• This is a political forum that is non-biased/non-partisan and treats every person's position on topics equally. This debate forum is not aligned to any political party. In today's politics, many ideas are split between and even within all the political parties. Often we find ourselves agreeing on one platform but some topics break our mold. We are here to discuss them in a civil political debate. If this is your first visit to our political forums, be sure to check out the RULES. Registering for debate politics is necessary before posting. Register today to participate - it's free!

Was George W Bush a good president?[W:439:621]

Was George W Bush a good president?


  • Total voters
    124
  • Poll closed .
I can't. I can't understand letting bin Laden escape Tora Bora then ginning up a war with Iraq for no discernible reason.

I know, but at the same time, that douche Saddam was making threats and having everyone believe he had WMD.
 
Re: Was George W Bush a good president?

For the first time in history America has created Constitution Free Zones and Free Speech Zones. This should raise a few alarms.

Minor quibble, but related to the thread topic ... Free Speech Zones were largely a creation of the Bush administration.

Bush Zones Go National | The Nation

At the 2000 GOP nominating convention in Philadelphia, candidate Bush created a fenced-in, out-of-sight protest zone that could only hold barely 1,500 people at a time. So citizens who wished to give voice to their many grievances with the Powers That Be had to:

(1) Schedule their exercise of First Amendment rights with the decidedly unsympathetic authorities.

(2) Report like cattle to the protest pen at their designated time, and only in the numbers authorized.

(3) Then, under the recorded surveillance of the authorities, feel free to let loose with all the speech they could utter within their allotted minutes (although no one--not Bush, not convention delegates, not the preening members of Congress, not the limousine-gliding corporate sponsors and certainly not the mass media--would be anywhere nearby to hear a single word of what they had to say).

Imagine how proud the Founders would be of this interpretation of their revolutionary work. The Democrats, always willing to learn useful tricks from the opposition, created their own "free-speech zone" when they gathered in Los Angeles that year for their convention.

Once ensconced in the White House, the Bu****es institutionalized the art of dissing dissent, routinely dispatching the Secret Service to order local police to set up FSZs to quarantine protesters wherever Bush goes. The embedded media trooping dutifully behind him almost never cover this fascinating and truly newsworthy phenomenon, instead focusing almost entirely on spoon-fed soundbites from the President's press office.
 
I know, but at the same time, that douche Saddam was making threats and having everyone believe he had WMD.

Yeah, and if we went and deposed every tinpot dictator who "made threats," that's all we'd ever do.

Nobody's saying Saddam was a nice guy. But was it worth nearly 5,000 American lives and untold Iraqi lives to replace him with a far more unstable situation?
 
GWB was a compassionate conservative--
but Cheney didn't get the memo--
Cheney clearly chaired the secret energy conferences in 2001, that came before 9/11--
Cheney then clearly became a war-time co-President -
 
Yeah, and if we went and deposed every tinpot dictator who "made threats," that's all we'd ever do.

Nobody's saying Saddam was a nice guy. But was it worth nearly 5,000 American lives and untold Iraqi lives to replace him with a far more unstable situation?

No it wasn't, but it's too late now. Those lives are gone and they aren't coming back no matter how angry you are. And hindsight is always 20/20.

Another point, some of the same people who are angry about Bush's wars, wanted us to send us to Syria.
 
No it wasn't, but it's too late now. Those lives are gone and they aren't coming back no matter how angry you are. And hindsight is always 20/20.

Well, I guess that makes it all better then.

Another point, some of the same people who are angry about Bush's wars, wanted us to send us to Syria.

So what? Does that make Bush retroactively right or something?
 
Yeah, and if we went and deposed every tinpot dictator who "made threats," that's all we'd ever do.
The picture of Rumsfeld shaking hands with Saddam says it all.
The USA propped up Saddam throughout the 80's.
And gave weapons to the Mujahadeen against the Soviets in Afghanistan.
Bush/Cheney learned that "deficits don't matter" from Reagan, yet learned nothing from the Soviets being run out of the Afghan theatre .
 
But was it worth nearly 5,000 American lives and untold Iraqi lives to replace him with a far more unstable situation?

Yet most don't bring up the more than 30,000 soldiers wounded in action and now part of a swamped VA system.
And all we get is Obama-blame and a filibustered VA bill, one that would have cost less than the October shutdown.

