Kennedy Assails (President) Bush on Domestic Policy

yahoo! News ^ | 4/5/04 | Lolita C. Baldor - AP

[NormsRevenge]

WASHINGTON -

After months of attacking President Bush (news - web sites)'s policy on Iraq (news - web sites), Sen. Edward M. Kennedy turned his focus to domestic issues, saying the administration has misled the public about the economy, health care and education.

"As a result, this president has now created the largest credibility gap since Richard Nixon," Kennedy said in a speech Monday at the Brookings Institution, a think tank. "He has broken the basic bond of trust with the American people."

The senator said the government has cut unemployment benefits, failed to pay for education overhaul and is spending $134 billion more than expected on a Medicare plan.

Kennedy has been taking on Bush as one of the most fervent supporters of John Kerry (news - web sites), the Massachusetts senator who is the presumptive Democratic nominee for president.

The attack on the administration's domestic agenda comes after several high-profile speeches in which Kennedy called the war in Iraq a "fraud" and said the plan to oust Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein (news - web sites) was devised to help Republicans in the 2002 and 2004 elections.

In the Brookings Speech, Kennedy branded Iraq as "George Bush's Vietnam," but added that the military campaign diverted attention from "the administration's deceptions here at home."

The pattern of deception and the administration's efforts to dismiss any critics, he said, has polarized and paralyzed Congress and is undermining the public's trust in government.

"Saying whatever it takes to prevail has become standard operating procedure in the Bush White House," said Kennedy. "In this administration, truth is the first casualty of policy."

___

On the Net:

Brookings Institution: http://www.brookings.edu/

[NormsRevenge]

US President George W. Bush (news - web sites) gives the thumbs up to reporters while leaving the White House. Bush is set this week to propose doubling the number of workers in government training programs, hoping to blunt Democrats' criticism of his economic policies and a public perception his administration favours the rich(AFP/Nicholas Roberts)

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[Dan from Michigan]

"As a result, this president has now created the largest credibility gap since Richard Nixon,"

Ted the Swimmer has no room to talk about credibility gaps.

[John Lenin]

Everytime Teddy opens his mouth my heart sinks. How has this guy managed to stay in government for 40 years?

[F16Fighter]

"This president has now created the largest credibility gap since Richard Nixon," Kennedy said...

Gee -- maybe Ted Kennedy should run another car over a bridge and leave one more "assistant" to drown, and fabricate one more fairy tale to explain it.

That way he'd have even more"credibility" himself.

[lilylangtree]

Chappaquiddick Ted mouthing off again with the same old tired demoncRAT philosophy: "Do as I say not as I do"

[talleyman]

Whatever the 'Rats accuse you of, that's what they're doing (and have done). Beneath contempt.

[blackdog]

Dead girl swimming alert......

[Freeper]

Chappaquiddick Ted mouthing off again

I believe that should be Chappaquiddick Ted, Captain of the U.S.S. Olsmobile Submarine . . . . . .

[Bommer]

"As a result, this president has now created the largest credibility gap since Richard Nixon,"

Uh Ted, Nixon was never impeached. Clinton was. You voted not to impeach Clinton after he lied his sorry @ss off numberous times in front of a grand jury. Clinton also bombed an asprin factory claiming it was making checmical weapons. He bombed a Chinese embassy on purpose and lied about it. He got the US into a war with a Christian ally over lies of mass graves.....later to be found to be mostly Serbian. He boned an intern and lied about it. The best you have on Bush is that he listened to the UN and Clinton about WMD and couldn't find any.....but that goes back to your boys credibility and to the credibility of the socialist $hit house known as the UN

Yes lets talk credibility....hopefully when your not driving....over a bridge.....over water.

[Extremely Extreme Extremist]

It's funny how the Rats lie that the Bush administration's economy is the worst since Hoover, but conveniently leave out the Jimmah Carter years.

[The Wizard]

and no one cares

[Redcoat LI]

[HanneyBean]

Every time Teddy "AquaMan" Kennedy opens his big fat mouth, I marvel again at God's patience with the human race.

[blackdog]

Kennedy hates to travel outside the states. Word has it that the citizens of other countries actually wait for him at airports, train stations, hotels, intersections and public/private speaking engagements and toss life preservers at him.

I saw footage of it in South Africa about five years ago and it was powerful. The look on his face is right out of "Fear Factor".

I guess in this country you'd get arrested?

[Lee'sGhost]

Uh, gee Ted, wasn't the Vietnam fiasco your brother's doings?

[Southack]

Presidency of George W. Bush -- the first 38 months

 

Banned Partial Birth Abortion

Reversed Clinton's move to strike Reagan's anti-abortion Mexico Policy

Killed the Kyoto Global Warming Treaty

Killed U.S. involvement in the International Criminal Court

Killed Clinton's CO2 rules that were choking off all of the electricity surplus to California.

Killed Clinton's "ergonomic" rules that OSHA was about to implement; rules that would have shut down every home business in America.

Killed the U.S. - CCCP ABM Treaty that was preventing the U.S. from deploying our ABM defenses

Has CONSTRUCTION in process on the first ten ABM silos in Alaska and California so that America has a defense against North Korean nukes

 

Pushed through THREE raises for our military.

Increased Defense Dept funding which had deteriorated during the previous 8 years

 

President Bush's Grand Strategy

Stopped foreign aid that would be used to fund abortions.

