Waste O Time

It’s sort of interesting that Bush has come out vowing to get this immigration bill passed. The fact that the bill died last week just goes to show how weak Bush is at the moment – and maybe more importantly, how big of a waste his second term is shaping up to be.

Bush wants this immigration bill passed and the Democrats gave him a bill that he could get behind. But Bush couldn’t get his GOP peers on the Hill to go with the plan and the bill died last week. It’s not often that a President fails to pass legislation that he and the opposing party both wants. Really is just goes to show how weak and how little sway Bush has at the moment.

But this is what happens when your Administration has been an absolute disaster… and the second term of your Presidency has been, at best, stalled in neutral.

And since I'm at it, let’s go over, quickly, the absolute disaster that the Bush Administration has been... (seriously this can't end soon enough). The two big areas that the executive has a lot of sway in policy decisions is foreign and domestic. There have been very few 'good' things that have happened. US foreign policy is a mess and a disgrace at this point. Of course, history will be the judge.... Iraq could swing one of these years, but as each day goes by this becomes less and less likely. Our standing in Europe isn't so hot; same goes for Latin America where Hugo Chavez and Bush would tie for last in a popularity poll. Even more worrisome, it appears that the administration was so obsessed with the 'non-facts' in Iraq, that they were caught with their pants down in North Korea and Russia, who suddenly have become a bizarre threat to the US (even if it appears, at the moment, to be little more than saber rattling; but it has gotten to the point that Bush had to say that the US has no plans on attacking Russia last week). Who knows what China's been up to or what their long term policy goals... but I've got a feeling that our little 'mission' in Iraq has forced the US to loose focus on the real, long term threats to this nation.

I will say, that it appears that Bush has been somewhat successful in the fight against terror. There has not been another attack on US soil (which also may show just how hard and how many resources it took the terrorists to pull off 9/11). Strides have been made against Al Qeada… but of course bin Landen has not been caught almost six years since the attacks and the US looks hypocritical because of the way they have handled terrorists suspects. Torture is not a good thing and Bush is going to be remembered as the Torture President, even if he finally shuts down Guantanamo Bay and gives the terrorist suspects some sort of trial and justice.

And domestically? Things could be put down as nada at best. The economy rolls along, but the rich have gotten richer, the poor poorer, and the middle class is stalled with wages that haven’t increased all that much. Inflation has increased in recent years which has lowered the impact of the growth of the economy. Even more worrisome is the negative savings rate that Americans have racked up two years in a row! The Gilded Age would be an appropriate era to compare modern America too. Most Americans are no better off than they were in June of 2000, excluding hedge fund managers, the industrial-military complex, and others in the finical markets. Though most people are no worse off, most people are worried about the economy. And what are Bush’s great domestic policy initiatives?

No Child Left Behind? If that’s the case, it’s extremely flawed – even if you like the idea of standardized testing and national standards, the states were able to create the test themselves… and guess what? Most states made the tests pretty easy so that students could reach those national standards. What else is there?

Medicare Part D? That’s shit legislation and misguided policy that will have to be fixed. Social Security went no where (what was Bush’s plan again… oh yeah, there wasn’t one).

Tax cuts? Overrated and actually have hurt the economy since Bush continued to spend as if government income had not decreased.

Supreme Court appointments? If the Court continues with the rulings that we’ve seen over the past month, the Court is going to backfire on Bush and conservatives; just as rulings in the 70s eventually hurt liberal causes and fired up and united conservatives. Rulings such as the giving females only 6 months to figure out they’re making less than males aren’t going to help the conservative cause. No, it isn’t a huge rallying call, but there have been a few rulings over the last month, which seem to go against the ‘pulse’ of America. Be careful what you wish for.

And now immigration is stalled, if not dead. The tax code is out of control (special interests rejoice!) We are no less dependent on foreign oil. Domestically, very little has gotten done during the last six and a half years.

No, Bush’s presidency hasn’t been a total disaster. American’s are rioting or taking to the streets. But in the six plus years since Bush has taken over, nothing has really gotten better. Life has continued to go on, but Bush has accomplished very little expect pissing off the rest of the world. Opportunity after opportunity has been missed, little has actually gotten done... in other words it’s been an utter waste of time. And what a shame, since staying atop is usually much more difficult than getting to the top – eight years of nothing can only been seen as a negative.