Molly Ivins on the Bush Haters

[TexasEditor]

This may have already been posted, but if so, it's buried under a mountain of trivial entries from stoners and worst case scenario spinners.

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http://www.alternet.org/story.html?StoryID=16825

IVINS: Bush-haters

Molly Ivins, AlterNet
September 23, 2003

AUSTIN, Texas -- Among the more amusing cluckings from the right lately is their appalled discovery that quite a few Americans actually think George W. Bush is a terrible president.

Robert Novak is quoted as saying in all his 44 years of covering politics, he has never seen anything like the detestation of Bush. Charles Krauthammer managed to write an entire essay on the topic of "Bush haters" in Time magazine, as though he had never before come across such a phenomenon.

Oh, I stretch memory way back, so far back, all the way back to -- our last president. Almost lost in the mists of time though it is, I not only remember eight years of relentless attacks from Clinton-haters, I also notice they haven't let up yet. Clinton-haters accused the man of murder, rape, drug-running, sexual harassment, financial chicanery and official misconduct, and his wife of even worse.

For eight long years, this country was a zoo of Clinton-haters. Any idiot with a big mouth and a conspiracy theory could get a hearing on radio talk shows, "Christian" broadcasts and nutty Internet sites. People with transparent motives, people paid by tabloid magazines, people with known mental problems, ancient Clinton enemies with notoriously racist pasts -- all were given hearings, credence and air time. Sliming Clinton was a sure road to fame and fortune on the right, and many an ambitious young right-wing hitman -- like David Brock, who has since made full confession -- took that golden opportunity.

CONTINUED

[KharmaTrain]

1. I Don't Hate Bush...

There's the song that says there's a thin line between love and hate and thus to hate someone you must have loved them at some point. Sorry, not the case with Whistle Ass. Apathy is the best words I ever had for the manchild. Utter contempt sums up my feelings.

[Hubert Flottz]

4. I have a very strong dislike for people who lie to me and who..

trash their country for money! I hate the greedy lustful things Bush stands for!

[paradisiac]

6. I don't hate Bush either,

it's just that the whole BushCo crew disgusts me. ;)

I was only a kid during the Reagan years, I wonder if there was as strong an anti-Reagan sentiment as the current anti-Bush sentiment. It doesn't seem like it, which is why I'm kinda heartened that a lot of Americans are standing up and speaking out against this misadministration even though they risk being branded "traitor" and "unpatriotic" by the collectivist rightwing Republicans.

[KharmaTrain]

12. A Different Game Then...

Damn I'm showing my age...LOL.

There was a true hate of Nixon...especially after he invaded Cambodia after promising to end the Vietnam war, along with all the lies and deceit that were later proven to be true even beyond most of our wildest speculation at the time. Listen back to the Nixon tapes and you'll hear the greatest contempt for the American people ever demonstrated by a "leader", but I'm certain nothing compared to the closed-door meetings that have taken place in this regime.

Raygun was another story. Personally, you knew the man, for whatever capacities he had, was a sincere and honest man. Misguided, yes, but based on true convictions, not opportunism. Raygun attempted to create bipartisanship or at least avoid it where possible in major issues, compared to this regime that shoves it in your face.

This regime is extremely thin-skinned since it knows it's not legitimate and constantly attempts to build up this manchild to convince themselves that black is white. Any criticism of this regime harkens to the 2000 election and the still pressing fact that Whistle Ass didn't win the most votes nor was his election a clear electoral college victory, either. Thus, the real push for 2004 for RoveCo. is to create some legitimacy through whatever electoral victory they can get. It also explains how they could turn a poor performance in the 2002 mid-terms into some kind of mandate that rolled over the Democrats, led to a disasterous invasion and crushing economic policy. Raygun never got even close to this kind of destruction.

[Atlant]

14. No. Reagan didn't inspire the emotion that Bush does.

I was around for Reagan. And I didn't like that "invented fraud"
any more than Bush. But he certainly wasn't hated in the way that
Bush is hated.

I suspect it's just an accident of history. People on the left are
wising up to the Right's game, and if the order of Reagan and Bush's
presidencies were reversed, people would probably feel about Reagan
the way they now feel about Bush and vice-versa.

But there's also some feeling that the world as-a-whole was in better
shape at the end of the Reagan Presidency than it was at the beginning
(what with the fall of the Soviet Empire, whether or not you believe
Ronny Raygun had anything to do with that). The same definitely CAN
NOT be said for Bush; the world is going to pieces under his tender
ministrations.

Quite honestly, I'm now convinced essentially all Republicans,simply
by definition, suck.

