What about George?

So you might be asking yourself what our current Commander in Chief, who will be replaced by one of these two (God-willing Obama) on January 20, 2009, has been up to today.

Apparently… absolutely nothing… which isn’t really a difference between any other time if you really think about it.

With no public appearances scheduled and no face time with McCain or any other republican across the country, Bush is planning to spend his evening in the White House residence, watching TV coverage of election results and hosting a small dinner with Laura, who is celebrating her birthday today.

How devastating to Bush is it that he has NO appearances scheduled for today with any candidates?Usually a sitting president, even a lame-duck, has coveted slots open to push their party’s candidates across the candidate, but it seems Bush doesn’t have any of those…

That’s gotta hoit.

You want to see relief?

Apparently unaware of the current economic crisis that we’re experiencing, “President” Bush has reportedly been very “relaxed.”

Color me… not surprised.

You can also color me un-surprised that he’s happy his reign of terror is ending.

Last week former Missouri senator John Danforth attended a fundraiser with Bush and said that t he “seemed relieved” his presidency was nearly over.

Bush is “relieved”?

That’s nothing compared to the relief that we as a nation are feeling. We’re SO relieved that you’re leaving office that there will be wide-spread parties on January 20, 2009…

You’re relieved George?

You ain’t the only one.

Chips starting to fall?

Back in May 2007, James Comey was testifying to the Senate Judiciary Committee about his time as acting Attorney General while AG James Ashcroft was in a hospital bed after surgery (we wrote about it HERE, HERE, HERE and HERE).

During his testimony, Comey laid out the now-infamous “bed-side visit” to John Ashcroft by Andy Card and Alberto Gonzales. The due had gone to see Ashcroft so he could order the reauthorization of Bush’s surveillance program.

During the testimony, Comey laid out the possibility that “President” Bush had called Ashcroft’s wife to tell her that Card and Gonzales were on their way to the hospital.

At the time, Bush said of his involvement; “There’s a lot of speculation about what happened and what didn’t happen. I’m not going to talk about it.”

Whilst that is a classic Bush(whacked) Administration tactic, it wasn’t a denial… and now we may know why it wasn’t a denial.

The Atlantic’s Murray Waas wrote last week that Gonzales is now telling investigators that Bush was directly involved.

From Waas' article;

According to people familiar with statements recently made by Gonzales to federal investigators, Gonzales is now saying that George Bush personally directed him to make that hospital visit. … Gonzales has painted a picture of Bush as being very much involved when it came to his administration’s surveillance program.

Hmmmmm, very interesting.

Add this to the fact that current Attorney General Michael Mukasey announced today that he’s naming a special prosecutor to investigate AttorneyGate, and you have the makings of “President” Bush facing some serious questioning after he leaves office.
Stay tuned…

A picture is worth a thousand words

And this one speaks more than a thousand... from "President" Bush's recent China trip.

Is it just me, or does Bush look kind of tipsy? And is Barbara ready to hide under her seat or what?

We should be so proud...

Trouble in Paradise

Just when you thought things couldn’t get any better, we get this.

Congressional republicans asked Bush to convene a special session of Congress to grandstand and showboat their lusting of lifting the ban on offshore drilling.

“President” Bush refused.

Now he’s got House republicans mad at him… and a group of them sent a legislative update to gop members today in which Rep. Thaddeus McCotter (r-MI) accused the President, whom he labeled “Beijing George” of throwing House republicans “under the bone-dry bus.”

Says the memo; “Today, in his final term, the wildly unpopular President George W. Bush boarded Air Force One bound for the Beijing Olympics and a meeting with his chum Hu Jintao, the dapper ruler of a nuclear armed, communist dictatorship. … Perhaps our Compassionate Conservative-in-Chief will bring our absent Democrat Congress some ‘Made in (communist) China’ souvenir t-shirts: “Bush went to Beijing and all I got was this lousy five week, paid vacation.”

Ouch… that sounds like something I would say on this blog… but the fact that it’s members of Bush’s own party should give concern to republicans and joy to Democrats.

We can only hope the animosity lasts...

The last straw?

Just when you think you’ve heard the worst thing this administration can do, something comes out that makes you realize they’re not even close.

Journalist Ron Suskind has a new book coming out and in it he describes how the Bush White house ordered the CIA to forge a backdated, handwritten letter that would tie Saddam Hussein to the 9/11 attacks.

