Is Bush The Worst President...In The Last 50 Years?

LBJ...no. He was pretty popular as evidenced by his landslide victory over Goldwater. LBJ's downfall was Vietnam. He made one mistake...a big mistake...but just one. LBJ didn't take us to war...he just escalated an existing war.

Nixon...no. Also made one mistake...a big mistake...but just one mistake.

Reagan...no. He is still very popular. Had some contraversial policies but he was fine. Iran Contra was pretty big, I suppose.

Clinton...no. Made one mistake...which was of no concern to national security...unlike LBJ, Nixon, Reagan and Bush.

Carter...no. Like Reagan, maybe you don't agree with his policies but he won't be defined as the mistake hound like Bush.

Bush
mistake...mistake...mistake...mistake...mistake. The dude keeps making HUGE mistakes. 9/11 under his watch. Katrina under his watch. Iraq under his watch. Enron under his watch. Plus we have more still pending and new ones come out every month. We still have 2 more years.

But it is doubtful W will take over the #1 spot as worst president OF ALL TIME. Bush hasn't plunged America in civil war ...but he is trying. But take solice in knowing he'll send a foreign country into civil war.

 

Just keep saying it...one of these days it may come true for you.

 

Don't you know that Bush opposed stem cell research because it would cut into his supply of edible embryoes? He also injects every black person he comes into contact with with HIV, which is how Magic got it. He also blew up the levees in New Orleans with explosives that he stole from the military that were badly needed in Iraq. Don't keep letting the wool get pulled over your eyes. Satan is afraid of how evil Bush is.

 

Already has. 1st wave of civil war started last week.

But thanks for your input. Now go back and fight Roe v. Wade to ensure America isn't responsible for killing any innocent people...ahem babies.

 

So mature...

 

Well, with our current situation, I think he will be judged as one of the worst President, I hope he won't go down as THE WORST President ever! His administration is the most bungling I have ever seen, man I would rather see him getting caught screwing another woman! Example: the disasterous stay in Iraq (clearly alot of jackasses there don't want us occupying them), Katrina, Dick Cheney( their weapon of mass destruction), cronism (oil barrons getting richer as well as the ultra rich), spying on it's citizen, throwing away the checks & balances by doing underhanded deals, The increase of evil terrorists spawning around the world, we are being seen by other countries as "bullies" or "greedy", along with other shinanigans that I can't remember. Also, global warming, the woes of the Roxs, Texans, & Stros, traffic, increase drug use, the growing trend of BAD (c)rap, rock, & pop music, bird flu, aids, the cap situation in the NFL, bad american made cars, American Idols, increase of hate crimes against gays, arabs, asians, hispanics, & blacks, transsexuals, & fat people, rotovirus, comb overs (JVG), bad hair days, the melting of the ice caps, spam while surfing the net, poor woderlic score by Vince Young, tsunamis, mud slides, volcanos, expensive gasoline, Pat Robertson, social security problems, serial killers, hurricanes, selling our ports to terrorist countries, HamASS, PLO, other stupid terrorist groups (here&abroad), Gigli, poor roads, bad public schools in Houston (VY), car crashes, religeous intolerance, illegal aliens, violent crimes, madcow disease etc.... ! ( I just have too much time on my hands).

 

For the 2nd time in a row, thanks for your input.

 

Here are some interesting links talking about Presidential rankings:

I don't see GHWB listed near the bottom of any of the polls reported in Wikipedia:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Historical_rankings_of_U.S._Presidents

From the
WSJ Opinion Journal :

"So it may come as a surprise that in a new survey of scholars ranking the presidents, Mr. Bush finishes almost exactly in the middle of the pack. He ranks No. 19 out of 40, and he rates 3.01 on a 5-point scale, just a hair's breadth above the middlemost possible figure. But this is no gentleman's C. Mr. Bush's rating is average because it is an average, of rankings given by 85 professors of history, politics, law and economics."

Emphasis mine.

The Rankings

Note that this poll was taken in early 2005 so it wasn't super early in his tenure. Me thinks that there are a lot of partisans who hate Bush ranting in this thread. Me? Bush is certainly not the best president ever. I'm especially dissapointed with Katrina issues (but equally or more angry with the Governor or the Mayor; and especially the people who want to gain partisan points over the disaster).

