Will Bush-bashing help Democrats win over weary voters? (PHOTO CREDIT: Getty Images)
Washington (CNN) - While he's not on the ballot, George W. Bush is still vital to the midterm election as far as the nation's top Democrat is concerned.
President Obama has made a point recently to invoke Bush's name in what many say is a calculated effort to remind voters of the previous administration's economic policies, which Democrats argue led to the worst recession in modern history.
On Monday, the president told those attending a Democratic fundraiser in Atlanta, Georgia, that the GOP has not distinguished itself from Bush.
"They have not come up with a single solitary, new idea to address the challenges of the American people," Obama said. "They don't have a single idea that's different from George Bush's ideas ... not one."
From CNN Politics
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I don't know if I agree with all the blaming going on in each party. There is enough blame on both fronts. I understand it though, because Obama must be tired of being blamed for everything, from the Wars we are now in (which were started by Bush under false pretenses) to the poor economy ( which we all have contributed to, especially wall street which is only concerned with making lots and lots of money for themselves at the expense of the little guy).
In closing I'd like to say that while I wish Obama did not have to sink to the level of his opponents, I understand it. I just wish people would stop their blaiming everything and anything of Obama.
Blaum,
I chuckle every time one of you calls Obama "Barry" as if that's a great insult to him. He called himself that for many years and still answers to it. Using it makes you sound like one of the wacky "birthers." You just cancel any possibility of being taken seriously.
Instead of this quote: "...you are so small and so childish to look back." you may want to recall this one: "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it." -George Santayana
I am so tired of Democrats blaming all of this on Bush. If you look at the record you will see that he was far from the only one responsible for this mess we're in:
- Expanded the CRA and forced banks to take on more low income loans: CLINTON
- Signed Bank deregulation repealing Glas-Steagall while ignoring pleas from Phil Gramm that not including mortgage re-regulation could cause a financial meltdown: CLINTON
- Fought derivatives deregulation: ROBERT RUBIN and GREENSPAN
- Made $50M while cooking the books at Fannie: FRANKLIN RAINES
- Pushed Citi to take more risk while making $163M: ROBERT RUBIN
- Ignored 35 pleas from Bush to fix the Fannie and Freddie regulation: CONGRESSIONSAL DEMOCRATS (how's that for obstructing reform, huh Liberals?)
- Was chair of the Senate Banking Committee while he took sweetheart deals from sub-prime leader Countrywide: RICHARD DODD
- Handed Bush a recession after the Tech Stock bubble burst: CLINTON
We can go on, but this was NOT all Bush's fault... the Democrats had just as much, if not more, to do with this.
Obama was elected in order to solve the nations problems . Blaming Bush may make him feel better but does nothing to solve the the current situation. Stop acting like a little child Mr President.
Barry proves one again that he is a mediocre legislator and an ineffective executive. It's another day of amature hour at the White House
Yes i say use the he!! out of it. The former president really messed us this country, and President Obama needs to drive it home because people do seem to be having some memory loss. I say take it home President Obama.
I would pay to see Palin and Bush have a head to head word salad bumblethon.
most thinking voters are getting tired of that.....
The issue really isn't Bush per se. Rather, it is the intellectually and morally bankrupt philosophy of governance that guided Bush in the performance, such as it was, of his duties as President. It is this same philosophy of governance ("defecits don't matter" so long as they fund tax cuts for the rich, the private sector can ALWAYS be trusted to do the right thing (see AIG, BP, etc.), regulation is always wrong, etc.) that provides the core of the GOP approach to governence.
The differences between the Democrats and the Republicans are that the Democrats want government to succeed, but don't know how to make that happen, while Republicans want government to fail, and are exceedingly good at making that happen. For example, if you want to know why FEMA stood around with its collective thumb up its arse during Katrina, all you have to do is look at the Bush administration's DELIBERATE efforts to destroy FEMA as a capable agency. The current buch of Democrats may be feckless incompetents but that is still preferable to Republican traitors who are hell bent to destroy this country.
Bush is perfect posterboy for the Republicans and he got his reputation the old fashioned way – he earned it.
Not everything was gw's fault. A lot of the problems belong in Cheney's lap. He was the source of many really bad ideas.
Well said Bingo!
I'm pretty sure it makes no appreciable difference either way. Fact is, there are three well-defined groups and their membership is pretty much set at this point:
1. Those people objective, intelligent and educated enough to recognize the damage the Bush administration and GOPers did, the effect their policies have on the economy and middle-class and the fact that the current mess is primarily their fault (see statistics...MATH cannot be denied and the Bush tax cuts are the single biggest contributor to the deficit).