According to Suskind, the letter was commissioned “from the highest reaches of the White House and occurred in the fall of 2003 when the White House ordered CIA Director George Tenet to forge a “fake letter from Habbush to Saddam, backdated to July 1, 2001.” Writes Suskind; “It said that 9/11 ringleader Mohammad Atta had actually trained for his mission in Iraq.”

While this isn’t totally surprising, it should enrage you… for two reasons.

First, while many of us knew, or at the least now know, that Bush lied us into war, we now seem to have some kind of concrete and traceable proof that Bush knew before he invaded Iraq that there were no WMD’s… and yet he continued to lie to the American public and to Congress.

Second, after the fact it now looks as though Bush & Cheney ordered the CIA to forge a letter to justify the invasion; “The White House had concocted a fake letter from Habbush to Saddam, backdated to July 1, 2001. It said that 9/11 ringleader Mohammed Atta had actually trained for his mission in Iraq — thus showing, finally, that there was an operation link between Saddam and al-Qaeda, something the Vice President's office had been pressing CIA to prove since 9/11 as a justification to invade. […] A handwritten letter, with Habbush's name on it, would be fashioned by CIA and then hand-carried by a CIA agent to Baghdad for dissemination.”

CIA officers Rob Richer (former head of the CIA’s Near East Division) and John Maguire (who oversaw the Iraq Operations Group) are both on the record in Suskind’s book confirming the existence of this letter…
Suskind goes on to not only describe how this is an impeachable offense, but also delves into details about how and why it’s illegal for the President of the United States to use the CIA in this manner.

Yes, it’s also immoral, but if the last seven years have shown us anything, it’s that Bush has no moral code to guide him.

When you add this to the recent New York Daily News article about the Anthrax attacks that revealed the fact that “White House officials repeatedly pressed FBI Director Robert Mueller to prove it [the anthrax attack] was a second-wave assault by Al Qaeda” you start to clearly see that the lengths by which this administration would go to in order to get what they wanted.

It’s a given that the conservative Beltway intelligentsia won’t give Suskind’s revelations a second thought… (it’s not a blow job in the Oval Office mind you, so why should they?) but maybe, just maybe enough Democrats will see revelations like this and they’ll be convinced that the only way to prevent future crimes against the American people will be to impeach Bush…

Stay tuned, though I wouldn’t hold my breath.

Polls are Good

When polls are positive, they’re every politician’s friend… when they’re negative; they have no use for them and declare them persona non grata.

In other words, they don’t matter.

Case in point, despite poll after poll after poll after poll after, well you get the idea, showing skyrocketing and record levels of dissatisfaction with “President” Bush, the White House is still in an “upbeat mood” with aides that are still seeing a president that “gets his way.”

(Make no mistake, Bush getting his way is the fault of the Democratic-controlled Congress not treating Bush like the lame-duck he is… were it up to the people, Bush would have had the door slammed in his face a LONG time ago)

The magazine’s point is that the administration’s positive demeanor is a result of the president sensing (honestly, when was the last time this president sensed anything besides a pretzel in his mouth???) less opposition than before when facing crowds.

From the zine; “When he travels around the country, Bush feels less “antipathy” than he used to in the crowds, along the motorcade routes, and expressed by the individuals who talk to him at his events. “He feels there has been a shift in attitudes out there that’s not reflected in polling data,” the aide says. […] Reinforcing his point, the latest AP-Ipsos poll, released in mid-June, found that only 29 percent of Americans approved of Bush’s job performance, one of the lowest presidential ratings ever. White House officials, by the way, say they aren’t sure such polls should be believed because the questions are biased and the population samples are flawed.”

Back in January it was widely reported that Bush’s aides were predicting a “poll shift” to 45% favorability by the time he leaves office in early 2009.

But if polls are flawed, why should that matter?

And these ever-falling numbers (regardless of what this president “senses”) are what feeds some non-committed voter’s attitudes towards Sen. McCain… and that’s precisely why he should be worried.

With Bush’s numbers plunging, a new Gallup poll should give McCain’s campaign pause as 68% of Americans are either “very concerned” or “somewhat concerned” that McCain is going to “pursue policies that are too similar” to those of Bush while 49%, almost half of those polled, said they’re “very concerned” about McCain’s policies being too similar to Bush’s.

