What's up with Bush? Part two: The negative
Okay, as promised. The negative. I still support Bush about 60/40, because I truly do believe the good he's done outweighs the bad.Still, I have serious issues with many of his decisions, and sometimes it seems like we don't even have a Republican in office.
Of course, I have to mention the border. Recently I was chatting on the phone with a friend who lives in south Texas. Her town is more than 90% Hispanic and Spanish speaking. I asked if some were illegal. She laughed, "I think they're all illegal! They come in, we send them back and then they come back the next day!"
This is just a micro of what's happening all over in border states, and even not in border states.
I really don't fault someone for wanting to come to America.
If someone wants to come and work, that's great! Just come legally.
For the life of me, I cannot figure out Bush's stance on this. His "comprehensive" solutions seem like the Dems' - lots of talk and no action. A guest worker program will not stop illegal immigration, nor will amnesty. Closing the border will. But for some reason, Bush will not do that. Surely he knows his base is bigger than any Hispanic vote this could somehow garner.
Fiscal issues.
A recent "Mallard Fillmore" cartoon sums it all up.
Mallard asks Bush, "How do you plan to mollify Democrats who are angry over your SCOTUS nominations?" Bush responds, "Easy, I'll just continue to spend like a drunken Democrat."
I don't fault Bush for his initial response to Katrina. The total idiotic incompetence and inexperience of the State and Local authorities don't mix with the (and I can speak from experience) sluggish bureaucracy of FEMA. I think Bush handled the initial part as well as was possible.
But his later response was typical of his fiscal policies.
I'm reminded of the Alan Jackson song "Repair Blues":
Don't be downhearted, I can fix it for ya' sonny. It won't take too long, it'll just take money.
Bush needs a real plan for Katrina cleanup, and he needs to stop throwing money at it. (Like the time FEMA gave everyone who said they were an evacuee a thousand-dollar credit card.)
And try talking about Mississippi, too, by the way!
Same for all fiscal issues. You can't spend like Clinton and cut taxes like a Republican. Either raise taxes (nooo!) or cut spending. You can't do have it both ways.
Iraq.
I support the war, it's reasons, and it's condition now. But...
the President played politics on this from the start. If you're trying to go into a country, don't spend six months talking about it. He gave the enemy plenty of time to get rid of the weapons and, by doing so, discredit his reasons for war.
Let's face it: Saddam's troops were a joke. But that doesn't mean Bush should have treated them as such. An initial powerful blast quickly turned into commanders unwilling to use the muscle to stop a problem before it got bigger.
Pro-life issues.
Really, I don't think Bush has done a bad job. But this pussyfoot talk of creating a "culture of life" is really getting on my nerves. No, you change laws, and then you change minds.
Those are my main objections to Bush. There have been some major bumps along the way(Harriet Miers, Dubai Ports deal...) but the main issues are what I just mentioned.
Like before, you're free to debate if you keep it clean and civil.
If you think I missed something, let me know.
posted by Rebekah @ 5:24 PM
