts
Oh, so the WH warned about the FM/FM disasters yet did nothing about them? Interesting!
PS. Please provide evidence of a single congressperson who vowed never to side with Bush on any issue because he stole the election.
Come on guys!
I can only guess this is a publicity stunt by a WSJ writer nervous about getting enough work in the future. I don’t think even he believes this hogwash.
Yeah, President Bush is not to blame for everything. No, he is not not evil incarnate.
But under his watch – under his “leadership” – America has gone down the tube. He was chosen by the Rep old guard to be president for obvious devious reasons. At his core, he is the incompetant clown of an ex-president and war hero from the Great Generation. And he was trying to measure up to Daddy and win in the age-old competition between father and son. (Anyone see him flip the bird to the cameras in Texas pre-speech and then eagerly look around for approval. That says it all. Class clown who doesnt have a clue about how priviledged and inappropriate he is for office.) In the 9-11 crisis, he tried to get serious about his duty. And let’s face it, the terrorists have not killed our citizens… in the US again.
Bush may have had moments of inspiration that led him to a middle of the road “vision” for America. Rodney King: “Why can’t we just all get along?” But he is no leader. He sat silent on countless issues. He sat and did nothing (not knowing WHAT to do!) while planes were attacking our people.
The real evil (or for the sake of diplomacy – the real misguided vision) came from the others in his administration. Did Bush want democracy in Iraq? Sure. Did it matter to him that a whole bunch of other agendas were also driving his foreign policy? Eh, not really. What was going on in his head? “I can trust these guys. THEY know how to do this? If I challenge them, I will eventually show that I am a fool or uninformed. Stay quiet. Look presidential as best I can.”
And that is what the Cheney crew loved about him. And, unfortunately for us and let’s say an even 100,000 Iraqis (including women and children) who would be alive today, the Cheney crew got away with it and screwed everything up due to arrogance and a fundamentally flawed vision.
The piece is just trying to tap into the discontent felt by those who lost the election. It cannot be sincere.
Come on guys! 2
And to say that history will look back on the Iraq invasion and praise Bush – as justification for the action – is to ignore the lying to the public and the complete confusion in how the invasion was managed!
I do hope that the Iraqis get something out of this war. And, if we are lucky it will be democracy. But was it worth it? Was this the only way? On our chosen time line? With so much killing?
Easy for you to say Mr. Shapiro.
CJ
Anonymous “Come on guys” dude,
What are these “obvious devious reasons”? i’m all ears.
sue
Just a little something I came across that I found very interesting.
http://www.realitymirror.net/index.php/2008/09/24/bush-proposed-oversight-of-freddie-mac-and-fannie-mae/
Mickey
Sue, sounds like conspiracy to me… but then look at the new house coming…..
NY-David
Sue and Mickey,
You can go back to Fox now. I heard they changed the Koolaid to grape. For every Republican who proposed more regulation (or better regulation, I’ll find you a Democrat that also proposed it. The end result is the same. Both sides were in the position of doing something and neither did anything substantial to correct it. They are doing nothing now with my and your 700B bailout money with no over sight. Quit the partisan stuff and look at the issue.
NY-David
sue
David I didn’t say anything partisan, nor did I attack you. I merely said it was interesting. Draw your own conclusions. And just so you know, I don’t watch fox. So, stop making assumptions.
Sharon
New Agency Proposed to Oversee Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae
But what does Barney Frank have to say:
”These two entities — Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac — are not facing any kind of financial crisis,” said Representative Barney Frank of Massachusetts, the ranking Democrat on the Financial Services Committee. ”The more people exaggerate these problems, the more pressure there is on these companies, the less we will see in terms of affordable housing.”
http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9E06E3D6123BF932A2575AC0A9659C8B63&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=print
As far as some Congress members vowing not to support Bush? I saw it at the time. If you recall, there was a walk out when the electoral votes were to be certified.
Bush didn’t have a super majority. The only time there was true bipartisan support was in the vote to give Bush the authority to go to war.