Sure, you could look at these numbers and wonder about the 31% that support McCain and come to one of two conclusions; either they’re hooked-up to gop brand Kool-Aid IV’s or they’re totally unaware this is a presidential election year and see Bush when they look at McCain.

Perhaps the White House and “President” Bush should consider that perhaps the reason for less antipathy is the fact that the majority of the American public realizes he’s a lame duck and that in a little over 200 days, they’ll be rid of him. Truth be told, he doesn't matter and isn't worth the time or energy to think about as people’s time is better spent right now either working extra jobs in order to stay afloat in this pathetic economy he helped create or are working for the change that is coming this November. Go. Obama.

Smackdown

UK newspaper The Independent (UK) wrote a derisive editorial today reflecting on the final visit of “President” Bush and doesn’t hold any punches.

The piece metes out the truth unlike any US media outlet has had the courage to do. From the editorial;

“It is no exaggeration to say that Mr Bush has done more damage to relations between our two nations than any president in living memory. […] And whatever the future holds for transatlantic relations, there will be very few in this country who watched President Bush’s plane depart yesterday without a feeling of profound relief that the end of this disastrous presidency is finally in sight.”

Pwned!

We at TBWA have been saying for years that Bush has not only destroyed our nation’s standing in the world, but has also strained relations with some of our staunchest allies… and this editorial not only proves that January 20, 2009 will be a cleansing time for our nation, but the world as a whole.

Let the healing begin.

The Weekly Rewind.

Ok so we now know it is going to be Obama vs McCain. I am not going to rehash what has been all over the networks and cable channels this week. No that would be boring. Howe about some stuff that flew under the radar? Here we go with this weeks Weekly Rewind.

Heckle: to being consistently clueless. It seems that despite fierce opposition by Iraqis to his call for a long-term occupation of Iraq, ‘President’ Bush this week expressed confidence that a status of forces agreement would pass. Bush said that Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki “appreciates our presence there” and suggested much of the opposition “is based on inaccurate media reports and misunderstandings.” Hmmm, okay let’s see where these ‘inaccurate media reports’ and ‘misunderstandings’ are occurring….stay together, now follow me….As reported at ThinkProgress and various news agencies…

• Top Iraqi officials are objecting publicly to the United States’ effort to establish permanent bases in the country. “The Americans are making demands that would lead to the colonization of Iraq,” said Sami al-Askari, a senior Shiite politician close to Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. “If we can’t reach a fair agreement, many people think we should say, ‘Goodbye, U.S. troops. We don’t need you here anymore.’”

• Iraqi lawmakers say that the Bush administration is “demanding 58 bases as part of a proposed ’status of forces’ agreement that will allow U.S. troops to remain in the country indefinitely.” Jalal al Din al Saghir, a leading lawmaker from the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq, called the deal “more abominable than the occupation.”

• Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki is saying that “talks with the United States on a longterm security agreement have reached a ‘dead end’” because the U.S. proposals “do not take into consideration Iraq’s sovereignty.”

Well it seems that either our ‘President’ has no clue of what he is talking about, or Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has an evil clone that runs around saying the exact opposite of everything he does……hmmmmm I’m betting on the first scenario… which takes us directly into the next point…

Heckle: to not only being clueless but not having a conscience either. In an interview with the UK Times, President Bush said he regrets his legacy in making the world believe he was a “guy really anxious for war” in Iraq. But today, he added that “he had no regrets about the decision to invade Iraq.” Amazing, you gotta wonder what it's like to be that clueless!

Applaud: to the effort. Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) said he’s not going to let his effort to impeach President Bush die a quiet death in committee. He said Wednesday that he’ll bring his resolution “back in 30 days if the Judiciary Committee…doesn’t act on it.” “In 30 days, I’ll be joined by many more” members, he said. With the short amount of time left, we doubt it will go anywhere, however we heartily applaud the effort Dennis.

Applaud: to…..wait for it. President Bush is increasingly drawing on selected events of the past to argue that history will vindicate him. Unfortunately for the president, many historians have already reached a conclusion. In an informal survey of scholars this spring, just two out of 109 historians said Bush would be judged a success; a majority deemed him the “worst president ever.” See I told you to wait for it….

