Bush says some voters backed Obama ‘because of me’

[DeepModem Mom]

Source: CNN

President Bush told an interviewer that his presidency may have helped Barack Obama win the White House.

"I think it was a repudiation of Republicans," he told Charlie Gibson of ABC News, according to a transcript released by the network Monday. "And I'm sure some people voted for Barack Obama because of me. I think most people voted for Barack Obama because they decided they wanted him to be in their living room for the next four years explaining policy."

As Obama — who made opposition to the war a centerpiece of his presidential run — continued to assemble his national security team, Bush would not say whether or not he would still have pushed for war with Iraq if he had known there were no weapon of mass destruction in that country.

"A lot of people put their reputations on the line and said the weapons of mass destruction is a reason to remove Saddam Hussein," Bush said. "It wasn't just people in my administration. A lot of members in Congress, prior to my arrival in Washington, D.C., during the debate on Iraq, a lot of leaders of nations around the world were all looking at the same intelligence.

"I wish the intelligence had been different, I guess," he said, but would not say whether he would have pressed forward with the decision to invade Iraq if he had known otherwise: "That is a do-over that I can't do."

Bush also said that his administration had pressed for tougher regulations of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, but that push had been short-circuited by politics. He also said that many of the decisions that led to the economic crisis came from Wall Street before he arrived in the White House....

Read more: http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2008/12/01/bush-says-some-voters-backed-obama-%e2%80%98because-of-me%e2%80%99/#more-31596

[BrklynLiberal]

1. I would be that even HE voted for Barack Obama

[Frisbee]

18. I'm not so sure about him, but...

I'd bet even money Laura did.

[noonwitch]

45. Barbara and the twins probably did, too

The twins have grown up into nice young ladies who are concerned about the plight of others-Ana's Story is a really good book. I gave it to my 8 year old neice and she learned a lot from reading it about how young girls in the 3rd world are living with AIDS.

[pipi_k]

53. So did his dog, Barney, using a fake ID and wearing a little white beard and mustache n/t

.

[Wabbajack_]

64. I wouldn't count on it.

[Wabbajack_]

63. Don't be daft

[Frisbee]

66. Excuse me?

[Wabbajack_]

67. I doubt that woman has pulled the level for a Democrat in recent decades

[Captain Hilts]

2. No shit Sherlock. Pres. Bush ruined the Republican party for Republicans. nt

[harun]

6. I think it was because they were finally able to implement their policies

and people looked around and said "Holy sh*t, this sux".

[Captain Hilts]

8. My Republican friends agreed that Prez. Bush couldn't govern or manage anything.

So, they voted for Obama because McCain was promising more of the knee-jerk, gut instinct same.

Bush IS the least popular president since Hoover. Nixon was more popular!

[The Wizard]

48. He falls somewhere between

Stalin and anal leakage.

[Alcibiades]

17. Yep

They repudiated themselves. Their entire program is driven by an ideology divorced from reality.

[tclambert]

26. BUT, will people realize the bankruptcy of the policies, or just blame Bush's poor execution?

If it's all about blaming George, we may see these same stupid fantasy-based policies coming back to haunt us yet again. Remember, a lot of the bad stuff Bush did was bad stuff Reagan did, and Herbert Hoover did. And we thought those arguments were settled long, long ago.

[harun]

28. The media is trying to sell it as all B*sh and has been for some time.

[Alcibiades]

58. Which is why we need to make that point rather explicitly

FDR did, and was able to credibly claim that Republican policies were a failure, ushering in over a generation of Democratic dominance. Policy success is the most persuasive PR tool. What we need to do now is to make sure that Congress backs the Obama agenda and fight their natural instincts to cave to the Republicans at every turn.

You're right that it's time to get beyond personalities. Bush is/was/will be bad, and most folks recognize this. What we need to get the word out on is the fact that the Republican Party today is the ideologically extreme party, that they are immoderate ideologues pushing an extreme agenda, so much so that even someone such as McCain, who had made a name for himself as a moderate, had to morph into George W. Bush in order to win his party's nomination.

[Elidor]

65. You can be sure we will see those policies again

Since the perpetrators are not going to pay any legal penalties for implementing them.

[YOY]

3. No kidding Shrub. Did you just get that now?

Totally sunk your party...kind of like Carter...but a complete asshole who won't do jack outside of the Whitehouse for anyone but themselves.

[merh]

43. LOL, I just realized, no one will call on him to diplomatically meet

with foreign leaders - they know he doesn't know what diplomacy means. He not only screwed his party, he screwed himself out of a purpose after he leaves office.

[tclambert]

56. No Jimmy Carter type diplomatic missions for George?

GOOD!

[Frank Cannon]

62. His purpose after he leaves office...

is to lay on the couch in his tightie-whities, watching cartoons and drinking Jack Daniels until he falls asleep and/or his liver gives out completely.

[Veritas_et_Aequitas]

4. I guess he's still trying to spin his presidency as a good thing.

[harun]

7. It's going to be his new job for the rest of his life.

[The Wizard]

49. He'll just go back

to clearing brush.

