Bush Has NO Regrets, Says He Can Hold His Head High

anniefey · **Joined:** Fri Apr 06, 2007 11:23 am **Posts:** 452

Viewpoint: No regrets from a president who 'fell to the occasion'

By Ellen Goodman
December 26, 2008

What I can't "snap out of" is the fact that he (Bush) is preparing to write a book and design a library whose themes will undoubtedly be: "Heckuva job, George."

The 43rd president is going home with less remorse and fewer regrets than my grandchildren express for spilling their cereal.

This is the tenor of the farewell tour being conducted across the landscape from ABC to the American Enterprise Institute. It's the No Regrets Tour, the nonreflective "reflections by a guy who's headed out of town. "

George W. Bush will be remembered with names such as Abu Ghraib, Gitmo and Katrina. With phrases such as "weapons of mass destruction" and "mission accomplished." He came in with a budget surplus and leaves with a massive deficit. He blew the good will of the post-9/11 world. But being this president means never having to say you're sorry.

Leaving office, he takes credit for seven years of safety and no debit for a day of disaster. He takes credit for the boom - "it's hard to argue against 52 uninterrupted months of job growth" - without taking responsibility for the deregulated bust. He takes credit for the surge, not the disastrous pre-emptive war.

"The biggest regret of all the presidency has to have been the intelligence failure in Iraq," he said. But would he have led us to war anyway? "It's hard for me to speculate."

No. 43 has the lowest approval ratings in modern presidential history.

But he told Charlie Gibson, "I will leave the presidency with my head held high." This is what puts me between a rocking chair and a hard place.

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/opinio ... 5758.story

Catherine · **Posted:** Fri Dec 26, 2008 9:23 pm

George has such a high opinion of himself, but by now, even Barney can't stand him. I'm just glad he's going back to Texas, and you can bet your boots he won't be writing any book. It will be ghost written for him.

dori · **Posted:** Sat Dec 27, 2008 8:45 am

Catherine, does this come under the heading, "If I am paid well enough I will do anything"?

Channel Zero · **Posted:** Mon Dec 29, 2008 1:43 am

I think Bush needs to be reminded of those things he should regret.

$9 billion lost in Iraq funds.

Giving Iran (one of our Axis of Evil) a foothold in shaping Iraq.

In fact, the book Unintended Consequences makes the point that Iran is the big winner in the US/Iraq conflict, because the Shiite now have this stronghold.

Also from the book, the author notes this about the success of the surge:

Quote:

Sheik Abdul-Sartur Abu Risha, the local Sunni leader in Ramadi, was the man most responsible for assembling the Anbar Sunni Awakening and the White House wanted a picture of the president with the local hero. No one told Abu Risha this since the president's visit was, for security reasons, a closely guarded secret. A photograph from their September 3 meeting shows a grinning president, flanked by a smiling General Patraeus and Defense Secretary Gates, shaking hands with Abu Risha. The sheik looks as if he wants to be anyplace else. Ten days later, an Al-Qaeda bomb killed Abu Risha near his Ramadi home.

I believe Bob Woodward can name a few more in the number of books he's written on George Buffoon.

Purple Tang · **Posted:** Tue Dec 30, 2008 2:20 pm

Bush should not rightfully go down as a terrible president. There is little justice unless he is singled out as the worst president ever.

Has he left any stone unturned in the pursuit of that distinction?

OK....he didn't bring back the draft.

Catherine · **Posted:** Tue Dec 30, 2008 4:56 pm

Quote:

OK....he didn't bring back the draft.

He didn't dare. Had he tried to do so, his own military record would have come under a lot more scrutiny, and Georgie couldn't let that happen. As it was, thanks to bloggers on the net, much more of his and Cheney's shameful avoidance of real military service was revealed than they expected, especially after 9/11.

In this report, Colin Powell says that Bush was like Sarah Palin in his knowledge of foreign power....But let's give credit where it's due. Bush was exposing his stupidity and complete inability to govern long before Mrs. Mooseburger came on the scene. SHE is more like him...I prefer the label for her as BUSH IN SKIRTS. AND Bush has no knowledge of domestic policy either, and neither does Mrs. Mooseburger.