Supported and upheld the ban on abortions at military hospitals

Signed E.O. reversing Clinton's policy of not requiring parental consent for abortions under the Medical Privacy Act

Signed TWO bills into law that arm our pilots with handguns in the cockpit

Currently pushing for full immunity from lawsuits for our national gun manufacturers

Ordered Attorney-General Ashcroft to formally notify the Supreme Court that the OFFICIAL U.S. government position on the 2nd Amendment is that it supports INDIVIDUAL rights to own firearms, NOT a leftist-imagined *collective* right

Told the United Nations we weren't interested in their plans for gun control (i.e. the International Ban on Small Arms Trafficking Treaty)

Signed the 2004 Omnibus Budget 1/26/2004 that now MANDATES that gun buyers' background check information be fully and permanently destroyed within 24 hours of the completion of the check, no matter what.

Disarmed Libya of its Chemical, Nuclear, and biological WMD's without bribes or bloodshed

Won an agreement that U.S. Navy sailors may now freely board thousands of commercial ships in international waters to search for weapons of mass destruction under a landmark pact between the United States and Liberia, the world's No. 2 shipping registry (signed Feb 11, 2004).

Successfully executed 2 wars: Afghanistan and Iraq. 50 million people who had lived under tyrannical regimes now live in freedom

 

Executed a WAR ON TERROR by getting world-wide cooperation to track funds/terrorists (has cut off much of the terrorist's funding and captured or killed many key leaders of the al Qaeda network)

 

Brought back our EP-3 intel plane and crew from China without any bribes or bloodshed

Started withdrawing our troops from Bosnia and has announced withdrawal of our troops from Germany and the Korean DMZ.

Signed the LARGEST nuclear arms reduction in world history with Russia

Initiated comprehensive review of our military, which was completed just prior to 9/11/01, accurately reported that ASYMMETRICAL WARFARE was critical.

Changed the tone in the White House, restoring HONOR and DIGNITY to the Presidency

Reorganized bureaucracy...after 9/11, condensed 20+ overlapping agencies and their intelligence sectors into one agency: the Department of Homeland Security.

Initiated discussion on privatizing Social Security and individual investment accounts.

Improving govt. efficiency with .8 million jobs put up for bid...weakening unions and cutting undeserved pay raises. Wants merit based promotions/raises only.

Orchestrated Republican control of the White House, the House AND the Senate.

Killed the liberal ABA's role in vetting federal judges for Congress.

GWB signed an executive order enforcing the Supreme Court's Beck decision (re: union dues being used for political campaigns against individual's wishes)

Turned around an inherited economy that was in recession.

Passed tough new laws to hold corporate criminals to account as a result of corporate scandals.

Signed 2 income tax cuts ---- 1 of which was the largest Dollar value tax cut in world history

Reduced taxes on dividends and capital gains

In process of eliminating IRS marriage penalty.

Increased small business incentives to expand and to hire new people

Signed into law the No Child Left Behind legislation delivering the most dramatic education reforms in a generation (challenging the soft bigotry of low expectations)

Reorganized the INS in an attempt to safeguard the borders and ports of America and to eliminate bureaucratic redundancies and lack of accountability.

Signed trade promotion authority

Committed US funds to purchase medicine for millions of men and women and children now suffering with AIDS in Africa

Passed Medicare Reform (authorized $39.5 Billion per year for preventive medicine such as drugs and doctor visits as well as included a ten year Privatization option)

Urging federal liability reform to eliminate frivolous lawsuits

Supports class action reform bill which limits lawyer fees so that more settlement money goes to victims

Submitted comprehensive Energy Plan--awaits Congressional action (works to develop cleaner technology, produce more natural gas here at home, make America less dependent on foreign sources of energy, improve national grid, etc.)

Endorses and promotes The Responsibility Era ("In a compassionate society, people respect one another and take responsibility for the decisions they make in life. My hope is to change the culture from one that has said, if it feels good, do it; if you've got a problem, blame somebody else -- to one in which every single American understands that he or she are responsible for the decisions that you make; you're responsible for loving your children with all your heart and all your soul; you're responsible for being involved with the quality of the education of your children; you're responsible for making sure the community in which you live is safe; you're responsible for loving your neighbor, just like you would like to be loved yourself. " -----this quote was too good to leave out)

Started the USA Freedom Corps

Initiated review of all federal agencies with a goal to eliminate federal jobs (completed September 2003) in an effort to reduce the size of federal gov while increasing private sector jobs.

Part of coalition (Russia, Israel, EU, Palestine, USA) for Israeli/Palestinian "Roadmap to Peace"

Challenged the United Nations to live up to their responsibilities and not become The League of Nations ( in other words, completely irrelevant)

Nominated strong, conservative judges to the judiciary.

Changed parts of the Forestry Management Act to allow necessary clean-up of the national forests in order to reduce fire danger.

As part of the national forests clean-up, the President restricted judicial challenges (based on the Endangered Species Act and other challenges) and removed the need for an EIS (Environmental Impact Statement) before removing fuels/logging to reduce fire danger.

Significantly eased field-testing controls of genetically engineered crops.

President Bush signed the workplace verification bill to prevent hiring of illegal Aliens
S. 1685, the Basic Pilot Extension Act of 2003, was signed by President Bush on December 3, 2003.
It extends for five years the workplace employment eligibility authorization pilot programs created in 1996. It expands the pilot programs from the original five states to all 50 states.

President Bush signing a federal ban on Partial Birth Abortion

U.S. Forces In Baghdad

[P8riot]

Uh, gee Ted, wasn't the Vietnam fiasco your brother's doings?

You beat me to it. That was the first thing I thought.

[NYC Republican]

Why isn't the GOP blasting this buffoon? Is this going to go unchallenged like his shrill "LIE AFTER LIE AFTER LIE..." comment? Why isn't Frist looking to censure this DOLT?

Some of you wonder why Bush is hated by so much of our fellow Americans. Wake up folks, it's comments like this that resonate with 50% of Americans- those that are unlike us - politically savvy- that get their news information from sound bites like this... Left unchallenged, many people tend to believe it as fact.