Posted on 04/22/2013 6:32:25 AM PDT by Sub-Driver
George W. Bush: ‘No need to defend myself’ By Jonathan Easley - 04/22/13 07:51 AM ET
Former President George W. Bush said he feels “no need to defend himself” over the high-profile decisions that marked his two terms in office, saying he will leave those judgments to history.
“There's no need to defend myself,” Bush said in an interview with USA Today. “I did what I did and ultimately history will judge.”
Bush, along with President Obama and former Presidents Bill Clinton, George H.W. Bush, and Jimmy Carter, will be on hand to open the George W. Bush Presidential Center in Dallas on Thursday.
Bush described the center as “a place to lay out the facts” behind his major policy decisions, including the decision to go to invade Iraq after the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, not as a place that will explain or defend the actual policies.
Visitors to the library will be able to assess “the decisions that I had to make and the recommendations I received” at a “decision points theater,” according to Bush. In addition to the Iraq war and troop surge, the theater will focus on his handling of the 2008 financial collapse and the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.
In an interview conducted before last Monday’s Boston Marathon bombings, Bush said terrorism should still be a primary concern for the federal government.
“It's apparent that time is quickly dimming our memories,” Bush said of 9/11. “Evil exists still in the form of people who murder innocent people to advance a point of view.”
“The lessons of 9/11 are as profound today as they were then,” he added.
Bush has taken up painting in his private time – a fact that became known after a hacker exposed some of his private emails. The former president said it helps to keep him “mellow,” and that he’s content in his new life outside of public view.
“I'm happy to be out of the limelight. I truly am,” he said. “My life is obviously much simpler than it was in the past, but in many ways the simplicity creates contentment.”
“Some people get confused about my desire not to have the klieg lights shining on me, but eight years is plenty to be in the lights,” he said.
In an interview last week, the former president also expressed hopes that his brother, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush (R) would run for president.
Asked if the nation was “ready for another Bush” in the Oval Office, he responded “That’s for Je to figure out.”
“I would hope that people would judge, if Jeb were to run, on his merits and his track record,” said Bush, adding “I hope he will run.”
His brother Jeb Bush has said he would weigh a 2016 GOP presidential bid and is seen as a prime contender for the nomination.
LLS
Indeed.
LLS
Thank you and I absolutely agree! evil is evil... lesser or not.
LLSS
In my best Elvis, “Thank you... thank you very much”! ;-)
LLS
By not defending himself, this idiot left conservatives holding the bag. His inability or unwillingness to defend himself is why we have Obama today.
We do indeed.
You were correct and many of us were wrong... but I was never going to vote for gore or kerry so... screwed again by our own so-called party.
LLS
china owns the oil and iran owns their hearts and minds... forget iraq... it is all but lost.
LLS
A fair assessment. The compassionate conservative marketing scheme GW Bush used had a 4 year shelf life, if that. What he and Rove sold was not delivered, bottom line. An aside, if Bush feels he doesn't need to defend himself, why does he keep bringing the subject up? I suspect it's designed to provide cover for Jeb.
Bump
For Bush Reality
Does Bush have some sort of complex? Does he enjoy being crucified?
To be a good leader you have to out maneuver your opponents. By not successfully defending your positions you are giving ground to your opponents. What the heck is he talking about?
nobody is perfect...
I’m not criticizing him, although there is much to criticize. It’s just that I am totally baffled about how two supposed insiders can be so naive about the lengths to which their enemies will go to destroy them.
Thank you. Bush gets to go feel all smug and self-righteous about letting the left seize the agenda and leaving those that supported him deal with the aftermath.
Not another Bush. Not ever.
Bush let the liberals bitch slap him from day one. He was weak just like his father. People lose respect, when you will not defend yourself.
We lost that battle before any primaries took place. The party faithful bought into Bush hook line and sinker.
We didn’t have Gore or Kerry to battle early on. We had our own guys like the RNC, Rove, Card, et al.
And then we had our own party faithful who had been raised supporting the party no matter what. And these days, we simply cannot count on that any longer.
The elites are selling us out on every issue. I’ll strike that a bit, in that they actually stood up against new gun control measures, but that is basically the single bright spot of the last five years IMO.
Where is the Conservative voice of America hawked by someone who wants to lead us?
Some folks talk a great game, then sell us out on vitally important issues. First one guy then another reveals themselves to be ‘closet confused’. (not to be confused with the homosexual connotation) These folks just don’t get it, and sooner or later they reveal themselves. It’s just demoralizing to the max.
No inference is intended here, so don’t read that into it.
Many of us were raised to follow the party line. When you note where that has gotten us, it’s obvious that policy failed us miserably.
Reviewing some of Lady Thatcher’s speeches during her tenure as PM and seeing her brilliant, impassioned defense of her policies drove home the fact that we have had 12 years of governance by utter mediocrities—and with disastrous results.
You are a bit more charitable than am I. My take is that the compassionate conservatism schtick was dead on arrival because it was based on the false premise that conservatism itself is not compassionate. I doubt W even realizes this. As for the other, yes, I think cover for Jeb is part of it. I also think he remains cluless.
Yes, we must asses Bush/Rove’s “strength of schedule “so to speak.....as bad as Bush was, Kerry and Gore were even more so. That’ why they won, and it’s also why we had no choice.
I don’t think the lines are very long.......
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