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George W. Bush was worse than you remember
MSNBC ^ | 02/20/2023 | Michael A. Cohen

Posted on 02/20/2023 9:16:26 AM PST by ChicagoConservative27

The American presidency is one of the strangest jobs in the world.

Politicians aspire to it. The media focuses obsessively on the person who holds it and those who want to win it. Millions of books and articles have been written about it. And yet, most of the people who’ve held the job really weren’t that good.

There are a few truly great presidents, some pretty good ones and a handful of complete disasters. But most can be summed up, as the Simpsons famously once did, as the “adequate, forgettable, occasionally regrettable, caretaker presidents of the U.S.A.”

In fairness, the presidency radically changed in the 20th century, especially as the United States became a global power, so it’s a bit hard to compare the earlier commanders in chief to the modern ones. And despite the many mediocrities, ranking the presidents is a popular pastime, one I’ve dabbled in myself. So let’s ask a slightly different question: Who are the most overrated and underrated holders of the most thankless job in American politics?

(Excerpt) Read more at msnbc.com ...


TOPICS: Government; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections; Your Opinion/Questions
KEYWORDS: bush; cohrn; michaelacohen; pos; president; remember; rino; stayoutthebushes; thesmirkingchimp; traitor; worse
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To: ChicagoConservative27
While I'm sympathetic to a reassessment of GW Bush, this author actually suggests that Washington's only accomplishment was resigning after his 2nd term:
Historians generally rank Franklin D. Roosevelt, Abraham Lincoln and George Washington as the three best presidents, and it’s hard to say that any of them are overrated — though Roosevelt's and Lincoln’s accomplishments (the former steered the country through economic calamity and world war and the latter saved the Union) were arguably more significant than Washington’s (whose greatest presidential act perhaps was relinquishing the job after two terms).
Forget FDR or Lincoln and rationales for or against: Washington is, truly, the indispensable man. And that this idiot doesn't get that tells me that he hasn't a clue about the fragility of self-governance in the early Republic -- which then tells me he hasn't a clue about self-governance's near death as of 2023.
81 posted on 02/20/2023 1:43:27 PM PST by nicollo ("I said no!")
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To: nicollo

The headline is the punchline. When MSDNC thinks they know what I do or do not remember about anything they can STFU. The people who write these articles are scummy trash, I fart in their general direction. The condescension is appalling.


82 posted on 02/20/2023 2:13:45 PM PST by brookwood (Clinging to our guns, religion, healthy children, traditional marriage, high standard of living...)
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To: married21

Don’t blame me. GW Bush is the one in love with Michelle Obama.


83 posted on 02/20/2023 3:51:01 PM PST by wildcard_redneck (The Ukraine is dead, the head just doesn't know it yet.)
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To: entropy12

If Mecca was gone, Islamics would realize that their Allah could not even protect his own “holy” city. Islam would fade away.


84 posted on 02/20/2023 4:43:22 PM PST by JimRed (TERM LIMITS, NOW! Militia to the border! TRUTH is the new HATE SPEECH.)
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To: JimRed

Good point.


85 posted on 02/20/2023 4:43:56 PM PST by MayflowerMadam (Stupid is supposed to hurt.)
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To: mountainlion

#10 He let the 9/11 terrorists go back to Saudi Arabia.
He collected at least $10 million to his “foundation” later on from the Saudi’s.


86 posted on 02/20/2023 6:17:09 PM PST by minnesota_bound (Need more money to buy everything now)
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To: ChicagoConservative27

Free Republic is now just another bds infested leftwing site. Bush hatred based on leftist lies. Conservatism thrown in the garbage. All because Trump spews those same lies. Sickening.


87 posted on 02/20/2023 7:35:09 PM PST by Geo81 (Conservatism, not populism)
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To: ChicagoConservative27

W F’d up by creating the DHS and TSA and a great expansion of GVT.

He was further too influenced by his Dad on working together with Dems helping them to attack the republican party. Together the Bushes enhanced the uniparty and exemplify the Washington Elitists. W opened the door to the dems with Plamegate allowing Obama to step in.


88 posted on 02/20/2023 8:31:42 PM PST by where's_the_Outrage? (Drain the Swamp. Build the Wall.)
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To: JimRed

You do not understand Islam, do you. I grew up in a Muslim neighborhood and my best friend was a Muslim in school years . I know this religion having observed it first hand up close.