Former Powell aide: Bush was ‘Sarah Palin-like’ in his knowledge of foreign policy

Quote:

In an interview with Vanity Fair for its upcoming issue on the Bush White House, Lawrence Wilkerson, former chief of staff to Secretary of State Colin Powell, ripped President Bush, saying that after the 2000 election, Bush’s knowledge of foreign affairs was as poor as that of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin (R):

We had this confluence of characters—and I use that term very carefully—that included people like Powell, Dick Cheney, Condi Rice, and so forth, which allowed one perception to be “the dream team.” It allowed everybody to believe that this Sarah Palin–like president—because, let’s face it, that’s what he was—was going to be protected by this national- security elite, tested in the cauldrons of fire.

Bush famously was unable to name the leaders of Pakistan, Chechnya, and India when running for President in 1999. In a recent interview, he reflected on his early days as President, stating, “I think I was unprepared for war.” Similarly, in 2004, Bush said he “was not on point” prior to 9/11. “I didn’t feel that sense of urgency, and my blood was not nearly as boiling.”

Catherine · **Posted:** Tue Dec 30, 2008 7:51 pm

Don’t Be Fooled by Bush’s Farewell Tour

Ellen Goodman makes some good points about Bush's little farewell tour...

Quote:

The 43rd president is going home with less remorse and fewer regrets than my grandchildren express for spilling their cereal

By Ellen Goodman

I was doing fine until I saw the rocking chairs. My attacks of Bush-bashing were in remission. I told myself it was time to move on, to embrace the change you can believe in and, well, you get the idea.

So when the president—he’s still the president?—popped up on television, I would repeat what Republicans told Democrats in 2000 after the Supreme Court ruling made George W. Bush president: Get Over It. Snap Out Of It. When he made a cameo appearance to socialize another piece of the economy, I silently counted the days of his tenure, backward.

I didn’t even squeal when they unveiled the presidential portrait of the man in his Casual Friday duds. And if I started to backslide, I logged on to YouTube. There—nepotism alert!—my comedian daughter Katie posted her own toodaloo to the president, a PG-13-rated satire called “Time to Say Goodbye to George W. Bush” that raised my spirits.

But then came the moment when the senior staff of Bush enablers gave two comfy rocking chairs to the man who described himself as “an old sage at 62 ... headed to retirement.” The symbolism was too much.

Barry Sotero · **Joined:** Sat Dec 20, 2008 4:31 pm **Posts:** 67

...Simply laughable that you folks vote for another 4 years of Bush (Obama The Fraud)...yet STILL criticize him!

Purple Tang · **Posted:** Wed Dec 31, 2008 5:54 pm

All we know so far is that Obama was willing to sell his soul to AIPAC etc...for the presidency. It isn't fair to call him Bush II quite yet. Having said that, it appears that he may become an even greater Zionist dream.

I wouldn't rule out a few robust economic months so they can quickly usher "Obama the miracle man" unto the global stage.

2008 was big.
2009 will be bigger.

They always have Zionist Joe as a back up plan. Americans don't seem to realize that a VP pledging a greater allegiance to a foreign power is probably treason of some kind.

Catherine · **Posted:** Thu Jan 01, 2009 12:44 pm

Quote:

They always have Zionist Joe as a back up plan.

I seem to detect a bit of rebellion against Israel's attack on Gaza from peoples around the world. Is this a new trend that may be shaping up? Are more and more of the world's population getting tired of Israel being able to kill at will and being lauded for it? As to the new admin coming in, I'm not so sure that Obama will simply salute Israel and give "atta boys and girls." I'm going to watch and see. Obama, Biden, and the Obama Cabinet are going to have their fingers on the pulse of the world, especially at first, and if opinions around the world start to shift, Obama might not be as stubbornly supportive of Israel as Bush was. Obama will analyse and think through...at least that seems to be a characteristic of his.

