Loving the Bush Haters

The Weekly Standard ^ | 11/07/03 | Noemie Emery

[Pokey78]

Is it wrong to take pleasure in the madness George W. Bush induces in his critics? Nope.

I LOVE GEORGE W. BUSH. I worship the man. I wake up every morning glad he is president. When annoyed by small things--traffic, the weather, an overcharge--I say to myself, "President Bush," and at once feel better. I like his worldview. I like his dogs and his wife and his mother. I think he looks cool in his shorts and his t-shirts. But it isn't these things that make my heart flutter: It's that he drives the people I hate the most nuts.

The Germans created the word schadenfreund to describe the pleasure one might feel at the woes of one's allies, but no one has yet coined a word for the happiness that can come to a person when those who annoy him complain. Open the paper, and there they all are: the hard-faced women who refer to abortion as "choice," the soft-faced male writers who look a little too pampered, the actors, the artists, the faculty hotshots, the with-it, the urbane and the urban, the concerned, the refined, the sincere.

They are enraged that someone unlike them has power; enraged because they think he is dumb, and he always outsmarts them; enraged that he pushed back when the Democrats, backed all the way by the Supreme Court of Florida, flooded the state with lawyers after the 2000 election, armed with game plans to subvert the result.

Above all, they are enraged that they can't sell their wrath to the rest of the country, which calmly remains unenraged. So, they write the same book over and over (and buy it in job lots), write the same pieces over and over, and post the same things on the web. I read them all.

And in them I find a perverse satisfaction. If, as Churchill maintains, it is exhilarating to be shot at and missed, it is also enlivening to have your opponent empty both barrels, to more or less meager effect. I read Sidney Blumenthal's mournful account of the Florida recount. I read junior writers at policy journals proclaim with no proof they are smarter than Bush is. I read them all, and I wickedly grin.

I grin because I have been once where they are, and have stood in their sandals myself. Liberals insist Bush exists in their minds as a vast malign presence, a huge psychic drag on their consciousness. I know, I know--I felt exactly the same way about Clinton, back in l999. Shortly later, I was told by a dentist that during the eight year reign of the Clintons, I had been grinding my molars to dust. "I've been grinding my teeth less since Clinton left office," I said, thinking he'd think it was funny. He didn't. His office is on Capitol Hill, and his practice is filled with political people, all gnashing their teeth in a frenzy of outrage.

It's your turn, now, fellas. Grind on!

Noemie Emery is a contributing editor to The Weekly Standard.

[JohnGalt]

Nina Burleigh Tuesday July 7, 1998 (Vol. Three; No. 106) Reporter Offers Clinton a Blewinsky; GOP Candidates Hit as Too Far Right

[billbears]

When annoyed by small things--traffic, the weather, an overcharge--I say to myself, "President Bush," and at once feel better.

That's just sick. When small things bother me, I pray to God and He comforts me. Deification of a human leader is against practically everything the Founders stood for. But heck most of what the national government is today is against what the Founders stood for. Just one more thing to add to the list.

[reformed_democrat]

Here, boys.

One for you!

Poking the bear again, are we?

[blackie]

"It's that he drives the people I hate the most nuts."

Ain't that the truth! :)

GWB Is The Man!

[Pagey]

They are enraged that he pushed back when the Democrats, backed all the way by the Supreme Court of Florida, flooded the state with lawyers after the 2000 election, armed with game plans to subvert the result.

Factually, it was James A. Baker the 3rd and his group of lawyers that called the RATS on all of their B.S. manipulative requests/lies and forced the SCOTUS to reprimand the Florida Supreme Court. David Boies and his merry group of lawyers couldn't outwit the way the constitution was written. The RAT party presently offers no ideas – other than to preserve and protect the welfare-regulatory state status quo at all costs. NOTHING. Case Closed. Period.

[MeekOneGOP]

Re #36-37: Yep ! Thanks ...

We can look forward to another 5 years in the White House, imho ...

[onyx]

YES! Yes, Meek, wonderful post.

[Timesink]

What, no BARF alert? Respect for a leader is one thing--worship is reserved for God.

I believe she was parodying the infamous Jonathan Chait "I Hate George W. Bush" article with that paragaph.

[doug from upland]

Someone with the site design skills needs to start the site: www.terroristsfordemocrats.com

[MeekOneGOP]

hehe !

[ladyinred]

Wonderful article. Wish I could take it this way, but it is just too important that Bush remain President to fight this war on terror that democrats dropped the ball on.

[ladyinred]

You are so right! The democrats can't win at the ballot box, so they are ruling in the courts with their carefully placed activist judges, while blocking any that Bush nominates!

[TexasTransplant]

"Oh yeah? So there's been a plethora of liberal judges being confirmed?"

 

Yep, for eight solid years under Clinton on the Federal side, and recently Gray Davis in California just ripping them through at light speed.  But what really steams me are the Annelids on the conservative side are structurally challenged otherwise they would applaud in the name of Bipartisanship.

[meowmeow]

LOL!

Over here, kb...

[arasina]

I'm surprised The Weekly Standard missed her misspelling of the word schadenfreude, but I like her point of view nevertheless.

[nopardons]

Rush just wasn't enough, for me, during the Clinton days. Thank GOD for FR ... now, there was MY life-saver. LOL

Glad you finally found us, though. :-)

[kb2614]

Sounds like something I'd write :)

Oh the joys of watching the dimRATS go thru several stages of conniption fits.

[Coop]

Yep, for eight solid years under Clinton on the Federal side, and recently Gray Davis in California just ripping them through at light speed.

Which has absolutely nothing to do with President Bush.

[TexasTransplant]

"Which has absolutely nothing to do with President Bush."

Here I will make it easy for you, list President Bush's Judge  Confirmations;

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

I Agree, nothing whatsoever to do with President Bush.

 

 

[Coop]

1) President Bush nominates judges, he doesn't confirm them.
2) I suggest you make even a hint of effort at finding out some facts before posting such nonsense (i.e., there have been no judges confirmed during his Administration.) Your last post is dumb with a capital "Duh!"