Since the Bush decade produced a shortage of VA doctors,
I propose a GI-type bill to pay for medical school, everything,
if these new Doctors would work their internships for Uncle Sam as well as their first five years for the VA.

(Btw, I got my tuition for four years if I taught for two in chem/physics--a needed area in 1971--I taught 33)
 
Re: Was George W Bush a good president?

As far as I know the Bush name is deeply and truly New England in origin. He goes up to Maine in the summer and has a big house up there. Bush family is new england family. I lived in New England, but my family is not in New England. I sort of throw Bush in with John Kerry, Mitt Romney, Jill Stein, all these New England politicians who I have come to dislike heavily. I think New England should join Canada and take these people along, even if it means extraditing Bush from his Texas ranch.

But Canada and USA are new world countries compared to Turks. What would the odds be?
 
Re: Was George W Bush a good president?

I answered the poll "I'm a right leaning American, no."

Bush was a horrible president. He and Obama are by far the two worst presidents in my life and I'm a Carter baby.

He, along with both parties in Congress, got us into two ridiculously unnecessary wars.

He trampled on the constitution and our liberties. Obama has taken his lead and done so even more.

Bush was not a conservative, not a classical conservative any way. He was and is a war mongering neocon pig and to anyone that answered "I'm a right leaning American, yes" screw you! You're probably nothing but war mongering neocon pigs too.
 
Re: Was George W Bush a good president?

Just insert any POTUS's name and the answer is 'no'.
 
Re: Was George W Bush a good president?

I answered the poll "I'm a right leaning American, no."

Bush was a horrible president. He and Obama are by far the two worst presidents in my life and I'm a Carter baby.

He, along with both parties in Congress, got us into two ridiculously unnecessary wars.

He trampled on the constitution and our liberties. Obama has taken his lead and done so even more.

Bush was not a conservative, not a classical conservative any way. He was and is a war mongering neocon pig and to anyone that answered "I'm a right leaning American, yes" screw you! You're probably nothing but war mongering neocon pigs too.

I was born shorty after Truman took over, so I have no personal reflection on him being I was way to young. But I do from Eisenhower on. Now worst presidents are subjective to the individual, but my worst two president were Ford followed by Carter. Now the next two has to be Bush the second and Obama by a long shot below even Nixon. Which is worse, Obama or Bush the second? I don't know as the jury is still out on Obama as he still has two and one half years to go. But there is the distinct possibility that Obama and Bush the second could fall in-between Carter and Ford as my worst presidents once Obama's presidency is over and history has given us more time to rate Bush the second.

But as far as I am concerned, Obama and Bush the second are interchangeable.
 
Re: Was George W Bush a good president?

I was born shorty after Truman took over, so I have no personal reflection on him being I was way to young. But I do from Eisenhower on. Now worst presidents are subjective to the individual, but my worst two president were Ford followed by Carter. Now the next two has to be Bush the second and Obama by a long shot below even Nixon. Which is worse, Obama or Bush the second? I don't know as the jury is still out on Obama as he still has two and one half years to go. But there is the distinct possibility that Obama and Bush the second could fall in-between Carter and Ford as my worst presidents once Obama's presidency is over and history has given us more time to rate Bush the second.

But as far as I am concerned, Obama and Bush the second are interchangeable.

In his farewell speech to the nation IKE warned us of the military industrial complex. That right there is at least worth ten points in my book.

The left is always screaming about how the GOP is not your grandfather's GOP and they are right. The Barry Goldwaters of the world have been replaced by the Dick Cheneys of the world and it's a damn shame.

HOwever the Dem party of today is not the Dem party of your grandfather either. It has moved very far to the left as the JFKs in the party have been replaced by the Obamas and Pelosis.

So I guess we're pretty much screwed as a nation.

By the way, what was so bad about Ford?
 
Re: Was George W Bush a good president?

In his farewell speech to the nation IKE warned us of the military industrial complex. That right there is at least worth ten points in my book.

The left is always screaming about how the GOP is not your grandfather's GOP and they are right. The Barry Goldwaters of the world have been replaced by the Dick Cheneys of the world and it's a damn shame.