89 posted on 02/20/2023 8:43:29 PM PST by entropy12 (Food is most popular anxiety drug, exercise is the least popular.)
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To: dfwgator

Well Carter ushered in Reagan so agree


90 posted on 02/20/2023 8:55:36 PM PST by Archie Bunker on steroids (You may not take an interest in politics, but politics takes an interest in you "Pericles" )
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To: Archie Bunker on steroids
Well Carter ushered in Reagan so agree

Frankly, with the help of Ted Kennedy.

91 posted on 02/20/2023 8:56:25 PM PST by dfwgator (Endut! Hoch Hech!)
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To: Midwesterner53
I'm amending what I posted earlier. The retroactive hate on this thread is incredible. Between W Bush or Gore, Bush was the only option. Much of what conservatives retroactively dislike now, they were OK with until a few years ago.

Many of Bush's problems at the time related to Karl Rove let being in DC go to his head, forgot that he got in on Bush's coattails, and lead the GOP in turning its back on the base. I think it was Rove who lead Bush to never defend himself from criticism that could have and should have been easily countered.

It's not GWB's fault that Obama, Holder and Robert Mueller turned the FBI and FISA courts into a private secret police. The FBI and FISA are more dangerous than DHS and the Patriot Act and existed long before 9/11. Few realized how malevolent Mueller really was until Russia Collusion took off 20 years later.

Since so many have forgotten, US won the Iraq War. It was Obama who nearly succeeded in turning a win into a loss by his failure to deal with the Iranian backed insurgents, Al Queda, the Taliban, and starting two more wars in Syria and Libya.

92 posted on 02/20/2023 10:37:39 PM PST by Widget Jr (Ignore CNN. )
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To: vg0va3

George W Bush was a disaster, but at least it was a SLOW disaster compared to Obama and Biden.


93 posted on 02/21/2023 9:37:30 AM PST by ro_dreaming (Who knew "Idiocracy", "1984", "Enemy of the State", and "Person of Interest" would be non-fiction?)
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To: dfwgator

“The only winner was Iran.”

Sunni vs Sunni. The eternal Muslim conflict and wars. How hard is this to understand? But in 2004 Bushy#2 took out Saddam and Iraq. That only made Iran stronger.


94 posted on 02/21/2023 9:46:44 AM PST by dennisw ("You don't have to like it. You just have to do it")
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To: ChicagoConservative27

At Free Republic GW Bush was worshiped during his war launching years. Everyone here and stupid moi cheered him on. There was a Bush family cheerleading thread going on all the time.

Today we know it’s a fool’s errand to bring Muslim nations to democracy. So we have about five thousand men killed. Thousands maimed. And trillions flushed down twin (Iraq - Afghanistan) Muzzz rathole toilets.


95 posted on 02/21/2023 9:55:43 AM PST by dennisw ("You don't have to like it. You just have to do it")
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To: Mr. N. Wolfe

He was worse than a doormat, he was complicit with the New World Order Progressives. I don’t know if he went into office supporting the One World Government, but 9/11 and the aftermath convinced him.

Maybe we should have been more skeptical of a high school athlete that turns into a male cheer leader in college. He never wanted to be a doer, just an influencer.


96 posted on 02/21/2023 9:56:52 AM PST by Eva
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To: entropy12

I received my understanding of Islam on 9/11/01. Your Muslim friend would be considered an apostate by truly observant Muslims. Like Catholics, Jews or any other adherents to a religion, there are those who talk the talk and those who walk the walk. A Christian who walks the walk will forgive you. A Muslim who walks the walk will kill you, if you decline to become one and he can get away with it.


97 posted on 02/23/2023 8:12:52 AM PST by JimRed (TERM LIMITS, NOW! Militia to the border! TRUTH is the new HATE SPEECH.)
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To: ro_dreaming

A road to hell ends at the same destination regardless of speed.


98 posted on 02/23/2023 4:58:23 PM PST by vg0va3
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To: ChicagoConservative27

In retrospect, he was utter and complete garbage.


99 posted on 02/23/2023 5:03:13 PM PST by Antoninus (Republicans are all honorable men.)
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To: vg0va3

While true, if you’re going slower, you can always course correct easier.


100 posted on 02/24/2023 5:23:42 AM PST by ro_dreaming (Who knew "Idiocracy", "1984", "Enemy of the State", and "Person of Interest" would be non-fiction?)
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