Bush Senior

[Undesired Walrus]

I've noticed people on this forum who are on the left voice respect for Bush's Presidency.

From what I've read about him from an unbiased viewpoint, I have a more favourable opinion of him then I did when the failures of his son immediately cast him in a negative light. Now his son is out of office I can take the blinders off and look more objectively.

I've heard it said that Obama greatly respects Bush Senior, admiring his pragmatism over ideology.

His famous statement against Atheists has been a point against him, but it is often said that he managed to shut out the Christian right from the White House, the first Republican to do so since Nixon let them in.

[MG1962]

Well Bush Senior did sign in a number of major bills that had great social value, such as the clean air act and the Disability program he launched. I think the left respects him because he was a classic centerist Republican.

He was responsible for one of the funniest political goofs I can recall. He mentioned in an interview that he disliked broccoli. Millions of kids around the country turned their nose up at the vegetable claiming if the president wont eat it, why should they

During a protest over the Kuwait intervention, I saw a woman holding a sign "If Kuwait exported broccoli, America wouldn't care

[hgc]

Bush Senior could run a war competently. Too bad he was so far off the ball as to give Saddam a false Go signal on the Kuwait invasion to start with.

[Eddie Dane]

Bush Senior could run a war competently. Too bad he was so far off the ball as to give Saddam a false Go signal on the Kuwait invasion to start with.

Wasn't that just a misunderstanding between Saddam and the US ambassador?
I don't think she was instructed to give Saddam green light on invading Kuwait.

[Eddie Dane]

His famous statement against Atheists has been a point against him, but it is often said that he managed to shut out the Christian right from the White House, the first Republican to do so since Nixon let them in.

If memory serves me right, he did get in bed with the Christian right during his campaign for second term.

And it cost him the election as Clinton was a younger, better looking pragmatic centrist.

[Comsat Angel]

Slightly OT, but when I visited the US last year (o how I love to get that in!) a chap demonstrating robotics at the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry had good things to say about Bush Snr. He didn't agree with the ex-POTUS' politics, but the man was an excellent public speaker with a good sense of humour and presented a non-partisan and positive view of science.

[Eddie Dane]

Slightly OT, but when I visited the US last year (o how I love to get that in!) a chap demonstrating robotics at the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry had good things to say about Bush Snr. He didn't agree with the ex-POTUS' politics, but the man was an excellent public speaker with a good sense of humour and presented a non-partisan and positive view of science.

So, did Barbara smoke crack during the pregnancy?

[UNLoVedRebel]

So, did Barbara smoke crack during the pregnancy?

Harry Reid made an infamous point in his book how Bush Jr. is nothing like his dad and just like Barbara, he then went on to call Barbara Bush a bitch.

[marksman]

That Harry Reid's a classy guy.

[hgc]

Wasn't that just a misunderstanding between Saddam and the US ambassador?
I don't think she was instructed to give Saddam green light on invading Kuwait.


It was April Gillespie, the chargé d'affair (no ambassador in place at the time), who made the apparent goof. I don't know how far up the tree that goof went, whether it be Baker at State or Bush or whomever. But it was Bush's watch, and that's one hell of a giant goof.

There is also the claim that Bush was not too interested in pushing Iraq out of Kuwait until the Iron Lady, in retirement, visited him in Colorado in the days following the invasion, and told him to get off his ass and roll the invasion back. Interesting point, if true.

But to his credit, once he decided to do it (right or wrong), he did a masterful job on the diplomatic and military fronts. Nevermind that Cheney was in charge of DOD at that time -- either he was not yet a total lunatic, or Bush, Powell and Schwarzkopf managed to run a competent war behind his back.

[Eddie Dane]

Harry Reid made an infamous point in his book how Bush Jr. is nothing like his dad and just like Barbara, he then went on to call Barbara Bush a bitch.

I should probably point out that I don't hate Bush JR. Actually, on personal level he seems quite a nice guy.

But I see him as a nice sympathetic doctor who's just performed an enormously stupid act of malpractice on someone I care about.

I have to make an conscious effort not start hating him for being way too sure of himself and screwing up.

Hate the sin, not the sinner. I guess.

[UNLoVedRebel]

I should probably point out that I don't hate Bush JR. Actually, on personal level he seems quite a nice guy.

But I see him as a nice sympathetic doctor who's just performed an enormously stupid act of malpractice on someone I care about.

I have to make an conscious effort not start hating him for being way too sure of himself and screwing up.

Hate the sin, not the sinner. I guess.

Yeah sure he's got that southern hospitality and friendliness, but he should have known that if he's in a position of power, his actions affect people big time. His incompetence was astounding and he didn't even seem to care. He also embarrassed himself every time he spoke in front of an audience without a teleprompter and speech written for him. If he didn't take his job as the most powerful person in the world seriously, then that's every reason in the world not to like him.

[Prometheus]

Bush junior does seem to be slightly better at bowling than his dad:

uhxQoWHBbaw
GSDhSa2NxYc

[Tolls]

There is also the claim that Bush was not too interested in pushing Iraq out of Kuwait until the Iron Lady, in retirement, visited him in Colorado in the days following the invasion, and told him to get off his ass and roll the invasion back. Interesting point, if true.