In my memory Carter was easily the worst president. I don't even think he's that good of a guy now; more like a bitter old man.

 

I don't really think it is fair to judge his place in history until after he is out of office at least. Maybe a couple of years removed would be even better. Then let's look back and tally up the damage he has done.

 

history has a way of becoming, well, history. i don't know that it will ever be clearer that he has inflicted more needless damage than any president in history. if things somehow work out in iraq, history will look more favorably on his term in office. however, that should never diminish the fact that he has sold the solid hard-working american up the river for the interests of the privileged.



Is it worth it
A new winter coat and shoes for the wife
And a bicycle on the boy’s birthday
It’s just a rumour that was spread around town
By the women and children
Soon we’ll be shipbuilding
Well I ask you
The boy said ’dad they’re going to take me to task
But I’ll be back by christmas’
It’s just a rumour that was spread around town
Somebody said that someone got filled in
For saying that people get killed in
The result of this shipbuilding
With all the will in the world
Diving for dear life
When we could be diving for pearls
It’s just a rumour that was spread around town
A telegram or a picture postcard
Within weeks they’ll be re-opening the shipyards
And notifying the next of kin
Once again
It’s all we’re skilled in
We will be shipbuilding
With all the will in the world
Diving for dear life
When we could be diving for pearls

 

He is falling like a rock and we don't even know the full extent of his failure due to his administration's paranoid obsession with secrecy. His ranking will be clearer once a little historical distance is achieved and the veil of secrecy that shrouds his administration reveals the true extent of the damage he has wreaked on our country.

 

Most polls list Carter near the bottom as far as worst presidents... His Presidency was a joke, and his policy were a failure.

 

There was an ecomic boom in the 90's but it was propped up by large companies lying about their earnings and and the dot com fiasco. Wasn't "irrational exuberance" the phrase Greenspan used to describe stock market activity during that time? While alot of people got rich, a lot of people also lost their shirts when it came crashing down.

Also, if we were the "envy of the world" why did we get attacked 4 or 5 times by Al Queda during his presidency?

I don't give Clinton credit nor blame for that economy.

 

Ok please dont go overboard on the bad financial practices of the 90s and their impact on the economy. Your boy Greenspan said it himself when he said that new productivity growth from computers, Information technology, etc... created as he calls it "new speedlimits on the economy." We've never had sustained productivity growth like we did in the 90s and much of that is coincidience. However, Clinton's budget cuts and financial management certainly helped out. I listened to Alan Blinder, former member of the Fed, who talked about how the Clinton spending cuts were dramatic enough to where it just sank long term interest rates and made loaning much easier on a scale that federal reserve interest rate cuts couldnt possibly do. Additionally, he paid down the national debt by 10%, produced budget surpluses, and demonstrated even a semblance of fiscal management.

Irrational exuberance refers not to corporate growth but rather to investors and speculators. But that's always an issue, even today. The corporate scandals had nothing to do with the concept of "irrational exuberance." Core sectors of the economy grew substantially in terms of productivity that can't simply be accounted for because of corporate scandals.

So Clinton probably didnt have much to do with the growth of the 90s but at least he demonstrated some semblance of fiscal management. Remember the big fights with Congress during the 90s in which Congress would get shut down because they couldnt come to a budget? That's a president that actually attempted to push through responsible fiscal policy and something that this adminstration should learn from.

As for your Al Qaeda argument, I'm not sure why this is relevant? According to Bush, terrorists attack us because we're the envy of the world. Anyway, terrorists attacking us have nothing to do with the economy or our growth. But in terms of America's international appeal with foreign countries, it was at its highest in years. As a nation, internationally we had more credibility as well.

 

Bush's successful efforts to portray the US as an arrogant, unfettered bully makes him the worst President ever. His desire to sacrifice some of the nation's future (deficits...he's no RR!) to pay-off political debts runs a close second.

If the following admins don't alter course quickly, I think this Presiidency will have done great harm to our Nation.

 

I used to list Nixon at the bottom, followed by Carter.

I never thought that I would be nostalgic of the Clinton Presidency ...yuk ...choke ...blecht...

 

Heh...had some strengths (Foreign Policy) but certainly made more than the 1 GIANT mistake...he was an insecure nutcase.

 

Actually, I would have to vote for Pres. Logan, the guy on "24"
He HAS to be the worst president ever.