Applaud: to more people seeing the light. In a new CNN/Opinion Research Corporation survey out this week, 78 percent of respondents rate the economic conditions in this country as poor. That’s up from 75 percent in March. Only 22 percent rate the economic conditions in the country as good. Give it time and a few more of the 22 percent will wake up.

Applaud: for the effort , but you still gotta laugh at the image. Former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld has bought a new, fuel-efficient Vespa. According to the DC Examiner, “Mr. Macho recently stopped by the Vespa dealership in Glover Park and took home a LXV 150 scooter, which can reach speeds of up to 60 miles per hour.” When asked about his purchase, Rumsfeld reported cackled, “Ha ha ha ha, I’ll get you and your little dog too!” Okay not really, but can’t you just picture it?

Applaud: to not keeping silent. This week the scientific academies of the G8 countries and of Brazil, China, India, Mexico and South Africa “urged the world to act more forcefully to limit the threat posed by human-driven global warming.” They called on the industrialized countries to lead a “transition to a low-carbon society” and aggressively move to limit impacts from changes in climate that are already under way and impossible to stop. Ok, talk is nice, however all these countries need to put some actions behind their words or it’s just rhetoric.

Heckle: to once again pulling the rug out from under the average American. With soaring oil prices, Americans are increasingly turning to Amtrak, which saw record numbers in May when ridership rose a healthy 12.3 percent from a year earlier. The Bush administration, however, is of course threatening to veto legislation that would fund the passenger railroad for the next five years. What a surprise, one of our few pieces of infrastructure that could actually help is being threatened with being shut-down. Just another example of the ‘Bush-Whacking’ of America.

Heckle: to being once again being manipulated. As ‘President’ Bush travels across Europe to gain support for possible new sanctions against Iran, Israeli leaders have been working to lay the psychological foundation for a possible military strike if diplomacy falters. Reportedly in public threats and private briefings with American decision-makers, Israeli officials have been making the case that a military strike may be the only way to thwart Iran’s nuclear ambitions. Nice, here we go again. We screwed up in Iraq, so let’s try it again with Iran and this time let’s try the spin using a different ally. I can see Bush starting something near the end of his lame duck term and then running out the door to leave it to the next POTUS to deal with.

Heckle: to shortsightedness. Now the financial credit crisis is squeezing student loan programs that offer breaks to borrowers who enter critical fields such as nursing and teaching, as state-backed lenders in at least six states “have dropped or scaled back programs.” Ok so in about 10- 15 years when our kids are failing even worse than they are now, and when a large part of the population is in need of medical care we can slap the speculators and Administration officials who thought it wasn’t important to be pro-active. That is if we can find them.

And this weeks tool of the week is....... FEMA, for once again letting their stupidity show. A CNN investigation has found “FEMA gave away about $85 million in household goods meant for Hurricane Katrina victims.” A FEMA spokesperson said, “We determined that they were excess to FEMA’s needs; therefore, they are being excessed from FEMA’s inventory.” But Martha Kegel, the head of a New Orleans nonprofit agency, responded, “These are the very things that we are seeking right now.” I’m sorry can we just scrap FEMA and just start over with FEMA 2?

Finally, on a Sad note, Tim Russert of NBC died suddenly Friday at the studio in Washington doing what he loved. This was a man of great integrity who was respected and admired by both sides of the aisle. I spent many, many Sunday mornings watching him on 'Meet the Press' and considered him to be one of the fairest people in the arena of political reporting. I looked forward to his perspective on the issues. I will miss his wit, wisdom and insight as we enter this historic general election. My thoughts and prayers go out to his family. God bless you Tim, you set a standard that will be hard for others to acheive.

That’s it for this week.

Be good, stay informed….later…

A picture is worth a thousand words...

Once again, our current commander in chief acts totally un-presidential.

January 20, 2009 can NOT come soon enough... it's like having a man-boy in the Oval Office.

Looking for casus belli

In case you though the Bush(whacked) Administration had forgotten about their plans to bomb Iran, think again.

The Jerusalem Post reported yesterday that a senior Israeli official said that “President” Bush and “Vice” President Cheney are of the belief that military action against Iran is necessary and that such an attack could be coming soon.