HOwever the Dem party of today is not the Dem party of your grandfather either. It has moved very far to the left as the JFKs in the party have been replaced by the Obamas and Pelosis.

So I guess we're pretty much screwed as a nation.

By the way, what was so bad about Ford?

Except that we are still in charge, at least for now. If only more voters realized just who was in charge of this republic we have, perhaps we could keep it.
 
Re: Was George W Bush a good president?

Except that we are still in charge, at least for now. If only more voters realized just who was in charge of this republic we have, perhaps we could keep it.


Who's the "we" you refer to?

It sure as hell isn't the American people. We've not been in charge for a very long time.
 
Re: Was George W Bush a good president?

Who's the "we" you refer to?

It sure as hell isn't the American people. We've not been in charge for a very long time.

Oh, we still are, it's just that not enough people realize it.
If they did, we'd fire most of the incumbents at the next election.
 
Re: Was George W Bush a good president?

In his farewell speech to the nation IKE warned us of the military industrial complex. That right there is at least worth ten points in my book.

The left is always screaming about how the GOP is not your grandfather's GOP and they are right. The Barry Goldwaters of the world have been replaced by the Dick Cheneys of the world and it's a damn shame.

HOwever the Dem party of today is not the Dem party of your grandfather either. It has moved very far to the left as the JFKs in the party have been replaced by the Obamas and Pelosis.

So I guess we're pretty much screwed as a nation.

By the way, what was so bad about Ford?

Eisenhower statements.jpg

Eisenhower has always been the number one, the best president during my lifetime. There were times I wondered if I was if that just wasn't youth speaking. But the more I read about him, the more IKE was ingrained as the best. The there has been the releases from his presidential library lately that none of us knew about. All the stuff he accomplished behind the scenes with no fanfare.

I agree too, the political parties of today are nothing like the one I knew in my younger days, JFK would be laughed out of the Democratic Party. Can you imagine him stating today, "Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country." Today most people in America expect they country to do for them while doing nothing for her in return. Can you imagine what the democrats would say about his tax cuts for the filthy rich. About him sending 16,000 troops/advisers to Vietnam and being a very hard cold warrior. He was not one to shy away from using the CIA and other covert organizations to accomplish what he wanted.

To me both IKE and Goldwater reflect the Republican Party of old. IKE also used the covert agencies to keep track of what the Russians were doing and what they were capable. He also held down defense spending to the minimum, to him national defense was the priority, not the toy makers or what he called the military industrial complex. Goldwater told LBJ to either win that damn war or bring the boys home, now! He firmly believed in keeping government out of social issues like abortion, leave it to the woman and as far as gay rights, he is quoted as saying, "You do not have to be straight to shoot straight." A reference to gays in the military, gay marriage wasn't even an idea born yet.

Both were fiscal conservatives, IKE even has a surplus in two of his eight years which brought down the national debt. We had FDR, Truman, IKE, JFK in succession, how lucky of a nation we were. Now we get Obama and Bush the second, what a comedown. Two at best below average presidents if not very poor presidents.
 
Re: Was George W Bush a good president?

Oh, we still are, it's just that not enough people realize it.
If they did, we'd fire most of the incumbents at the next election.

I get you point, but I have come to the conclusion a long time ago it does no good to replace a Republican with a Democrat or a Democrat with a Republican. You still end up with business as usual elected officials. The Rhetoric is polar opposite, but the governing is the same. Both owe their moneyed people, the corporations, Wall Street, the lobbyists, special interest groups for their elections and neither party is willing to buck them. If they did, all those millions, tens of millions of campaign dollars would just flow into the other parties coffers.

This is what most people do not realize. I do not think it makes a bit of difference if we replace an R with a D or a D with an R. what is that old saying, the more things change, the more things stay the same.
 
Re: Was George W Bush a good president?

In my lifetime, I have to choose from Carter, Reagan (I was just a baby/child then), Bush Sr., Clinton, Bush Jr., and Obama. I guess I would have to choose Reagan out of all of them. Seems to me, from everything I know, he seems to have accomplished the most and didn't seem to be as polarizing as some of the others.
 
Re: Was George W Bush a good president?

