"What if George Bush?"
[note - all mistakes below are original to text of email]
From: XXXXXX@YYYYY.ZZZ
To: XXXXXX@YYYY.ZZZ
Sent: Feb. 7th, 2010 10:00 AM
Subject: Fw: What if George Bush?
Some questions for my liberal friends!
If George W. Bush had given Gordon Brown a set of inexpensive and incorrectly formatted DVDs, after Gordon Brown had given him a thoughtful and historically significant gift, would you have approved?
If George W. Bush had given the Queen of England an iPod containing videos of his speeches, would you have thought this embarrassingly narcissistic and tacky?
If George W. Bush had bowed to the King of Saudi Arabia, would you have approved?
If George W. Bush had visited Austria and made reference to the non-existent "Austrian language," would you have brushed it off as a minor slip?
If George W. Bush had filled his cabinet and circle of advisors with people who cannot seem to keep current on their income taxes, would you have approved? How about convicted felons, self- proclaimed communist, or eugenicists?
If George W. Bush had been so Spanish illiterate as to refer to "Cinco de Cuatro" in front of the Mexican ambassador when it was the fourth of May (Cuatro de Mayo)-and continued to flub it when he tried again, would you have winced in embarrassment?
If George W. Bush had misspelled the word "advice" would you have hammered him for it for years like Dan Quayle and potatoe as "proof" of what a dunce he is?
If George W. Bush had burned 9,000 gallons of jet fuel to go plant a single tree on "Earth Day," would you have concluded he's a hypocrite?
If George W. Bush's administration had okayed Air Force One flying low over millions of people followed by a jet fighter in downtown Manhattan causing widespread panic, would you have wondered whether they actually "get" what happened on 9-11?
If George W. Bush had been the first President to need a teleprompter installed to be able to get through a press conference, would you have laughed and said this is more proof of how inept he is on his own and is really controlled by smarter men behind the scenes?
If George W. Bush had failed to send aid to flood victims throughout the Midwest with more people killed or made homeless than in New Orleans, would you want it made into a major ongoing political issue with claims of racism and incompetence?
If George W. Bush had ordered the firing of the CEO of a major corporation, even though he had no constitutional authority to do so, would you have approved?
If George W. Bush had proposed to double the national debt-which had taken more than two centuries to accumulate-in one year, would you have approved?
If George W. Bush had then proposed to double the debt again within 10 years, would you have approved?
If George W. Bush had reduced your retirement plan's holdings of GM stock by 90% and given the unions a majority stake in GM, would you have approved?
If George W. Bush had spent hundreds of thousands of dollars to take Laura Bush to a play in NYC, would you have approved?
So, tell me again, what is it about Obama that makes him so brilliant and impressive? Can't think of anything? Don't worry. He's done all this in 6 months-so you'll have three years and six months to come up with an answer!
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Response
Thanks for forwarding this to me. President Obama has made a few blunders during his first few months in office, but I understand that for a person who makes as many statements as he does, it is not surprising that he sometimes stumbles. I'd rather not respond to you in a tit for tat manner, but I think it is important to note that President Bush's 8 years in office were replete with mistakes and bad policies, all of which plunged our nation deeper into debt, turned allies away and laid the ground work for one of the most severe financial crises in history. That is why Americans overwhelmingly voted for change.
Conservatives have derided the President of allegedly bowing to the King of Saudi Arabia. The White House says that it was not a bow, but whether it was or was not, how did you react when George Bush actually kissed the Saudi King? Check this out: http://tinyurl.com/pmc98x Were you upset? Did you protest?
You note that President Obama made a mistake when speaking Spanish. It appears that he was making a joke. Nevertheless, how did you react when President Bush addressed Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi in Spanish. You will note that Italians do not speak Spanish. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l1O9txBU9FE
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/10/science/earth/10notebook.html?ref=world
President Obama has made a few gaffes but during his 8 years in office, President Bush misspoke hundreds of time.
Here is a compilation: http://www.slate.com/id/76886/
For example: "John Thune has got a common-sense vision for good forest policy. I look forward to working with him in the United Nations Senate to preserve these national heritages."
Did you send out emails to your friends every time President Bush said something silly?
You note that President Obama uses a teleprompter. I am sure you know that George Bush used a teleprompter. Oh yeah, Ronald Reagan also used a teleprompter. Check out the links: http://tinyurl.com/mlqz7h and http://tinyurl.com/r43fxj
Your email notes that more people were killed by floods in the Midwest than died as a result of Hurricane Katrina. I looked it up and it just is not true. Of the many storms in the Midwest in 2009, the highest death toll thus far is 36 confirmed deaths. http://prod.newsday.com/flash-flood-warning-issued-for-louisville-area-1.1347443
In comparison, there were 1,836 confirmed deaths caused by Hurricane Katrina.
http://www.dhh.louisiana.gov/offices/page.asp?ID=192&Detail=5248
President Obama inherited an economy in disarray and since taking office, has aimed to drastically revamp our nation's health care system and our crumbling infrastructure. I was curious to see how the national debt changed during the Bush years and according to PolitiFact.com, "When Bush took office; the national debt was $5.73 trillion. When he left, it was $10.7 trillion." http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2009/jan/22/rahm-emanuel/5-trillion-added-national-debt-under-bush/
Did you know that billions of dollars were wasted during the Bush administration, particularly in massive contracts given out to private contractors that operate in Iraq and Afghanistan: According to one commission set up to investigate the use of private contractors, "billions of dollars of that amount ended up wasted due to poorly defined work orders, inadequate oversight and contractor inefficiencies. In one example, defense auditors challenged KBR after it billed the government for $100 million in costs for private security even though the contract prohibited the use of for-hire guards." http://www.usatoday.com/news/military/2009-06-08-report-dod-spending_N.htm
I hope that we are always critical of those we elect, but I see that you are not being consistent in your criticism. Your complaints about President Obama are ironic, given the fact that President Bush did in fact make so many of the same mistakes and made them much more often. Have you heard that expression? People who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones.
Anyhow, I hope this email receives you in good health and I look forward to talking to you soon. âMMAN
posted by Richard at
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
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