From the Post; “US President George W. Bush intends to attack Iran in the upcoming months, before the end of his term, Army Radio quoted a senior official in Jerusalem as saying Tuesday. […] The official claimed that a senior member of the president’s entourage, which concluded a trip to Israel last week, said during a closed meeting that Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney were of the opinion that military action was called for. […] However, the official continued, “the hesitancy of Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice” was preventing the administration from deciding to launch such an attack on the Islamic Republic, for the time being.”

Lovely…

The White House and the Pentagon have been “catapulting the propaganda” on Iran for a couple of months now, but aren’t moving precipitately this time as things look to be different this time around. Not only will there be no “coalition of the willing,” but the US public isn’t willing to get dragged into another war using questionable intel and evidence as support for attack.

If they can’t find a coalition of the willing and the American citizenry won’t accept it, what’s an administration to do?

Stay tuned.

The Weekly Rewind

Greetings loyal readers. Unless you are living under a rock, you know that we are coming up on two more important primaries this Tuesday. So instead of beating you over the head with anything primary related, lets take a look at some of the other news items you may have missed. Here is a little piece we like to call The Weekly Rewind.

Heckle: to stirring up the rhetoric to justify another ‘war’. U.S. and Iraqi security forces in Baghdad “have been targeted with 251 improvised bombs this month — nearly double the monthly average — as fighting in and around Sadr City intensified.” U.S. Army Brig. Gen. Mike Milano said that “some of the attacks involved deadly armor-piercing bombs that the U.S. military has linked to Iran.” Here is an idea, stick to the facts and the truth. If Iran is involved, obtain solid prrof and then we can deal with it. Otherwise stop twisting our troop casualties to fit your warped views.

Heckle: to running unrestrained. With Americans facing record levels of credit card debt, financial institutions have sharply raised rates for credit card customers — even those who pay on time — as they grapple with losses from other bad consumer loans. Banks are also imposing higher fees for late payments and ATM withdrawals to boost profits. Leave it to the financial sector to once again find ways to screw the American public for their own greed. The economy is in bad shape and the faster everyone acknowledges that and pays heed, the better off we will be when the inevitable happens.

Heckle: to another area of the financial sector screwing us. As the Federal Reserve completes work on rules to root out abuses by mortgage lenders, the mortgage industry has begun an intensive campaign to fight back. The industry’s criticism has already prompted the Fed to consider narrowing the scope of the plan so it applies to fewer loans. Once again, the administration shows it’s contempt for the average American, in favor of big business. Does anyone truly think that a McCain administration would be any different?

Heckle: to your own words biting you in the ass. Three years before Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) was arguing for a 100 year presence in Iraq, he told MSNBC, “I would hope that we could bring them all home.” “I think one of our big problems has been the fact that many Iraqis resent American military presence,” McCain said. “[A]s soon as we can reduce our visibility as much as possible, the better I think it is going to be.” Excuse me Senator, would you like a swimsuit to go with those flip-flops?

Heckle: to the continuing erosion of the American dream. “Home foreclosure filings jumped 23 percent in the first quarter…and more than doubled from a year a earlier,” according to new RealtyTrac data. “One of every 194 households received a notice of default, auction sale or bank repossession between January and March, for the seventh straight quarter of rising foreclosure activity.” But remember, we are only in an economic slowdown….

Applaud: to another reason we respect him. In remarks made in Kansas City, former Secretary of State Colin Powell said that “the military was being stretched and a lot was being asked of the all-volunteer force at a time when the entire country isn’t committed to war,” the AP reports. “I think it would be hard to respond to another crisis if it was like these two,” Powell said. Thank you Mr. Secretary for saying what more people with influence need to say.

Applaud: to putting the info out for all to see. A report by the Special Inspector General for Iraq predicts that “Iraq’s oil revenue will top a record $70 billion this year, adding fuel to a congressional push to force the Iraqi government to assume more responsibility for rebuilding the country.” “The cost of a barrel of Iraqi oil has increased by 250% since 2003.” You know I wish I would have thought of this before….oh wait a minute I did. Let’s stop footing the bill and keep some of our tax dollars back here in this country where they are needed.

Applaud: to taking some of the wind out of the sails of a litigious society. The Supreme Court’s recent rulings upholding Indiana’s voter ID law and Kentucky’s use of lethal injections exemplify a shift in the court’s approach to deciding constitutional questions. By rejecting broad legal challenges, the court is sending the message that legal advocates need to “produce evidence that a law has actually violated someone’s rights” rather than asserting that rights could be violated. Maybe now we can stop making laws to ‘protect the stupid’ just because they ‘might’ do something dumb….stupid should hurt.