View attachment 67168862

Eisenhower has always been the number one, the best president during my lifetime. There were times I wondered if I was if that just wasn't youth speaking. But the more I read about him, the more IKE was ingrained as the best. The there has been the releases from his presidential library lately that none of us knew about. All the stuff he accomplished behind the scenes with no fanfare.


I agree too, the political parties of today are nothing like the one I knew in my younger days, JFK would be laughed out of the Democratic Party. Can you imagine him stating today, "Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country." Today most people in America expect they country to do for them while doing nothing for her in return. Can you imagine what the democrats would say about his tax cuts for the filthy rich. About him sending 16,000 troops/advisers to Vietnam and being a very hard cold warrior. He was not one to shy away from using the CIA and other covert organizations to accomplish what he wanted.

To me both IKE and Goldwater reflect the Republican Party of old. IKE also used the covert agencies to keep track of what the Russians were doing and what they were capable. He also held down defense spending to the minimum, to him national defense was the priority, not the toy makers or what he called the military industrial complex. Goldwater told LBJ to either win that damn war or bring the boys home, now! He firmly believed in keeping government out of social issues like abortion, leave it to the woman and as far as gay rights, he is quoted as saying, "You do not have to be straight to shoot straight." A reference to gays in the military, gay marriage wasn't even an idea born yet.

Both were fiscal conservatives, IKE even has a surplus in two of his eight years which brought down the national debt. We had FDR, Truman, IKE, JFK in succession, how lucky of a nation we were. Now we get Obama and Bush the second, what a comedown. Two at best below average presidents if not very poor presidents.


I think IKE was a decent man and his eyewitness experience in WW2 brought his humanity and deceny to the forefront of everything he did as president. He had seen the reality of war with his own eyes and wanted to warn the rest of us what it was really all about.

As for today's parties, there are far too many black and white reactionaries on both sides. What the world, not just the united states needs so desperately now is a little humility and common sense but I'm not holding my breath the way things seem to be going.
 
Re: Was George W Bush a good president?

In my lifetime, I have to choose from Carter, Reagan (I was just a baby/child then), Bush Sr., Clinton, Bush Jr., and Obama. I guess I would have to choose Reagan out of all of them. Seems to me, from everything I know, he seems to have accomplished the most and didn't seem to be as polarizing as some of the others.

Ronnie was as polarizing as they come. He introduced the religious right to mainstream politics when he invited the moral majority into governance. Arguably, he was the catalyst that created the divisions we now see today. My opinion only. He did some good things too. GWB is in the top-3 as it relates to bad presidents . . . again, just my opinion.
 
Re: Was George W Bush a good president?

Ronnie was as polarizing as they come. He introduced the religious right to mainstream politics when he invited the moral majority into governance. Arguably, he was the catalyst that created the divisions we now see today. My opinion only. He did some good things too. GWB is in the top-3 as it relates to bad presidents . . . again, just my opinion.

Sorry, but the "religious right" as much as you might oppose their views, have every right to political representation as anyone else does, though our laws should remain secular.
 
Re: Was George W Bush a good president?

Ronnie was as polarizing as they come. He introduced the religious right to mainstream politics when he invited the moral majority into governance. Arguably, he was the catalyst that created the divisions we now see today. My opinion only. He did some good things too. GWB is in the top-3 as it relates to bad presidents . . . again, just my opinion.

and the other 2 would be?
 
Re: Was George W Bush a good president?

I think IKE was a decent man and his eyewitness experience in WW2 brought his humanity and deceny to the forefront of everything he did as president. He had seen the reality of war with his own eyes and wanted to warn the rest of us what it was really all about.

As for today's parties, there are far too many black and white reactionaries on both sides. What the world, not just the united states needs so desperately now is a little humility and common sense but I'm not holding my breath the way things seem to be going.

I agree, but I think mankind as a whole is beyond that point. They call all of mankind humanity. That is indeed strange since we as human do not show other human much humanity at all.
 
Re: Was George W Bush a good president?

Sorry, but the "religious right" as much as you might oppose their views, have every right to political representation as anyone else does, though our laws should remain secular.

Yes, they do, but unfortunately it has led to the "Bat Shirt Crazy Division" of the once Grand Ole Party. What a shame since the Left side of the aisle is full of weak sticks with no conviction . . . both sides saddled to big money and big money interests.
 
Back
Top Bottom