America lives under the shadow of George W. Bush
POSTED BY: Niki2
UPDATED: Sunday, June 2, 2024 20:44
VIEWED: 2906
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Quote:
Somewhere in Texas, former President George W. Bush is smiling.
Although some Democrats are pleased that taxes will now go up on the wealthiest Americans, the recent deal to avert the fiscal cliff entrenches, rather than dismantles, one of Bush's signature legacies -- income tax cuts. Ninety-nine percent of American households were protected from tax increases, aside from the expiration of the reduced rate for the payroll tax.
In the final deal, Congress and President Barack Obama agreed to preserve most of the Bush tax cuts, including exemptions on the estate tax.
What has become clear in hindsight, regardless of what one thinks of Bush and his politics, is that his administration left behind a record that has had a huge impact on American politics, a record that will not easily be dismantled by future presidents.
The twin pillars of Bush's record were counterterrorism policies and tax cuts. During his first term, it became clear that Obama would not dismantle most of the homeland security apparatus put into place by his predecessor. Despite a campaign in 2008 that focused on flaws with the nation's response to 9/11, Obama has kept most of the counterterrorism program intact.
Now come taxes and spending.
With regard to the Bush tax cuts, Obama had promised to overturn a policy that he saw as regressive. Although he always said that he would protect the middle class from tax increases, Obama criticized Bush for pushing through Congress policies that bled the federal government of needed revenue and benefited the wealthy.
In 2010, Obama agreed to temporarily extend all the tax cuts. Though many Democrats were furious, Obama concluded that he had little political chance to overturn them and he seemed to agree with Republicans that reversing them would hurt an economy limping along after a terrible recession.
With the fiscal cliff deal, Obama could certainly claim more victories than in 2010. Taxes for the wealthiest Americans will go up. Congress also agreed to extend unemployment compensation and continue higher payments to Medicare providers.
But beneath all the sound and fury is the fact that the 2001 and 2003 tax cuts, for most Americans, are now a permanent part of the legislative landscape. (In addition, middle class Americans will breathe a sigh of relief that Congress has permanently fixed the Alternative Minimum Tax, which would have hit many of them with a provision once designed to make sure that the wealthy paid their fair share.)
The tax cuts have significant consequences on all of American policy.
Although some Republicans signed on to raising taxes for the first time in two decades, the fact is that Democrats have agreed to tax rates which, compared to much of the 20th century, are extraordinarily low. Public perception of a new status quo makes it harder for presidents to ever raise taxes on most Americans to satisfy the revenue needs for the federal government.
At the same time, the continuation of reduced taxes keeps the federal government in a fiscal straitjacket. As a result, politicians are left to focus on finding the money to pay for existing programs or making cuts wherever possible.
New innovations in federal policy that require substantial revenue are just about impossible. To be sure, there have been significant exceptions, such as the Affordable Care Act. But overall, bold policy departures that require significant amounts of general revenue are harder to come by than in the 1930s or 1960s.
With his income tax cuts enshrined, Bush can rest comfortably that much of the policy world he designed will remain intact and continue to define American politics. Obama has struggled to work within the world that Bush created, and with this legislation, even with his victories, he has demonstrated that the possibilities for change have been much more limited than he imagined when he ran in 2008 or even in 2012. http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/03/opinion/zelizer-shadow-bush/in
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Bush's presidency was THE SINGLE worst, most destructive thing America (and by extension, the world) ever faced.
Bush & Cheney destroyed America's already poor reputation overseas, destroyed our economy, and destroyed truth & justice in pursuit of the New American Way.
They pushed the fascist envelope harder & more aggressively than ever before.
They successfully gauged the public's political ignorance, their short term historical memory, and their herd mentality to go where no scumbags have gone before.
Our prisons are filled with the wrong people.
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Quote:
Originally posted by chrisisall:
Bush's presidency was THE SINGLE worst, most destructive thing America (and by extension, the world) ever faced.
Bush & Cheney destroyed America's already poor reputation overseas, destroyed our economy, and destroyed truth & justice in pursuit of the New American Way.
They pushed the fascist envelope harder & more aggressively than ever before.
They successfully gauged the public's political ignorance, their short term historical memory, and their herd mentality to go where no scumbags have gone before.
Our prisons are filled with the wrong people.
Lies, entirely.
Obama fits that bill, x 10.
"False words are not only evil in themselves, but they infect the soul with evil." - Socrates
" I do not love the bright sword for its sharpness, nor the arrow for its swiftness, nor the warrior for his glory. I love only that which they defend. "
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Quote:Wow, how enlightening. I may have to reconsider my opinions based on your exquisite eloquence & persuasive arguments here.
Originally posted by AURaptor:
Lies, entirely.
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What's to reconsider. Every damn thing you said was pure fiction. Bush did suck as President, but he's still light years better than the socialist in chief we have today. Not even close, either.
The problem with you, Chrissy, is you live under the delusion and fantasy of a world spun by the propagandists from the MSM. One which thinks Bush squandered Clinton's budget surplus ( it never existed ) then 'gave' $ to the uber wealthy, paid for on the backs of the poor, of minorities, and of course, the gays.
So, Bush 'gives' $ to the rich, which some how caused the housing bubble, and then the recession, and then Obama comes in and magically saves the day. Only, we're FAR from saved. In fact, things are worse. Much worse. 
Good grief, so many dupes.
"False words are not only evil in themselves, but they infect the soul with evil." - Socrates
" I do not love the bright sword for its sharpness, nor the arrow for its swiftness, nor the warrior for his glory. I love only that which they defend. "
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He really fucked it up quite bad, didn't he my dear?
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Quote:
Originally posted by Magonsdaughter:
He really fucked it up quite bad, didn't he my dear?
Yeah, that housing bubble which the Dems manufactured really was terrible.
"False words are not only evil in themselves, but they infect the soul with evil." - Socrates
" I do not love the bright sword for its sharpness, nor the arrow for its swiftness, nor the warrior for his glory. I love only that which they defend. "
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Amén,Chris. I just never realized how pervasive his influence was going to be over the long term. I know presidents do things that affect the country after they are gone, I just hadn't realized how Long-term Dumbia's influence was going to BE!
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Quote:
Originally posted by NIKI2:
I just never realized how pervasive his influence was going to be over the long term.
Seriously. Unless ObamaCare can be defunded and halted in the courts, this country is truly doomed.
"False words are not only evil in themselves, but they infect the soul with evil." - Socrates
" I do not love the bright sword for its sharpness, nor the arrow for its swiftness, nor the warrior for his glory. I love only that which they defend. "
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Quote:9-11 happened on Bush's (non) watch. Bush lied about WMD to go to war with a country unconnected to 9-11. That war cost trillions, and did nothing to LESSEN the debt. Bush okayed waterboarding, a form of TORTURE (until, of course, AMERICA used it- then it was just aggressive interrogation) putting into question our morality internationally, and degrading American faith in what's right. Sorry if any of these facts are invisible to you.
Originally posted by AURaptor:
What's to reconsider. Every damn thing you said was pure fiction.
Quote:Thanks for the non-partisan crumb there!
Bush did suck as President,
Quote:The Obamination is NOT a socialist- he is 'Conservative Lite', or for YOUR purposes, a Liberal Poseur.
but he's still light years better than the socialist in chief we have today.
Quote:Wrong, the housing bubble bursting was inevitable, it was the insane war price tag that made the recession so deep and lasting. Bush's pals made out like bandits from it all, though. Now Obama pretends to be a pacifist, ho ho ho. He too is a puppet on a string.
So, Bush 'gives' $ to the rich, which some how caused the housing bubble, and then the recession
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