Atlant

[calimary]

23. By THAT definition, I guess I wouldn't be one, either. BUT,

by any other, I am a card-carrying member. There's really no other word that effectively describes my feelings for bush. Hatred.

Well, except for maybe "loathing." Or "disgust." Or "revulsion." Or "contempt."

[ClintonTyree]

2. Spot on.................

that the Repukes are aghast at the rhetoric aimed at their golden boy emporer is quite amusing. This furthers my opinion that these people are mentally deficient idiots. They can't seem to recall the past 8 years of Clinton hating. It must be all of those toxins they pour into the environment; it destroys their short term memory.

[phillybri]

3. Molly is dead-on....

:kick:

[Atlant]

5. Lies are the Republican "Stock in Trade"

> Robert Novak is quoted as saying in all his 44 years of covering
> politics, he has never seen anything like the detestation of Bush.
> Charles Krauthammer managed to write an entire essay on the topic of
> "Bush haters" in Time magazine, as though he had never before come
> across such a phenomenon.

Consciously-designed deliberate lies are the Republican "Stock in
Trade". It's what they do. It's practically all they do these days.
It's the only way they survive politically.

Atlant

[Hubert Flottz]

9. Those Darned Repubs and their Conspiracy Theories!

VBHC = Vast BOOSH HATER CONSPIRACY!

Like Bowtie Pawn 'Sucker Carlson' would say; "Ludicrous!"

[calimary]

25. It's hilarious to see people like Novak waxing all round-eyed and

innocent - "gee, I've NEVER in my 44 years of covering politics, EVER seen hatred like this..." Say, Novak, where were you from 1992 to 2001 when there was a couple from Arkansas in the White House? Or do you just choose not to remember that?

[Dudley_DUright]

7. Already posted a few days ago

but worth an encore!

[mac56]

8. I love this woman

"One thing I acknowledge about the right is that they're much better haters than liberals are. Your basic liberal is pretty much a strikeout on the hatred front. Maybe further out on the left you can hit some good righteous anger, but liberals, and I am one, are generally real wusses."

[shirlden]

10. Molly, have I told you lately that I love you?

N/T

:kick:

[prolesunited]

11. I'm glad she tackled this head on

If you noticed, that has been their new talking point lately, being spun out in a number of outlets, including New Republic and CSPAN. Here's their hope: to personalize the attacks, knowing that the average Americans find Bush a likable guy and hoping people will rally around the "victim" of left-wing tirades.

It also has the benefit of allowing them to dismiss the concerns as those of a fanatical group of Bush-haters and not address the substance of the concerns. We are attacking the man, not his piss-poor policies. I hope others besides Molly call these hypocrites on their "righteous" indignation.

[Gman]

13. Molly tells it like it is

as usual.

[tabasco]

15. I hate Bush

Because I love America. I see how he has allowed so much damage to this great country to appease the corporate interests. Coming into office planning to CUT anti-terrorism funding. Asleep at the wheel as New York and Washington are attacked. Launching a needless war and occupation of Iraq, sacrificing American lives as he chose war first. Destroying our economy with giveaway tax breaks to the super-wealthy, while millions of Americans lose their jobs. Rolling back vital environmental protection just to give corporations more money. It is clear to me that Bush cares more about furthering corporate agendas than he cares about the nation. You bet I hate him. Just like I hate murderers, rapists, and all common criminals. I would like to see him prosecuted and punished for his crimes.

[JHB]

16. Molly, don't forget...

...not only did they bash Clinton for every nutty conspiracy theory they could make up, they also claimed he wasn't "legitimately" president!

"He only won a plurality, not a majority." "More people voted against him than for him." "He has no mandate. He's only president on a 'technicality'."

Rush, G. Gordon, and the rest of the Radio Daze gang pushed this line for Clinton's entire first term; it was a key rallying point for Newt's takeover of the House in the 1994 elections.

Yet, now that it applies more to their own boy than it ever did to Bill, it's vanished.

Such rank hypocracy does tend to inspire ire (or "hate", for Novak, Krauthammer, and the rest of the pundits on Rove's memo list).

[HFishbine]

17. I Hate Bush

Yeah, by this measuere, I hate Bush:

"Poor Bush is in way over his head, and the country is in bad shape because of his stupid economic policies. If that make me a Bush-hater, then sign me up."

[KharmaTrain]

19. You're Hating The Puppet

Manchild is a prop...virtually an inanimate object. It's his handlers...from Chenney to Von Rumsfeldt to Pearle et all that deserve the hatred of the American people.

