Bush unscathed by investigations. Here's why.

USA Today ^ | 8/13/03 | Susan Page

[Egregious Philbin]

WASHINGTON -- The urge to investigate defined the capital during the Clinton years. But no more.

For nearly a decade, special counsel inquiries and adversarial congressional hearings dominated the headlines, etched bitter partisan lines, led to the impeachment of a president and made the nation's political debates resemble hand-to-hand combat.

[dirtboy]

Bush unscathed by investigations. Here's why

Gee, maybe it's because Bush hasn't done anything nearly as bad as the nonstop chicanery that went down in the Clinton Administration.

These friggin' libs are just dying for one substantial scandal to use as payback for the Clinton years.

[dirtboy]

* The administration's refusal to declassify a section of the congressional report on the Sept. 11 terror attacks. The 28 pages reportedly detail possible Saudi involvement.

* The help that the Federal Aviation Administration gave in May to Texas Republicans who were trying to track down Democratic state legislators. The Democrats had flown to Oklahoma to avoid a special session on redistricting.

* Allegations that the administration has distorted scientific findings to justify political decisions involving missile defense, environmental protection and other issues. Last week, Waxman issued a 40-page report on the subject. A White House spokesman dismissed it as partisan sniping.

OOOOH, what SCANDALS! Now, let's compare that to:

Travelgate, Filegate, Whitewater, Vince Foster, Ron Brown, Influence Selling to Chicoms, AlGore and the Buddhist Temple, No Controlling Authority ... and that's just the first half of the Clinton Admin.

[JohnGalt]

Congress has abdicated their responsibility of oversight, much like they gave up their responsibility to declare war.

Its all well and good when the Rs are sitting high, but it won't be fun with the D's have power again.

[dirtboy]

ping to raise your blood pressure.

[Enterprise]

Obviously the author and I think alike. A couple of years ago the Democrats and their lick spittle friends in the media and press were foaming at the mouth and demanding an end of the special counsel law. So, it died.

A couple of weeks ago I sent an E-Mail to Ann Coulter in which I posed the belief that liberals are dying to mouth the words "special counsel" to attack President Bush. I suggested too that conservatives get ready and do a search to see which liberals were the most adamant in letting the law die in the event they start demanding another "special counsel" law.

Trust me on this. They are aching for the law, but they don't know for sure how to go about getting it back. I think they are starting to put their media dogs to work now to get it back. I suspect this may be the first of many articles to push for it.

But just in case they forgot - Hey liberals, you dopes got what you wanted! Now eat it, eat it, eat it!!! HAHAHAHAHA!

[doug from upland]

When we learn that the president is a raping, traitorous perjurer, I will applaud a new special counsel and a $133 million budget.

[OldFriend]

The scent of desperation emanating from the leftist elites!

[Egregious Philbin]

The scandals you mentioned wouldn't have affected half as many people as the potential ones you dismiss.

[dirtboy]

The scandals you mentioned wouldn't have affected half as many people as the potential ones you dismiss.

The scandals I mentioned were crimes, and Clinton's criminal abuse of the presidency affected everyone in this country. The incidents you call scandals are nothing of the sort - two are disputes about information coming from the executive branch, a conflict as old as the Constitution itself, and the other may lead somewhere, but pales in comparision as an abuse of power to Filegate.

[Sangria]

The advantage to the Bush Administration is that President Bush is a moral, honest, and honorable man and you don't have to try to prove every statement that he makes.

[Elliott Jackalope]

But I thought the whole Clinton investigation was a payback for what happened to Nixon?

Oh, I get it. The payback for the payback. I see it now. Just one of those things, I guess.

[dirtboy]

But I thought the whole Clinton investigation was a payback for what happened to Nixon?

And Nixon happened because the Dems were still mad at what happened to Johnson - Andrew Johnson.

[CFC__VRWC]

The Rats were the ones who couldn't wait to ditch the independent counsel law once it was used against one of their own, and I sure don't remember the media bewailing the loss of the law then.

[Egregious Philbin]

The advantage to the Bush Administration is that President Bush is a moral, honest, and honorable man and you don't have to try to prove every statement that he makes.

...except for the ones that lead us to war.

[Verginius Rufus]

Yes, Bush is "unscathed by investigations" because he hasn't done anything unethical. Clinton was probably the most corrupt President in our history (unless LBJ deserves the title) and got away with almost everything. It's never pointed out that the initial Whitewater investigation began in 1994 when the Democrats were still in control of Congress--that is, there was enough evidence of wrongdoing that even the Democrats decided that a special prosecutor was needed to look into it.

[Lowell]

I read this trash in the Phoenix airport and nearly screamed at the top of my lungs. I swear all of these liberals are lying, scheming heaps of trash. That newspaper, hell they are anDid you hear Donna Richardson being interviewed by Larry King Sunday? Not one comment from King on any of Richardson's statements, NOT ONE! Larry didn’t challenger her on one statement, and they were outrageous statements she was making.
I'm going to take a xanax now and have a little nap.

[dirtboy]

...except for the ones that lead us to war.

Hmmm - so Bush made a that at the time was accurate, but that's a lie? Do you know why the CIA was skeptical of the Niger uranium claim? Because they determined that Saddam already had plenty of uranium to build enough nukes to destroy the 20 largest cities in this country. But, I guess you're willing to harp on distractions of the moment instead of the reality of Saddam's long-documented weapons programs.

[Egregious Philbin]

I suppose Filegate did open out to affect a lot of people, you're right. But I can't dismiss the implications of two of the potential scandals suggested in the article, as they affect how we've dealt with events after 9/11. The 28 pages in the 9/11 report may very well show that the Saudis were behind 9/11, not Iraq, as the Bush Administration has seemingly falsely suggested. That's a scandal larger than anything crooked Clinton ever took part in. The FAA is assisting in a partisan battle in the Texas Legislature instead of protecting the skies? Waxman's "scandal" is more vague.

[steve-b]

Bush unscathed by investigations. Here's why.

Because Bush's actions are perceived as sincere (if possibly wrongheaded) efforts to advance national security, while Clinton's were perceived as cover-ups to save his own sorry butt.