However, Obama did get quite a bit of the Jewish vote in the election, so the jury's still out on this one, IMO.

One of my best hopes is in what Obama seemed to promise during the campaign, and that was to sit down with supposed enemies and TALK before shooting.

As Robert Scheer says, I wish peace had been given more of a chance...

Gaza Clouds Obama’s Prospects

By Robert Scheer

Quote:

So, why didn’t they give peace a chance? Why did the leaders of Hamas and Israel not wait for the incoming U.S. president’s inauguration before mutually escalating hostilities? Here was a president-elect chosen, in part, on the expectation that he could enhance prospects for Mideast peace, even if it meant negotiating with people thought to be enemies.

Why not give that approach an opportunity to succeed regarding the future of Palestine? Why not see if Hillary Rodham Clinton, whose husband had been more successful than any other president in advancing the prospects for peace in the Mideast, could have accomplished more than the lame-duck secretary of state she will soon replace?

Catherine · **Posted:** Thu Jan 01, 2009 12:53 pm

BS wrote:

Quote:

Simply laughable that you folks vote for another 4 years of Bush (Obama The Fraud)...yet STILL criticize him!

We criticize all politicians! :violent1:

Who did you vote for, BS?

lefty · **Posted:** Thu Jan 01, 2009 1:07 pm

I think that we should probably try to give him, I don't know, 2 days chance in office before we write him off. Seriously.

Purple Tang · **Posted:** Thu Jan 01, 2009 2:30 pm

Yes and no. Should a coach be judged by picks made in the off-season? Do those choices make a reflection on thier judgement and priorities?

My take on things is that Obama talks a great game then does precisley what his Zionist masters tell him to do. After all, they funded his campaign like no other campaign in history. None other even comes close.

A detective might conclude that they have serious plans with this election period.

Purple Tang · **Posted:** Thu Jan 01, 2009 2:37 pm

Catherine wrote:

Quote:

They always have Zionist Joe as a back up plan.

I seem to detect a bit of rebellion against Israel's attack on Gaza from peoples around the world. Is this a new trend that may be shaping up? Are more and more of the world's population getting tired of Israel being able to kill at will and being lauded for it? As to the new admin coming in, I'm not so sure that Obama will simply salute Israel and give "atta boys and girls." I'm going to watch and see. Obama, Biden, and the Obama Cabinet are going to have their fingers on the pulse of the world, especially at first, and if opinions around the world start to shift, Obama might not be as stubbornly supportive of Israel as Bush was. Obama will analyse and think through...at least that seems to be a characteristic of his.

However, Obama did get quite a bit of the Jewish vote in the election, so the jury's still out on this one, IMO.

One of my best hopes is in what Obama seemed to promise during the campaign, and that was to sit down with supposed enemies and TALK before shooting.

As Robert Scheer says, I wish peace had been given more of a chance...

Gaza Clouds Obama’s Prospects

By Robert Scheer

Quote:

So, why didn’t they give peace a chance? Why did the leaders of Hamas and Israel not wait for the incoming U.S. president’s inauguration before mutually escalating hostilities? Here was a president-elect chosen, in part, on the expectation that he could enhance prospects for Mideast peace, even if it meant negotiating with people thought to be enemies.

Why not give that approach an opportunity to succeed regarding the future of Palestine? Why not see if Hillary Rodham Clinton, whose husband had been more successful than any other president in advancing the prospects for peace in the Mideast, could have accomplished more than the lame-duck secretary of state she will soon replace?

The rest of the world largely is cognizant of a longer track record of Zionism. Americans are getting up to speed.

Until the internet, as we know it, gets changed. They are uncomfortable with light being shined on their shenanigans.

Barry Sotero · **Joined:** Sat Dec 20, 2008 4:31 pm **Posts:** 67

Obama went and groveled before AIPAC, so no one--except his loyal followers--should expect his admin to change America's "special" relationship w/Israel.

4 more years of GWB coming.

Bush Has NO Regrets, Says He Can Hold His Head High

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