Heckle: to a possible employment related ‘ponzi’ scheme. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, “Federal, state and local governments are hiring new workers at the fastest pace in six years, helping offset job losses in the private sector,” adding “76,800 jobs in the first three months of 2008.” By contrast, “private companies collectively shed 286,000 workers in the first three months of 2008″ leading “many economists to declare the country is in a recession.” Do we really need that many more people on the government payrolls? Hmmmm, could it be that the administration is actively working to ‘artificially’ lower the unemployment rate? Something to think about..

Heckle: to saying what you mean and meaning what you say. Though he’s promised to not raise taxes, Sen. John McCain’s (R-AZ) campaign acknowledged yesterday “that the health plan he outlined this week would” effectively increase tax payments for some workers, primarily those with high incomes and expensive health plans.” The campaign will not yet say “how many taxpayers might see their taxes go up.” I am sure they are hoping this will go away quietly.

Heckle: to a steaming pile. This week marked the fifth anniversary of President Bush’s infamous “Mission Accomplished” moment aboard the U.S.S. Abraham Lincoln. Editor and Publisher takes a look at the back at the media coverage on May 1, 2003, when reporters rushed to report that the Bush administration was “planning to withdraw most United States combat forces from Iraq over the next several months.” And now that the American people are asking why we are still there fighting after 5 years the WH is trying to say that the banner was only meant for the troops on the ship…..Bull**it….sorry I had to cough.

Heckle: to another indicator of a faltering economy. Auto loan delinquency in the United States “hit a 17-year high in the fourth quarter of 2007, according to the American Bankers Association. Some 3.13 percent of car loans were “overdue 30 days or more.” Edmunds.com, which provides automotive information, estimates that nearly a fourth of borrowers are ‘upside down‘ in their car loans, meaning the car is worth less than the loan balance. Sounds very similar to…..anyone…..yes that’s right, the real estate market. Watch, the next story will be about the large increase in the number of automobile repossessions. Which also sounds very similar to …..anyone….yes, that’s right the real estate market. But remember, we are only in an economic slowdown…

And Finally, at his final White House correspondents’ dinner on Saturday, President Bush poked fun at his potential successors. Explaining why none had attended the dinner, the ‘President’ said Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) “probably wanted to distance himself from me,” adding that “Hillary Clinton couldn’t get in because of sniper fire and Senator Obama’s at church.” Sorry, I think they all wanted to distance themselves from you. Kind of like Southern Methodist University does by voting to prevent your future Presidential Library from being built on their campus. Wow, when the Methodists don’t want to have anything to do with you….

That’s it folks.

Be good, stay informed….later.

Color me NOT surprised

A new CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll finds that 71% of Americans disapproves of the job “President” Bush is doing, marking the first time EVER that a president, any president, has had disapproval ratings over the 70% mark.

Is it any wonder George W. Bush is the first?

While his approval rating of 28% in the same poll remains better than the all-time lows (give him time, he’ll get there) set by President’s Truman (22%) and Nixon (24%) even those two presidents NEVER got a disapproval rating in the 70’s.

Ignoring for a moment what kind of mindless, sycophantic sheep the 28% are, does this surprise anyone that has use of their own brain?

Not me… but you knew that already, didn’t you?

I think it’s now safe to label him; Worst. President. Ever.

McCain's Liability

While I beg for Democrats to unite and vote the ticket this November, a primary reason for my belief that we have an above average chance to win the White House this November is finally getting the recognition from the so-called MSM.

Sen. McCain’s greatest liability this November isn’t his age (though he is too old in my opinion), it isn’t his lack of understanding about economics (a gas tax holiday? Really, that's the best you and Clinton for that matter - can come up with?), it’s not his desire to see Iraq through, it's not his failure to see the food "crisis" (for lack of a better term) for what it is, and it isn’t his Bush-repeated healthcare plan...

It’s “President” Bush himself…

A new NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll shows that 43% of registered voters have major concerns about McCain because he’s too closely aligned with the Bush(whacked) Administration.

Now, McCain shouldn't feel too bad as Bush is, unfortunately, EVERYONE'S problem… but McCain has brought this on himself.