[DinahMoeHum]

5. Wow. It took THAT long for him to get it??

:rofl::rofl:

[47of74]

9. Nicht Scheiße Herr Holmes!

[VaYallaDawg]

10. But ... for lots of people, it was "Oh, look! Somebody with a brain!!"

[Rob H.]

11. He's working overtime to polish his steaming turd of a legacy, isn't he?

Typical Bush--everything is everyone's fault but his.

[Jamastiene]

12. You are kind of slow on the uptake. Aren't you, Georgie?

Duhhhhh.

[pipi_k]

54. Slower than you might think...

Someone actually "leaked" that information to him



He never would have thought of it on his own, you know.... :silly:

[Robbien]

13. Notice that he said people wanted Obama "explaining policy"

Which is what Bush thought his job was, just explaining policy.

People voted for someone to make policy, not just explain it to us.

[EFerrari]

14. That's right. Junior thinks of himself as a front man, which he is

of course.

[4_TN_TITANS]

29. "explainin' policy"

much easier to do when you understand policy.

[Plaid Adder]

40. Yes, that is a telling line.

It suggests he saw himself as kind of a network news anchor.

Oh well. Part of me is pleased by how depressed he sounds right now, but most of me is just waiting for him to go away.

The Plaid Adder

[patrice]

15. "...I guess"!!! The Trans-National Corporations, indeed, hired the right guy. nt

[Wizard777]

16. After Bush, people should refuse to acknowledge the existence of the Republican Party.

[mountainvue]

19. No shit? Another Aha! moment for George.

Bless his heart.

[rocktivity]

20. Rocknation says MOST voters backed Obama because of Bush

which just might explain why Obama won!

:rofl:
rocknation

[apnu]

21. After 8 years, Bush still doesn't understand his job

Quote: "I think most people voted for Barack Obama because they decided they wanted him to be in their living room for the next four years explaining policy."

The President's job isn't to explain policy, but set policy direction. The American people wanted a leader who would take the rudder of America and steer it, that's the change we voted for.

Geez, this guy will be stupid to the end won't he?

[tclambert]

22. Holmes! However do you do it?

"I'm sure some people voted for Barack Obama because of me." That's the most brilliant deduction you've ever made. Did you figure it out because John McCain never asked you to campaign on his behalf? Or was it because no Republican Senators or Congressmen wanted you to campaign for them? Or was it when McCain said, "Get the hell away from me, you millstone!"

[8 track mind]

23. Ding ding ding ding ding ding ding!

Tell'em what he's won Bob!

[Idealism]

24. Bush: My Biggest Regret Was Failure Of Iraq Intelligence

Source: Talking Points Memo

As if right on cue, Barack Obama's successful national security presser today, in which he declared that the "buck stops with me" and took full responsibility for his presidency's vision, is cast in an even more positive light by the deeply pathetic interview that his predecessor just gave to ABC News.

In the interview, which was conduced by Charlie Gibson, George W. Bush evades responsibility for his catastrophic foreign policies to the last, saying that his greatest regret was over something that he allegedly didn't control -- the intel failure in Iraq:

BUSH: I don't know -- the biggest regret of all the presidency has to have been the intelligence failure in Iraq. A lot of people put their reputations on the line and said the weapons of mass destruction is a reason to remove Saddam Hussein. It wasn't just people in my administration; a lot of members in Congress, prior to my arrival in Washington D.C., during the debate on Iraq, a lot of leaders of nations around the world were all looking at the same intelligence. And, you know, that's not a do-over, but I wish the intelligence had been different, I guess.

Of course, Bush made the decision to overlook all the good intel -- not to mention the claims of those poor forgotten inspectors -- saying that Saddam wasn't really a threat at all, or certainly not one requiring the response Bush himself ordered.

Read more: http://tpmelectioncentral.talkingpointsmemo.com/2008/12/bush_my_biggest_regret_was_fai.php

---

In what respect, Georgie? This is like a DUzy award, theres so much good material to choose from...

[bushmeister0]

39. Calling the kettle black? He's fighting "ideological thugs?" What?

"Asked what his greatest accomplishment was, the US president replied: 'I keep recognizing we're in a war against ideological thugs and keeping America safe.'"

Uh huh.

[mountainvue]

61. It takes one to know one. n/t

[Amonester]

59. ah... but... but... but... "saddam tried to kill my dad!"

sure looks like charlie 'already forgot' THAT ONE...

hope the ICC judges won't

[cambie]

60. The best swindlers

are those who actually believe in the snake oil they are pushing. People with "bush brain" are unable to read anything, however simple, without cherry-picking only those few words that can be twisted into fitting their preconceived conclusions. They truly can't see all the other words. Such people are not good at complex tasks, running countries for example. Maybe the psychologists have a name for it. Bush effectively fabricated the intelligence himself.

[Idealism]

25. "A lot of leaders of nations around the world were all looking at the same intelligence."