2. Those who are angry, confused and scared enough to believe that 1.5 years in office dealing with an obstructionist misinformation-campaigning minority party is sufficient time for anyone, regardless of what they did, to have fixed the problems that were created and have been building up for 3+ decades since the GOP convinced the country to believe and behave according to the daydream fairytale nonsense (read: LIE) known as trickle-down economics.
3. True-believing Glush-Limbeck-parroting tinfoil-hat-wearing automaton lunatic fringe right wing nutjobs who believe every ounce of batsh-t crazy ideological demogogue misinformational vomit that flies from the GOPers'/Teatards'/conservatives' mouths. These ones are hopeless and helpless and are so motivated by tribal anger, resentment and fear (among other less tolerable motivations) that they have been on a mission to destroy Obama and gain back control since the country told them to go frack themselves on November 4, 2008. They do not care for the truth nor for rational, reasonable responses to the feedback reality has sent regarding their ideology...they just want darky out of office and giant corporations to continue puppeteering our government.
Wow! sure a lot of delusional people posting today. sorry, but bush IS to blame for most of the problems Obama is working to solve today. that's history! and for you rethugs, history means something that happened, not something you wish hadn't happened or something you believe happened, it's WHAT HAPPENED! and lest we forget how awful it was under bush, i hope every Democrat reminds us every day of this campaign. Molly Ivins hoped bush would be the dead chicken around the necks of the American people to teach us never to elect another rethug president. how many times to Dems have to clean up rethug messes before we stop letting them make the messes?
Bingo wrote "President Bush isn't in office. It doesn't matter what happened on his watch;" Like 9/11 for example?
Democrats are the dumbest creatures ever to walk the earth. They actually buy into Obama's fairy-tale that "things would be much worse if it wasn't for me" which goes along with his "jobs saved" fantasy. He has to resort to all of these unmeasurable statistics because the real numbers tell the real story...............Obama is an epic failure.
Blame bush, HELL YES!
The shrub and he dick brought this great country to the edge of a depression and if they had won would have allowed the finacial sector to collapse.
What SENIOR senator from AZ soiled his Depends on the Senate floor proclaiming he would not work with President Obama for the next 2 years.(the hidden clue is SENIOR as in senile)?
Which party of NO has stated from the beginning of President Obama's term they want him to "fail" and therefore America to fail.
And before you claim you did not want America to fail, riddle me this bat brains, when was the last time a football team won when the quarter back "failed"?
Which party of NO voted down the unemployment benefits because they wanted it to come out of the few remaining original stimulus funds?
Which party of hypocrites screams about job creation and then votes against everything that the Dems offer to create those jobs, just so they can keep screaming about no jobs?
Which party of NO voted against small business loans and have left for vacation and will not address it until sometime in September?
Unemployed voters and their family members, frown on Congressional leaders that are willing to take food out of the mouths of their children, just to keep to the con party agenda to see President Obama and therefore. America to "fail".
You might want to remember that come November when your analyzing why you did not take back the House in 2010.
He needs to hire bitter old man Letterman to help him out with some new material!!
Wow. The Dems have had control of both houses of congress for 4 years, and the White House for nearly 2 years, and they're still blaming Bush for their problems. Pathetic.
NO, President Bush was a better President then President Obama. Since the Democrats took control in 2007 the Economy has gone down hill ever since. Before that under Republican control our Economy was in great shape even after 911. President Bush was reelected, President Obama has no chance of being reelected.
If the Democrats are smart they will stay as far away from any discussion of their results over the last 2 years as possible. Whenever that comes up in debate, they need to change the subject.
They will just cross their fingers, tap their shoes 3 times and hope fairy godmother tranforms them back to 2008 when all of their promises seemed so lovely and believable. At least to 58% of the American voters.
Obama may as well blame Bush the father too, with more people to blame he believes his wrong actions based on agenda rather than needs, will be hidden, so let him blame some dead presidents too!
Remember when Ronald Reagan was President and we had a real President instead of this bowing incompetent.
Thats about all he can do is bad mouth, stand on your own merits, oh wait I forgot you don't have any. Purely a empty suit with a talking head.
Answer: Most definitely NOT.
How long does he blame Bush? Bush is not on the ballot! Stand up and take responsibility. Every president could blame the preceeding presidant but what matters is what have they done to move the country in the right direction. That is where your credit should come from. We are not looking at just saying you are better than the last guy. Virtually everything he has put forward is against the will of the people:
Health Care
Stimulus
cap and trade
financial reform
GE, Chrysler and AIG bail out
War Efforts
imigration
Where and when does it all end?
NO WONDER HE WANTS TO POINT THE FINGER TO BUSH, SOMETIME THE BALL IS IN HIS COURT. WHEN???????