Jan 28 2008
God Bless You President Bush – A Great SOTU Address
America is blessed – very blessed. We have had an amazing leader who believes in the wisdom of ‘we the people’. Through 7 years of attack from within and without. from across the aisle and from those too obsessed with purity in his party, President Bush has been a stalwart gentleman who has maintained dignity and honor for his office as those around him have collapsed into angry rants. The nation is going to miss George W Bush.
His SOTU speech tonight was probably his best. And it rested upon 7 years of accomplishments only his enemies, in hopes of diminishing him, will never recognize. He has shown that being a lame duck with a veto pen is a might powerful position to be in. He has promised to veto tax increases and uncontrolled earmarks. He will direct no efforts be spent on earmarks that had no debate or public vote in Congress.
He has set the standard and no one in a Congress with half the approval rating he has is going to succeed in fighting Bush on this issue. He is using his political capitol as he should – fearlessly and with force of conviction. No new taxes and no hidden pork. The nay sayers will say what they will, they must find excuses not to believe because hope in failure – our President’s failure – is all that props them up.
The other area he was incredibly strong on was Iraq and maintaining our hard fought successes. Again, a Congress that is so out of favor dares not squander our efforts – paid in blood and treasure – for cheap political gain. Not if Nancy and Harry wish to be in the majority again next year. Bush forced them to commit to success, to resist risky and impatient draw downs, and to fund out troops’ needs. As Dems sat on their hands on too many issues of common ground to Americans they cemented their image as supreme surrender party, the ones who hold their noses to support our troops.
Bush is a maestro. He even jabbed the Amnesty Hypochondriacs – which was a boost to McCain. And as only a true pro-life President would he called for the ban on experimentation patenting and cloning of human beings. As The Anchoress has noted before, he is the most pro-life president we have ever had and will see for some time. We should all be grateful for the dignity he has bequeathed this nation by his own dignity when it comes to the miracle of life.
The hyper-partisans left and right were thrust into bold relief tonight by a man who spent 7 years finding progress and making things happen. To the crowd which equated compromise as being a traitor (so were dems traitors to support our war efforts after 9-11?) he is their bane. He is the man who makes great things happen with out belittling others. We will miss you George W Bush. You brought honor and dignity to us, even though too many left and right were unable to (a) recognize this and (b) build upon it. While some refuse to see your gift and in fact work to destroy it many, many more do see it and will work to build upon it. We are the RINOs and DINOs and independents – and we are not beholding to party, we give our pledge of allegiance to America.
We will keep the State Of The Union strong.
Where Do I Get Some Of That Kool-Aid?…
Even after 7 years of lies, “1984” type breaches of our civil liberties, and outright mismanagement of our country, a totally bogus State of the Union still gets the few remaining Bushie’s hearts a fluttering.
America is blessed – ver…
A South Dakota Moderate,
It sounds like your cabinets are fully stocked with “that KoolAid”.
AJ,
I have always been an avid supporter of President Bush.
I proudly campaigned for him and voted for him twice.
Were there things which he has done over the last 7 or so years that I have disagreed with? Absolutely. Have I ever descended to the point of calling him names? Never.
This country is better off for having President Bush in the White House even with his faults. History will judge him kindly. What other President has freed +/- 45 million people?
I disagreed with him when he signed McCain-Feingold. I felt that legislation was not Constitutional because it infringes on the 1st Amendment. President Bush said the same, but signed it anyway.
I agreed when he reduced taxes for everyone who pays taxes. We need the Gov’t out of our wallets.
I supported his efforts to allow me to direct a portion of my Social Security. Again, get the Gov’t out of my wallet.
I gave thanks that he was President on 9/11 and the days following. I supported his efforts to keep this country safe and his efforts to actually fight the War on Terror offensively, instead of defensively.
I fully supported his efforts to get strict constructionist judges on the Supreme Court. I only wish that he had been able to appoint a couple more.
I agree with him on life. I agree with his views on abortion. I agree with him on ESCR and the surrounding issues.
I don’t agree with him on the illegal immigration issue. In this age of terrorism our country needs secure, and effectively enforced, borders, both north and south. Get the fences built. Close up the holes. Address the visa issues which allowed the 9/11 animals to come in and overstay while they planned our destruction. Boost enforcement. Do whatever is needed to prevent the next group of terrorists who mean us harm from sneaking in through the back door or the basement window. Then, after you show us that you’re serious about stopping the bleeding, if you will, then we can consider our options on how to handle the people who are already here. As it stands right now, the fence that was approved, and funded, has now been abandoned with virtually no progress. The Washington pols are not serious about this issue. Until they get serious, and prove it with their actions, Americans are not going to believe a single word that crosses their lips.