Is that why the "coalition of the willing" kept getting smaller and smaller after Afghanistan? That's why we have been at odds with Spain, a one time strong ally that said no more to the Iraq nonsense in 04? We had the world behind us trying to root out Bin Laden, but if they all saw the same intelligence that we had, why did most of them disagree with us starting an illegal war in Iraq?? Amazing how revisionist history will be written

[Kolesar]

41. The NY Times is doing stories about NBC News using ex-generals to push the bush propaganda

This is really quite a good story.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/30/washington/30general.html?_r=1&scp=5&sq=nbc&st=cse

One Man’s Military-Industrial-Media Complex

By DAVID BARSTOW
Published: November 29, 2008
In the spring of 2007 a tiny military contractor with a slender track record went shopping for a precious Beltway commodity.

The company, Defense Solutions, sought the services of a retired general with national stature, someone who could open doors at the highest levels of government and help it win a huge prize: the right to supply Iraq with thousands of armored vehicles.

Access like this does not come cheap, but it was an opportunity potentially worth billions in sales, and Defense Solutions soon found its man. The company signed Barry R. McCaffrey, a retired four-star Army general and military analyst for NBC News, to a consulting contract starting June 15, 2007.

Four days later the general swung into action. He sent a personal note and 15-page briefing packet to David H. Petraeus, the commanding general in Iraq, strongly recommending Defense Solutions and its offer to supply Iraq with 5,000 armored vehicles from Eastern Europe. “No other proposal is quicker, less costly, or more certain to succeed,” he said.

Thus, within days of hiring General McCaffrey, the Defense Solutions sales pitch was in the hands of the American commander with the greatest influence over Iraq’s expanding military.

“That’s what I pay him for,” Timothy D. Ringgold, chief executive of Defense Solutions, said in an interview.

General McCaffrey did not mention his new contract with Defense Solutions in his letter to General Petraeus. Nor did he disclose it when he went on CNBC that same week and praised the commander Defense Solutions was now counting on for help — “He’s got the heart of a lion” — or when he told Congress the next month that it should immediately supply Iraq with large numbers of armored vehicles and other equipment.

...more...

[Idealism]

44. Yeah great article, I read it yesterday

If any of that is wrong, NYT's is going to get sued like a mofo for defamataion of character lol. It was so long it took me about an hour to read between other articles and responding to posts

[graywarrior]

27. He figure that out on his own?

[Politicalboi]

30. Didn't he say he was a

War Prezdent. That kinda says it all. Wrong intelligence my ass.

[Aquigoth]

31. I'm not sure I buy it...

...insight never being his strong point and all... plus I find it incredibly hard to believe he correctly used a word like "repudiation".

[DeepModem Mom]

33. Good points, Aquigoth -- welcome to DU!!!

[ksimons]

35. hahahaha love it!!!

you're right, "repudiation", he might have thought it was something given off by radioactive materials

[FriendlyReminder]

38. Probably mispronounced it and the poor interviewer had to

do an interpretation.

[mitchum]

52. He no longer has to sucker the redneck rubes...

and can now demonstrate that he does indeed know how to correctly use a word like "repudiation"
I heard him correctly use "whom" last week...and without that cornpone "Texas accent"

[Kahuna]

32. No shit Captain Obvious!

:crazy:

[ksimons]

34. bush = irrelevant, the sooner he leaves, the better nt

[K8-EEE]

36. He SO needs to STFU! ASAP!

Shut up and go away, Chimpolini!

[lonestarnot]

37. Just go crawl under the nearest rock and stay there you motherfucker!

[JerseygirlCT]

42. We'll be seeing lots of this, I think

The cleaning up of GWB.

Why he wasn't really evil, just a regular Joe, doing his best, caught up in unfortunate circumstances.

Bull-*&^#.

[happygoluckytoyou]

46. W... YOU CAN GO BACK TO TEXAS NOW... YOUR MAMA IS CALLING... YOU DONT HAVE TO GO ON TV AGAIN... BYE!

[rasputin1952]

47. Brilliant bit od insight there...

:eyes:

he might actually be getting around to understanding that he is the catalyst for what has been the worst administration this nation has ever seen.

[TrogL]

50. I'm getting afraid for Dubya if he's wandered that far off the reservation

(sorry for the ethnic slur but I can't think of another analogy right now)

Republicanism (and authoritarianism) means never having to say you're sorry.

[damntexdem]

51. Oh really? Whouda thunk it?

LOL!

[Tight_rope]

55. Now that's the smartest thought Bush has ever had in his entire life!

[Sex Pistol]

57. Brilliant observation. I didn't realize Bush was so smart.

[jmowreader]

68. Amazing. At the end, he finally gets one right.

If he would have said something like "me, my friends, my advisors and my whole program" he would have been more right...but since a president (or Bush, in this case) is the face of all of those things, then yes, Mr. Bush, "some" voters backed Obama because of you.

I put the "some" at somewhere from 50 to 60 percent of the swing voters that pushed the Obama button on their voting machines.

[Vinca]

69. While it's amazing these words would pass his lips, in the end

it's the same old, spoiled, little, rich kid who has had the world revolving around him since he and his silver spoon were born. The only thing that has changed is his father or father's friends couldn't bail him out of this one. Time to slink back to Texas and hide, but he won't. He'll be out there stuttering and muttering in front of Palin audiences and cashing big checks. Life ain't fair.