For the last 2 years McCain has been kissing (and hugging) up to Bush and his supporters in a ramp-up to the presidential race, and now, seeing the effects that strategy was having, he’s desperately trying to separate himself from Bush now… criticizing the federal response to hurricane Katrina and blaming the administration for it’s lack of leadership in Iraq are just the latest examples, but it’s too late… especially when you have Liberal and Grass Roots blogs keeping the image of McCain hugging Bush in everyone’s heads.

I believe McCain to be a hero for what he went through in Vietnam, but I don't trust him to have the proper judgment to deal with the war, soldiers care or foreign policy, but my question is how someone who went through such an experience subject another generation of fellow soldiers with his “stay the course” mantra?

As I’ve said before, I would have considered voting for the 2000 version of McCain, but this is not the same guy that was running in 2000.

(BTW, the same poll says 36% believe Sen. Clinton’s biggest problem is shifting her position on issues after realizing Liberals don’t support them and 34% say they are bothered by Sen. Obama’s “bitterness” issue – the weakest argument of the three in my opinion.

The same poll that found that voters think McCain is too close to Bush also reports that 73% of voters disapprove of Bush’s handling of the economy (no wonder when he continually maintains we’re only in a ‘slowdown’) and 81% believe the US is in a recession… a feeling shared by a majority on national and international economists… but let’s get back to the topic at hand – McBush, I mean; McCain)

It’s no secret that the political landscape is skewed to the Democrats this cycle (much like it was in the 2006 mid-terms), and the gop is going to need a LOT of help to keep the White House.

Let’s all make sure that doesn’t happen. To help with that affect, here’s the picture I reference above…



Awwwwm, isn’t that sweet... and highly disturbing?

Even more proof that he just doesn’t get it*

*as if we needed anymore…

Since the site IS named after him after all, how about a post dealing with everyone's favorite recovering alcoholic & drug addict/born-again/boy-president…

“President” Bush held a presser this morning on the South Lawn of the White House and announced that the economic stimulus checks will start being sent out this Monday… with approximately 130 million households in line for $600-per-individual, $1,200-per-couple and $300-per-eligible-child rebates

Said Bush; “If you've already filed your income tax return, your rebate is on the way. […] We want to make sure everyone who is eligible for a check gets one. […] This money is going to help Americans offset the high prices we are seeing at the gas pump and the grocery store... and will also give the economy a boost to help us out of this slowdown.”

Let's ignore 2 other things for a moment; the fact that all the economists that AREN'T joining the lemmings in going over the cliff say the checks will have only a modest impact on the economy (and that's only if people spend the money) and the fact that this president refuses to accept reality that the US is in a recession and would rather desperately (or idiotically?) cling to the concept that we're in a “slowdown” instead.

Instead, let's concentrate on what he said this morning; “This money is going to help Americans offset the high prices we are seeing at the gas pump and the grocery store...”

Um… correct me if I'm wrong, but when the economic stimulus package was first announced, Bush said that the rebate would be a 'shot in the arm' for the US economy… but now, weeks after the aforementioned statement, he's changing gears and is saying the money will help people pay their rising bills for gas and food.

Granted, he added “... and will also give the economy a boost to help us out of this slowdown”, but; will it? Can these checks actually do both things that Bush says they can?

If people use the rebates to buy groceries and gas, isn't that more akin to paying down debt than it is to buying items such as cars, high-price electronics and the like?

Bush's economic rebate does absolutely nothing but cover a smidge of the extra cost of record high fuel, food, & healthcare costs for this year alone… and likely won't stimulate anything (except Bush's ego).

The man just doesn't get it…

…and he never will.

(And a question from Scott; once this paltry amount is spent, what's next to help Americans pay for the rising costs of gas and food for the rest of this year AND the years to come? Nothing, we’ll be back to square one.)

28%

“It doesn’t take a genius of public opinion research to isolate some likely causes. Americans are deeply depressed about the economy, gas prices are at a record high, [and] there is a war still underway that a majority of Americans call a mistake.” – Frank Newport, Gallup

Sometimes a quote says so much more than the words that are spoken… in this case it shows just how sick people are of “President” Bush's policies... and they're letting the anger be heard in polls across the country.

One such poll is the most recent Gallup poll that shows Bush’s approval rating has fallen to 28%, “a record low” for his administration.

