Bush legacy

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Two Views on Bush: Savior vs. Dimwit
 Two Views on Bush: 
 Savior vs. Dimwit 
OPINION

Two Views on Bush: Savior vs. Dimwit

Charles Krauthammer and Jonathan Chait at opposite poles

(Newser) - Yesterday's dedication of the George W. Bush presidential library—along with his rising poll numbers —has led to lots of renewed pontificating about the Bush legacy. A sample of the pro and con camps:
  • Pro: Bush often gets reduced to the slogan, "He kept us safe.
...

Bush: I'm Done With Politics

W. says he won't campaign, fundraise, or criticize Obama

(Newser) - You won't see George W. Bush hitting the campaign trail in 2012; he's sworn off politics for good, he tells C-SPAN in an interview airing tomorrow night. “I don’t want to go out and campaign for candidates, I don’t want to be used as a perpetual...

Bush Bashing Won't Stop Anytime Soon

(Newser) - Barack Obama doesn’t want anyone to forget his predecessor. “You hand me a $1.3 trillion bill, and then you’re complaining six months later because we haven’t paid it all back,” he griped at a recent town hall. And you can expect him to keep...

Prodigal Dubya, Texas Slowly Get Reacquainted

(Newser) - Former President Bush is gradually reentering life as a private citizen in Texas, Newsweek reports, but he's doing it gingerly and on his own terms. While many Texans agree that Dubya's still the friendly, aw-shucks guy they sent to Washington eight years ago, he's definitely keeping clear of dissent. “...

Bush's Simpler New Life Has No Talk of 'L Word' (Legacy)

He moves firmly among the 33% who supported him

(Newser) - President Bush began his new life in an "insulated bubble" the day he left Washington toting a plane of teary-eyed friends watching a rosy video tribute on the Bush era. Low approval ratings? Bah. "He lives squarely in the remaining 33%" who supported him, writes Washington Post's Eli...

Bushies Work to Salvage Boss' Rep
Bushies Work
to Salvage
Boss' Rep

Bushies Work to Salvage Boss' Rep

Rove, Fleischer, Perino look to set the record straight, combat spin

(Newser) - Two months out of office, President Bush rarely warrants mention these days, but his old aides quietly work at rebuilding his reputation, reports Politico. “We’re invited to comment on the events of the day and along the way, we remind people that there was, indeed, good news under...

Why Obama Is Like Bush
 Why Obama Is Like Bush 
OPINION

Why Obama Is Like Bush

Apart from being ideological opposites, Bush and Obama are identical!

(Newser) - Barack Obama is often compared to FDR or Ronald Reagan. But what about the last guy? Obama has taken office in the midst of a crisis and has lofty approval ratings—much like the 80% Bush had after 9/11. And both have taken a fairly similar political approach to their...

Bush Fans Rare at Conservative Pow-Wow

CPAC speakers slam former president, along with Obama

(Newser) - George W. Bush spoke at the Conservative Political Action Conference every year of his presidency, but this year when you hear his name, it’s usually being derided, writes Andy Barr of Politico. Newt Gingrich spent his speech railing against “Bush-Obama big spending,” while Mike Huckabee cited Bush’...

Bush Faithful Rewarded With Plum Jobs

No crony left behind in last-minute appointments

(Newser) - The Bush presidency lives on through more than 100 end-of-term appointments to a wide range of presidential panels, the Washington Post reports. The positions, many of which will outlast his successor's current term, have gone to George Bush's aides and political donors. Most are unpaid, although four top aides snagged...

Gitmo Detainee Files a Mess
 Gitmo Detainee Files a Mess 

Gitmo Detainee Files a Mess

Obama officials condemn disorder; ex-Bushies cry blame game

(Newser) - The case files of many Gitmo detainees are incomplete, disorganized, or strewn around the executive branch, complicating President Barack Obama’s plan to close down the detention center, reports the Washington Post. Incoming officials discovered the chaos when given access after the inauguration. One former official says he sometimes had...