As I have said, overall, I have been very pleased with the President. I had the distinct pleasure of meeting him and introducing him to my 15 and 9 year old sons. I shook his hand, looked him in the eye, and said “Thank You” and I meant it.
I’ve prayed for him and for our troops every single day. I’ve prayed for him to have the wisdom, strength, judgement, and determination to do what needs to be done to lead this country through dark and dangerous times and, overall, I’ve not been let down.
If I had it to do all over, I’d vote for him again and never have a second thought.
So, bash me as a “purist” if that is what you feel is necessary, but I obviously will disagree with you regarding that label.
Vince;
People like Hamas are going to do whatever craziness they do, that is no reason for Israel to remain in a constant state of war.
What do you want Bush to do about it? Kill all the Palestinians? Tell the Israelis to kill all the Palestinians? Drive all the Palestinians out of the ocuppied territories? The Israelis have decided to make a country for themselves in a very rough neighborhood. It is not Bush’s fault. All he has done is try to create a road map for a possible solution at some point in the future. He did not pander to Arafat like Clinton did and he has never told the Isrealis that they did not have the right to defend themselves.
It would seem to me that if Moderate’s civil liberties had been curtailed “1984” style, he would not be on here yammering away.
brown:
Bush is not a liberal when it comes to illegal immigration. Not only has he done more to secure the border than any president in history, he has been consistent in his attitudes concerning guest worker programs etc for many years. If that is not what the purists wanted then they should have nominated someone like Tancredo instead.
In fact I don’t remember it even being an issue, so I guess it was not that big a deal. And btw, in this age of terrorism, how many attacks have there been in this country since 9/11?
>People like Hamas are going to do whatever craziness they do, that is no reason for Israel to remain in a constant state of war.
Come again? Hamas is the one who intends to engage in constant war. Hamas is the elected party in control of PA and Gaza.
I dont think Israel has a choice about being in a constant state of war.
>What do you want Bush to do about it? Kill all the Palestinians? Tell the Israelis to kill all the Palestinians? Drive all the Palestinians out of the ocuppied territories?
Hm I can see I’m dealing with an emotional retard here.
Bush could have simply stood by the Road Map plan instead of casting it aside. The Road Map required actions by the Arabs to show they are geniune before the process would restart.. but Condi Rice tore that concept up and is now giving the Arabs what they want.. soverignity and Jerusalem… totally cost free to the Arabs..
And as Israel’s borders are rolled back to the 1948 borders, all of the country will be in range to the same missiles Arabs fire at Israel everyday since they left Gaza.
What’s Bush to do? Tell Israel to do what they have to.
> The Israelis have decided to make a country for themselves in a very rough neighborhood. It is not Bush’s fault. All he has done is try to create a road map for a possible solution at some point in the future. He did not pander to Arafat like Clinton did and he has never told the Isrealis that they did not have the right to defend themselves.
Obviously you’re very ignorant.. Very.
We are going to miss George W. Bush for so many reasons. He has been the voice of reason and wisdom…the best president we have had in 140 years, imho. I want to be more like him as each day passes and I pray for him daily.
Let the deranged criticisms of him and false statements about his impeccable integrity be an indictment on those who cannot see. It’s called Pathology. And not one of those knows him personally. Not one.
Folks, I can’t say I am coming to the same conclusions on the President as most of you. Other than getting Justices Roberts and Alito onto the Court, I don’t see too many success stories. I am a veteran and am proud of our military, but feel it has been put into a position where we’re trying to prop up a bunch of corrupt incompetents while two rival Muslim groups who will hate each other long after we’re all dead fail to reconcile their differences. That 3 billion a week should be going to Americans here in America…we have plenty of infrastructure challenges that it would put a big dent in. Y’all seem to be speaking into an echo chamber – nothing wrong with supporting the President but the discouragement of alternate views and name calling isn’t very American. Pathology – nice!
You people are deluded lunatics. For most of the world the Bush presidency cannot end soon enough.
The absolute worst president in the history of the republic. Incompetent, cowardly. A crony capitalist who couldn’t succeed at ANYTHING he has ever attempted. He is pathetic trash; most of civilzed humankind understands this.
You people are laughable!
Aqualung,
You’re right about one thing. There are many in the world who can’t wait for Bush to go. He’s the only one keeping them from taking it over…
Thanks for this post AJ. It is so refreshing and also to mention the Anchoress. She speaks for me about the President.
I firmly believe he will go down in history as a vilely beleagured president who accomplished great things in spite of the media, congress and his own party.
Exactly Barbara. God bless the best President of my lifetime. BTW, have you noticed that when you say that, a person is labeled naive, wacky or just plain stupid. So be it. I use to say the exact same thing about Reagan. And then along came this Bush fellow.