To give some historical perspective, Bush’s approval numbers are “lower than that of any president since World War II”, with the few exceptions of Jimmy Carter, Richard Nixon and Harry Truman…

What’s more shocking, that his numbers are that low or that there are still members of this population that believe he’s doing a good job?

$600 doesn't go as far as it used to

Foreseeing that a check ranging from $300 to $1,200 ain’t gonna do enough to turn around the US economy, a slew of Democrats are calling for another stimulus package.

“President” Bush has already rejected that idea, saying; “And thirdly, I, you know, I think we ought to, in terms of pro-growth packages, I think we ought to, again I repeat, give this one a chance to kick in. The experts tell me that this pro-growth package is going to add some — you know, a percent, percent-and-a-half to the economy here in the latter part of this year.”

(Won’t it be nice to eventually have someone in the Oval Office that can speak in complete sentences?)

My first question is what experts is he citing? His own? Because almost every other economist says the stimulus package isn’t going to do enough in putting this country back on the right track.

And speaking personally, the check I will be getting will not even come close to covering the increased price of food, gasoline, utilities, and medical care since Bush took office.

Increasing unemployment insurance and putting together a public works spending package – as suggested by House Speaker Pelosi – or expanding and repairing the “deteriorating infrastructure needs of our country” as Sen. Dodd wants could help a LOT more people in a LOT more ways than the current package will

Too bad the American public doesn’t have access to Bush-licensed rose-colored glasses, because a recent Zogby poll shows a scarce 28% “believe the government’s economic stimulus rebate plan will help”, and they’re right, because the majority of people will probably do what my wife and I plan to do; save their check or pay down debt and NOT put in back into the economy.

Where’s your economic messiah then Dubya?

A-ha!

I’ve been saying it for years… the Bush(whacked) Administration looks at the Iraq war through rose-colored glasses… well, today they finally admitted it.

During a White House press briefing earlier today, deputy spokesman Tony Fratto responded to a question about the rising violence in Iraq and said;

“I think we have thrown out all of the rose-colored glasses in how we look at Iraq and try to look at it through clear lenses as to what is going on in the country.”

Ignoring for a moment the fact that this administration has no idea what the hell is going on in their own country let alone a country thousand and thousand of miles away, how is this in any way acceptable? The US government should not be looking at anything through rose-colored glasses, especially something as important and as deadly as a war…

The fact that they have not been looking at the war with any objectivity to success or failure (with the glasses Iraq was always going to be a success), is not only downright shameful on the part of Bush and his administration, but, dare I say, negligent.

I think we may finally have a wholly-impeachable offense…

We’re not the only ones

Julianne Smith, Europe analyst at the Center for Strategic and International Studies,

“many [European leaders] are looking forward now to the next president. [… ]There seems to be a great deal of enthusiasm…on the other side of the Atlantic, that there’s going to be some revitalization of the trans-Atlantic partnership and we start with a clean slate and a new chapter.”

You’re preaching to the choir Julianne…

Checks to the rescue

During a week that saw NRCC chairman Tom Cole write an article in the New York Times Magazine where he admitted that article “President” Bush may not be welcome at GOP campaign events all across the country due to his staggering-low approval numbers, “President” Bush is still trying to spin the already-here (or looming) recession… this time using the economic stimulus package as the savior.

“President” Bush visited a small business in Virginia yesterday and while there discussed his plans to help the recovery, saying; “There’s a rough patch right now in our economy, but I’m confident in the long term we’ll come out stronger than ever before. One of the most decisive actions a government can take is to give people their money back so they can spend it, and that’s exactly what we’ve done. In the second week of May, a lot of folks are going to be getting a sizable check. And I’m looking forward to that day, and I know they are as well.”

Soooooooooo, let me get this straight; to make the economy “stronger than ever before” we have to wait until May when people spend their rebate checks??

And they can’t pay off debt or put them in the bank, they have to spend the checks on goods and services...

Um… who wants to tell him?

...

...

Noone? Fine, I will; poll numbers don’t support your wish there George as a recent CreditCards.com poll finds that almost half the American public plans to either save their rebate checks or use them to pay off debt… while a CNN/Opinion Research Corp. poll shows that 53% plan to “use their rebates to pay off bills” or “put the money in savings.”

Uh-oh…