If Bush Won, Would He Be Better or Worse In Second Term

[taquinas101]

I was thinking that despite his numerous failings, Bush has sometimes moderated his hard line view (such as no UN involvnmennt in Iraq) in response to the pending election. What happens when Bush and Co. no longer have to worry about placating the public for an upcoming election? Imagine a Bush administration with even less accountability than now. Who will we invade? What programs will be cut? What more damage to the environment could we suffer? Will we see Patriot Act III/IV/V?

[Justice]

1. Are You Kidding?

[taquinas101]

3. About what?

[Justice]

28. LOL

[coloradodem2005]

2. I think the concensus is that he would be worse. eom

[goodhue]

5. yes but

how could it be any worse?
the mind boggles

[DieboldMustDie]

29. He can appoint 3 or 4 Scalia clones to the Supreme Court.

:scared:

[goodhue]

34. of course

that would be much worse

[coloradodem2005]

33. Simple.

Keep going in the direction that we have been going under Bush.

Declare another war or two, keep cutting taxes on the rich, keep outsourcing jobs, etc. etc.

[lancdem]

4. Worse

second terms are almost universally worse. Watergate, Iran-Contra and the Lewinsky scandal all came to light during second terms.

[shraby]

8. We would then have

the Imperial Presidency..congress might as well disband.

[fujiyama]

25. Please

don't include the cooked up Lewinsky scandal along with the likes of Watergate and Iran Contra.

Two of those were major crimes. The other was lying about a BJ.

[gasperc]

6. a horror

no re-election to "check" him, other than spending 4 years trying to undo the two term limit

[Straight Shooter]

7. What are you smoking and where can we get some?

:smoke:

[Hubert Flottz]

21. LMFAO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Me too! Rimjob Gold?

Edit} Or some of that mean GOPer green that Agent Mike brought in for Rush Limbo! The same shit that killed Elvis!

[Piperay]

9. Way WORSE

cause he won't have to worry about appealing to anyone, if he got in again he would do everything that his sleazeball handlers tell him to do.

[trogdor]

10. The only reason he's "moderating" anything...

...is because otherwise, he's about to get his ass handed to him in November. You wait until after the election and THEN ask this same question.

[Warpy]

11. He'd have USSC spots to fill

Sorry, that is just unthinkable.

[RandomUser]

16. It'll likely be more than one seat too

And we can be sure he'll stack them with rightwing idealogues.

[AntiCoup2K4]

20. The good news there is that

2 of the 3 most likely to retire are right wing nominees anyway, Rehnquist and O'Connor. Stephens is the one who concerns me. He's over 80, I'm pretty sure. A liberal and an outspoken opponent of the Felonious Florida Five's decision to throw the 2000 election. He's the one that Junior really wants to replace.

And probably with Kenny $tarr, as per terms of the deal Starr made with Poppy back in Campaign 1992, the first time he dug up dirt on the Clintons.

[fujiyama]

27. O'Conner leans to the right

as we saw in Bush v. Gore, however on many other cases on issues like the death penalty and abortion she is somewhat of a "swing vote".

Stephens is worrisome. I hope he's in good health. If he's gone the court is seriously fucked for many years.

How old is Kennedy? He's also a bit of a swing vote in certain cases (like the sodomy ruling).

[RandomUser]

12. Second-termers no longer worry about reelection

so they lose the incentive to rein in any reckless tendencies or moderating influences. MUCH WORSE.

[ihaveaquestion]

13. Worse, and here's why...

1. He's putting on the moderated act because it's an election year.

2. The stress of his mistakes so far have driven him batty.

3. He'll really, really think GOD clinched the election for him, because that's the only thing that would at this point!

-SJ

[camero]

14. What makes you think it would be better?

:tinfoilhat:

[taquinas101]

35. Don't think he will necessarily be better, but

Bush turned out even worse than a thought in his first term. 9/11, Enron, record breaking deficits, unjustified invasion of Iraq, torture scandal, erosion of civil liberties, selling out of the environment . . .With that level of incompetence, normal folks would at least learn from some of their mistakes, and in Bush's case there is so many of them.