I'm saving my energy and money for the push to put this cabal out of MY house...now's the time to let these bastards keep making the ropes we'll hang them on later.

[HFishbine]

20. Right

Too true. I hate Barney too, but for different reasons.

[dennis4868]

18. I HATE BUSH

I more than hate him....he clearly stole the election, is a war criminal, ruined our great economy and completely killed the love other countries had for us after 911. Plus, he is a perjurer, Desserter, inside trader, etc...How can this country have a pResident who has ties to terrorist and who's grandfather had ties with Hitler?

[sinkingfeeling]

21. I'm a Bush-hater too......

for all the reasons most have already listed, but also because he is just like so many other men I've experienced in the business world. He is arrogant, self-righteous, smirking, egotistical, and underneath, a born-losser as a businessman or leader!!

[calimary]

35. Hey, sinkingfeeling, WELCOME to DU!

I share your view. I've met some pretty skanky businessmen in my day, too. But frankly, none can touch the hem of his garment regarding those attributes you listed. Little george is in a class by himself.

[Patriot_Spear]

22. I hate Bush*, you got a problem with that?

Really, I've it with rolling over for these creeps. IF you don't like the fact that I think Bush* is a plague on our nation, then to heck with you!

[Padraig18]

24. I'm in love!

I adore Molly Ivins, and can hardly wait for saturday morning's edition of our otherwise-right-wing rag of a newspaper to make it's token effort at being 'fair and balanced', editorially, by running her column!

Molly Ivins is a GODDESS! :9

[Zero Gravitas]

26. Clinton haters

The Clinton-haters hated everything about CLinton the man and by extentionanything he did policy-wise must be bad. The Eght years of peace and prosperity was beside the point. Bush on the other hand is hated becuase of what he does, his ruinous policies, 2,500,000 jobs gone, unilateral war, John Ashcroft trampling civil liberites etc.

Big difference.

[Butterflies]

27. The repubs are trying for the sympathy

When President Clinton was attacked constantly by the right-wingers, many people saw it as unfair and it helped Clinton as the people took his side. That was certainly true in my case. I think the repubs are trying for that same sympathy, but anyone with a memory won't buy it. They wrecked that for themselves.

[Monte Carlo]

28. Never hate your enemies. It affects one's judgment.

So sayeth Michael Corleone.

I try not to hate anyone - it is a self-destructive emotion - but I know what I don't like.

[DrGonzoLives]

29. We need to galvanize more hate

There are plenty of reasons to hate this C-student failure.

EDIT: Spelling

[devinsgram]

30. Sorry, but I hated him from

the very first time I saw him. I knew what he was from the very beginning. EVIL, EVIL, EVIL, EVIL AND EVIL.

[gully]

31. Official *Bush hater, and proud of it!

Gotta love Molly Ivins... Thanks for posting!

[zekeson]

32. My name is Zekeson, and I hate Bush*

I've tried to not hate Bush, I've tried to find compassion for him, but he shows no compassion for others. I try to find forgiveness for his callousness, but he shows no forgiveness for those he disagrees with. I admit that I am powerless over my Bush hatred.

I want him gone in '04.

[Corgigal]

33. When I discovered

that I hated Bush was on Sept 11 about an hour or so into the attacks. I said out loud, where is the Federal Govt? Bush pushed so hard to get into this damn office and one of the only days it really matter to be President, again he was AWOL.

I couldn't give a flying flip what a RW'er thinks. This to me is the line and they can't defend it.

[MI Cherie]

34. What goes around, comes around ...

... Let's hope that these whining thin-skinned hypocrites only have to hear "terrible" and "un-civil" things for another year or so.

:nopity:

[Starpass]

36. which proves to me, Mr. Novak, that you spent 44 years doing so

much lying and spinning and enabling the corrupt that you are a disgrace to the profession of journalism.........but then again, maybe you were just the founding father of today's journalism.

[OneTwentyoNine]

37. BUMP!!!!!!!!!!!--Made it into our paper today....

One of the best by Molly IMO.

[opihimoimoi]

38. In the Summer just prior to the Selection> Molly gave this Nation Fair

Warning thru her colume. I remember reading it and said, Bush is TOAST. Little did I know what was going on in Fla and how that state was chosen to be the Key for Bush/

She told us of how this guy comes to work late and leaves early, how it was all smoke and mirrors. How the State Tax cuts made Texas a basket case. All this and more. Did we listen??

[fishnfla]

39. MeHateHe

thanks molly-best line (of many);

"wha' the hey?" Even people who voted for the guy are starting to turn.....