CJ
Doug, what’s wrong with calling a spade a spade. John McCain IS old. Barack Obama IS a socialist/marxist. Sorry, but facts are hard to ignore. If the liberal supporters of Obama think that “socialism” and “marxism” are bad words, maybe they shouldn’t support him because those are his policies. John McCain can’t help his age, but if “old” is bad, then don’t support him either. There are more parties out there than the Dumbocrats and Repugnicans.
You don’t want REAL change. If you wanted REAL change, you wouldn’t vote for either candidate. The problem with this country is that we are so stupid as to actually believe “change” means voting for the “other” party. If you wanted REAL change, we’d start supporting third parties. The Republicans AND Democrats have been destroying this country and our freedoms for years. It’s more of the same. I can take a turd and wrap in a fancy talking new wrapper, but when you open it, it’s still going to stink.
NY-David
Sorry, CJ. Barack Obama is no Socialist or Marxist, nor are you a racist. Why can’t someone know someone and understand their views, but still not agree with them. I’ve been writing into this blog for the better part of a year and I’m no closer to being a Republican or Conservative. I do understand the issues better as a result and perhaps am more entrenched in how I feel.
Is Obama the answer? I felt he was the best between the two, which isn’t saying much. Time will tell.
NY-David
NY-David
Sue,
The article you pointed to was another attempt to blame the financial crisis on the Democrats using cherry picked statements and the invariable Barney Frank quote. This is useless and the likes I see on Fox, even if you don’t happen to watch their programming. Fannie and Freddie weren’t getting properly supervised. Adding another bureaucracy on top of it doesn’t make sense. Using that claim of Bush in an “I told you so” quest doesn’t make sense either.
NY-David
CJ
The financial crisis is a result of BOTH parties in Congress. No one is free of blame here. Maybe some more or less than others, but both parties of “change” caused this mess. Repugnicans and Dumbocrats turned a blind eye while America’s wealth was stolen.
CJ
David,
Can you explain to me how Obama’s policies are NOT socialist or marxist (and how I can’t possibly be a racist…hehe)? Honestly, this doesn’t come from some AM radio talking head but the realities set forth in his own words about what he wants to do with this country.
Mickey
CJ you are right is was and is the fault of both parties on this terrible financial matter.
David, Go look up the meaning of Socialist and marxist and then look at the BHO policies. He is a socialist.
Sharon
NY-David,
That was my link to the NYT, not Sue. It was in response to CF (Oh, so the WH warned about the FM/FM disasters yet did nothing about them? Interesting!) That wasn’t cherry picking a quote. It was from the same NYT article I linked. There was one other quote that agreed with Frank. That legislation was pitiful, IMO, and didn’t pass anyway.
NY-David
Hi Sharon,
Actually, it was Sue’s post, yours came after. Mickey, I’m well aware of the meanings of the words and by your previous posts, you seem to be as well. Socialism is where the government takes over private industry. The bailout is somewhat similar in that the government is now buying shares in companies. Not what I supported!! But Bush Obama and McCain seem to think this is the way to go. I don’t see anything in Obama’s agenda or ideas that sound “socialistic” in any sense. I’m also aware of Communism and Marxism. Israel was communist at its inception. I don’t see anyone getting their panties in a bunch about it. USSR pretended to be communist, but it really when you have half of the government in some capacity to inform on others, I’d call it a police-state.
NY-David
sue
NYDavid, again, you are reading much more into my comment than anything I intended. My purpose for posting it, and why I found it interesting was that the debacle of Freddie Mac/Fannie Mae was known about for a long time (and probably WELL before the time that article talked about) and no one acted on it. Not the Republicans, not the Democrats. NOT OUR CONGRESS OR OUR SENATE. THEY are the ones in charge of the over sight committees not the President, though he should have looked into it I guess at some point but that’s what Congress and the Senate are supposed to do unless I am mistaken about how our Government works. If I am, then I would appreciate you explaining to me the reason and purpose of an oversight committee. It is my understanding that THEY are to keep tabs on things like this and that THEY are supposed to report to the President with suggestions and recommendations and then bills and laws are presented and voted on and passed and THEN sent to the President to sign or veto at which time the they have the power to over ride that veto if they feel the President is in error.
If I am in need of more civics lessons please do feel free to let me know and I will look into it. And in the mean time, you would do well to stop making assumptions about me. But then its good that you get your cardio in by jumping to conclusions about people.