However, the X-factor is the danger of an unaccountable Bush. I am concerned that our fears about the slow creep towards facism may prove prophetic.

[camero]

37. Denial is a river in Egypt

Bush has plenty of that and leopards don't change their spots.

[hatrack]

15. Like comparing the Titanic with the Permian Extinction

The former was bad enough. The latter eliminated 90% of all life forms on the planet.

No restraints, no remorse, no checks, no balances and no looking back. It would be unfathomably awful.

[Solly Mack]

17. Are you paying attention to his first term?

Yes? Then you already know the answer...

[taquinas101]

36. Once again, first term is horribly bad . . .

I assume a pretty bad second term, but worse than:

1. 9/11;
2. Iraq invasion;
3. Torture/war crimes scandal;
4. Enron scadals;
5. Environmental damage;
6. Corrupt war profiteering by Halburton;
7. Middle East deteriotation;
8. Record setting deficits;
9. Recession;
10. Job losses.

The first term was horribly bad. While it is possible, is it likely that Bush will outdo horrors of his first term and how?

[tom_paine]

18. The possibilities stretch from Imperial Rome to Nazi Germany

and everything in between.

Big darkness, come soon!

[radfringe]

19. as the refrain from an old camp song goes (with paraphasing)...

second term - same as the first
a little bit louder and a little bit worse

[donhakman]

24. I believe

His medical condition will clear up
His spech will become eloquent and statesman like.
He will avoid failure and succeed where others have failed.
The empire will be welcomed wherever it invades.
and bears will use indoor plumbing.

[salin]

26. last line needs amending for this group:

a whole lot louder, and a whole lot worse...


remember how, even after barely being elected (selected)... these folks came in like bulls in a china shop... acting as if they had a "mandate" and started gutting environment, international treaties, citizen safety, economic infrastructure etc. Those folks are still there... and they want MORE power MORE money for themselves ... it would be like the first Bush regime on steroids.

[pnb]

22. He could be better in some ways...

On some issues, gay marriage for example, he may very well be being more hardline to appease the hardcore right. I won't say for sure but there could at least be the chance that in a second term, there would be some topics he'd become MORE moderate about.

[bacchant]

23. Would dog shit taste better the second time you ate it? n/t

[ibegurpard]

31. It would taste worse.

It would be salmonella/cryptococcus-laced diarrhea this time around.

[bacchant]

32. my point exactly ; )

[CBHagman]

30. Bush does not moderate, he caves and co-opts.

I see no evidence whatsoever that Bush would be disposed to moderate his views in any fashion whatsover, were he to obtain a second term. His modus operandi is to do whatever he damn well pleases, regardless of the long-term consequences or immediate costs. A second term would probably convince him he's a four-year king, particularly if the GOP retains control of Congress.

He can, however, be nudged into accepting someone else's plan or request (for example, the Department of Homeland Security), though he will want it on his terms AND claim credit for the idea, even if it's something he initially opposed. Note that this turd has claimed that John Kerry led the fight against the Department of Homeland Security. Uh, did anyone notice Bush FOUGHT the idea of such a department for months before caving?

That said, Bush's deeds, like three-day old fish, will begin to stink in a second term. The consequences of his policies will be inescapable, from increasing the number of enemies the U.S. has in the world to raising the deficit to unbearable heights. In addition, there are so many ethical violations in this administration that I think a second term would pretty much resemble Reagan's second term.

[TNMOM]

38. Definitely worse. He'd be more brazen than ever

His Neocon thugs will be embolden to do whatever the hell they pleased because the American people let them get away with it the first time.

[Emillereid]

39. WORSE! WORSE! WORSE!

He'd be so full of himself -- I'm sure he'd drop the pretense and simply crown himself emperor! The boot will come down hard. If he wins, I'm not waiting around to see what happens -- I'm leaving this country to establish a government in exile and fight the monster. Besides if he wins a real election -- that will just nail the last nail in regarding my fear that the American people are just too damn stupid to live with anymore.

[moondust]

40. Much worse per Robert Reich.

W"s Second Term: If you think the first is bad...