'Oedipally Oddball W' Makes His Long Exit

While Bush hated doubt, Obama's 'delighted' by it

(Newser) - George W. Bush’s insecurity and aversion to doubt—“the psychological traits of an asphyxiated and pampered son”—led to his botched presidency, Maureen Dowd writes in the New York Times. Rather than being a source of presidential insight on Iraq and Saddam, Bush’s father was relegated...

Admit It: Bush Was Right (Once)
 Admit It: Bush Was Right (Once) 
OPINION

Admit It: Bush Was Right (Once)

(Newser) - The surge worked, writes Peter Beinart in the Washington Post, and liberals need to admit it—for their own good. Some 500 Iraqis died in Iraq in November, down from 3,475 in November 2006, a major success by any standard. American deaths fell from 69 to 12. But Democrats...

Bush's Biggest Error: He Asked Nothing of Us
Bush's Biggest Error: He Asked Nothing of Us
OPINION

Bush's Biggest Error: He Asked Nothing of Us

Broder: No sacrifice during war? Your grandkids will pay

(Newser) - Soon after 9/11, a reporter asked George Bush how much ordinary Americans would be expected to sacrifice. Bush’s reply? “People may not be able to board flights as quickly.” That was it. Bush declared a war without asking anything of anyone save the enlisted and their families,...

Top 10 Bush Gaffes on YouTube
 Top 10 Bush Gaffes on YouTube 

Top 10 Bush Gaffes on YouTube

Presidential bloopers including inadvertently insulting a queen

(Newser) - During his 8 years in office, George W. Bush created the biggest presidential blooper reel in history. Time narrows the field of YouTube gems to a top 10:
  • Shoe toss in Iraq. Bush has no idea why a Iraqi might hurl footware at him, but the episode spawned scads of
...

Rehabilitation of Bush Legacy Well Under Way
Rehabilitation
of Bush Legacy Well Under Way
OPINION

Rehabilitation of Bush Legacy Well Under Way

Need proof? See Obama's early moves, writes Krauthammer

(Newser) - Nixon aside, no president since Truman has left office as unpopular as George W. Bush, writes Washington Post columnist Charles Krauthammer. But while it took decades for Truman's reputation to be restored, "Bush's rehabilitation will come sooner—in fact, it has already begun." The proof? Barack Obama...

Bush Farewell: 'I Followed My Conscience'

(Newser) - President Bush made his farewell address to the nation tonight, acknowledging "setbacks" and the wish to do some things differently but insisting that he "always acted with the best interests of our country in mind." The president—who said he had always followed his conscience and "...

Biden Plans to Shrink VP Power
 Biden Plans to Shrink VP Power 
Interview

Biden Plans to Shrink VP Power

But he'll be 'the guy in the room'

(Newser) - Most vice presidents enter office wanting to grab power and make a name for themselves. Not Joe Biden. The VP-elect is determined to roll back Dick Cheney’s massive power grab, he tells the New York Times. Will that make him less effective? “The only value of power is...

Bush Can Teach Obama What Not to Do: Woodward

Woodward has seen all the mistakes and lived to tell about it

(Newser) - George W. Bush’s presidency could teach Barack Obama many lessons—about what not to do. Bob Woodward lays out 10 of them in today’s Washington Post:
  • "Presidents need to draw people out and make sure bad news makes it to the Oval Office": Bush went into Iraq
...

Interns Filled Out Seats for Bush Press Conference

(Newser) - When President Bush called a press conference yesterday to defend his legacy, he apparently overestimated the interest. Dana Milbank of the Washington Post notes that the White House had strict rules in place restricting news organizations to one seat each. Extras would have to stand. "But when the appointed...

Bush to Give Farewell Address, Obama Welcome

(Newser) - President Bush will take the spotlight one last time in a farewell address Thursday that the administration is billing as a chance to reflect on his presidency and pass the torch to Barack Obama. Bush will deliver the speech, expected to run 10-15 minutes, from the ornate East Room of...

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