She was still PM at that point.

[hgc]

She was still PM at that point.


Yes, thank you.

[Simon39759]

I should probably point out that I don't hate Bush JR. Actually, on personal level he seems quite a nice guy.

But I see him as a nice sympathetic doctor who's just performed an enormously stupid act of malpractice on someone I care about.

I have to make an conscious effort not start hating him for being way too sure of himself and screwing up.

Hate the sin, not the sinner. I guess.


Not really, I remember this story about him... Karla Faye Tucker had been condemned to death and was going to be executed and she was pleading, begging him, to change the sentence.
The bastard was laughing and imitating her: 'Please, don't kill me'.

Now; I am against the death penalty but I can understand, or at least respect people that think it is a necessary means of dissuasion.
But laughing that the idea of somebody begging for his life, somebody that you are personally, if indirectly, responsible for the death of... That's just evil.

If it really happens, that is. I can't find corroborative evidence...

[Doc Daneeka]

He was awful, imho. He supported terrorists and he invaded one country on the flimsiest of pretexts. I do not mean Iraq.

He did have his good points (and some of those are much missed today), but I can't help but feel that much of the respect he gets on the left today is due to nostalgia: we can look back and see that there was a time in the recent past when the Republican party was not completely insane.

I suspect that many Republicans tend to admire Woodrow Wilson for similar reasons (at least, from their perspective).

[Algebra34]

I think he was in the CIA as early as 1959.
I think he was a major player in the Bay of Pigs fiasco.
I think he was in Dallas Nov 63. (Who alive at the time doesn't remember where they were?)
He was one of Nixon's boys during Watergate. (Prescott Bush helped start Nixon's career.)
He was deep into Iran Contra.
When he was President there were male escorts running around the White house in the middle of the night.
He spawned what some would say was the worst President in the history of the US.
He was with the brother of OBL on 9/11.
He just won't die.
When I hear sympathy for the devil I think of GHWB.

I can't believe some people thought of this guy as as a wimp and actually said it out loud. He is a real badass.

[Doc Daneeka]

I think he was in the CIA as early as 1959.
I think he was a major player in the Bay of Pigs fiasco.
I think he was in Dallas Nov 63. (Who alive at the time doesn't remember where they were?)
He was one of Nixon's boys during Watergate. (Prescott Bush helped start Nixon's career.)
He was deep into Iran Contra.
When he was President there were male escorts running around the White house in the middle of the night.
He spawned what some would say was the worst President in the history of the US.
He was with the brother of OBL on 9/11.
He just won't die.
When I hear sympathy for the devil I think of GHWB.

I can't believe some people thought of this guy as as a wimp and actually said it out loud. He is a real badass.


The Woo is strong with this one.

[Prometheus]

I think he was in the CIA as early as 1959.
I think he was a major player in the Bay of Pigs fiasco.
I think he was in Dallas Nov 63. (Who alive at the time doesn't remember where they were?)
He was one of Nixon's boys during Watergate. (Prescott Bush helped start Nixon's career.)
He was deep into Iran Contra.
When he was President there were male escorts running around the White house in the middle of the night.
He spawned what some would say was the worst President in the history of the US.
He was with the brother of OBL on 9/11.
He just won't die.
When I hear sympathy for the devil I think of GHWB.

I can't believe some people thought of this guy as as a wimp and actually said it out loud. He is a real badass.

Don't forget about his penchant for sacrificing small children in effigy to a giant burning owl-god. :rolleyes:

[linusrichard]

It was April Gillespie, the chargé d'affair (no ambassador in place at the time), who made the apparent goof. I don't know how far up the tree that goof went, whether it be Baker at State or Bush or whomever. But it was Bush's watch, and that's one hell of a giant goof.

I've got Wikipedia telling me that April Glaspie was appointed ambassador to Iraq in 1989. Neither you nor wp gives a source, so I don't know, I'm just putting out a competing claim.

ETA: This site (http://www.wrmea.com/archives/august2002/0208049.html) says ambassador to Iraq since 1987.

[Algebra34]

Don't forget about his penchant for sacrificing small children in effigy to a giant burning owl-god. :rolleyes:

I can't really confirm he was there that day. Though I'm pretty sure he took a piss on a few trees when he was at the grove. Evil I tell you. Evil. Those trees never did anything to anyone.

[Doc Daneeka]

I can't really confirm he was there that day. Though I'm pretty sure he took a piss on a few trees when he was at the grove. Evil I tell you. Evil. Those trees never did anything to anyone.

They do lurk though. It's menacing.

[Prometheus]

I can't really confirm he was there that day. Though I'm pretty sure he took a piss on a few trees when he was at the grove. Evil I tell you. Evil. Those trees never did anything to anyone.

What about air pollution? Don't trees spew CO2 into the atmosphere constantly? Then of course there's the danger of forest fires. How can you possibly think of trees as innocent bystanders?

[Algebra34]

What about air pollution? Don't trees spew CO2 into the atmosphere constantly? Then of course there's the danger of forest fires. How can you possibly think of trees as innocent bystanders?

Good point. I stand corrected. GHWB might very well have been the greatest president that ever lived. Even if he did only ride the coattails of another.

"Trees cause more pollution than automobiles do." - Reagan '81