I judge a president on his results. The follwoing is a comparison of what Bush was handed and what he accomplished while in office. For each category, the first line pertains to statistics from the Clinton Presidency and the second line pertains to Bush’s presidency. I’ve provided references to the sources for these figures in the endnotes below so you can look them up yourelf. Boy, if this is what you consider a great president I’m really afraid to see what you would consider a failure.
REAL GDP GROWTH1
Clinton – 4.09% Over Prior 8 Years
Bush – 2.65% Over Prior 7 Years
NATIONAL DEBT2
Clinton – $5.7 Trillion
Bush – $9.2 Trillion
BUDGET DEFICIT/SURPLUS3
Clinton – $431 Billion Surplus over the Previous Three Budget Years
Bush – $734 Billion Deficit over the Previous Three Budget Years
JOBS CREATED4
Clinton – 1.76 Million Jobs Per Year Over Previous 8 Years
Bush – 369,000 Jobs Per Year Over Previous 7 Years
AMERICANS IN POVERTY 5
Clinton – 31.6 Million
Bush – 36.5 Million
AMERICANS UNINSURED & CHANGE IN UNINSURED LEVEL6
Clinton – 38 Million Uninsured
4.5 Million Less in 2 Years
Bush – 47 Million Uninsured
8.5 Million More in 6 Years
ANNUAL TOTAL PREMIUM COST7
Clinton – $6,230 for Family Premium
Bush – $12,106 for Family Premium
MEDIAN HOUSEHOLD INCOME & CHANGE IN MEDIAN INCOME8
Clinton – $49,163
$6,000 Increase in 8 Years
Bush – $48,023
$1,100 Decrease in 6 Years
PRICE OF GAS9
Clinton – $1.39/Gallon
Bush – $3.07/Gallon
PERSONAL SAVINGS RATE11
Clinton – +2.3%
Bush – -0.5%
CONSUMER CREDIT DEBT12
Clinton – $7.65 Trillion
Bush – $12.8 Trillion
UNITED STATES & THE WORLD
JANUARY 20, 2001
TODAY UNDER BUSH
U.S. TRADE DEFICIT13
Clinton – $380 Billion
Bush – $759 Billion
STRENGTH OF U.S. DOLLAR14
Clinton – 1.07 Euros per Dollar
Bush – 0.68 Euros Per Dollar
COMBAT READINESS15
Clinton – All Active Duty Army Divisions Were Rated At The Highest Readiness Levels
Bush – Not A Single Active Duty Or Reserve Brigade In The U.S. Considered “Fully Combat Ready.â€
FOREIGN OIL DEPENDENCY16
Clinton – 52.75% of U.S. Liquid Fuel Consumption is Imported
Bush – 60.38% of U.S. Liquid Fuel Consumption is Imported
VIEW OF AMERICA ABROAD17
GREAT BRITAIN’S VIEW OF U.S.
Clinton – 83% Favorable
Bush – 56% Favorable
INDONESIA’S VIEW OF U.S.
Clinton – 75% Favorable
Bush – 30% Favorable
TURKEY’S VIEW OF U.S.
Clinton – 52% Favorable
Bush – 12% Favorable
GERMANY’S VIEW OF U.S.
Clinton – 78% Favorable
Bush – 37% Favorable
—————————————————————————-
1 Bureau of Economic Analysis
2 Department of Treasury
3 Congressional Budget Office
4 Bureau of Labor Statistics
5 United States Census Bureau
6 United States Census Bureau
7 Kaiser Study of Employer Health Care Benefits
8 United States Census Bureau
9 Energy Information Administration
11 Bureau of Economic Analysis
12 Insurance Information Institute
13 United States Census Bureau
14 OANDA.com: The Currency Website
15 Speaker of the House Fact Sheet, 11/29/07
16 Energy Information Administration
17 Testimony of Andrew Kohut; President, Pew Research Center; 3/17/07
“You brought honor and dignity to us” ?
That is possibly the last phrase I would ever you use to describe this president.
You claim that the moderate and reasonable people of America support this president and that its the “elitists” who despise him. Well here’s a blue collar middle class Christian that believes in family and America who deeply despises president Bush. Im sick and tired of the republican party calling themselves “in touch” with the heart land. Republicans have always been the elitists until they were able to label the Democrats as so. Bush isn’t even from Texas. He was born in New England into an extremely wealthy family and attended an Ivy league school. How much more elitist can you get??? President Bush makes me feel ashamed to be American. Just listen to the way he talks. I want my president to smarter than me, not some shmuck at a bar! You are not Dinos or Independents AJ. You are a part of the Republican party that chooses to blindly follow a man who has tainted a position that we once held with the highest regard.