Althouse: "As a result of the decisions that I made, people said, 'I'll follow you Mr. President.'"

May 1, 2014

"As a result of the decisions that I made, people said, 'I'll follow you Mr. President.'"

"And to see somebody who is struggling with getting mental balance is hard, and it should be hard for all of us."

61 comments:

Curious George said...: What a good man.; 5/1/14, 6:36 PM
madAsHell said...: George, you magnificent bastard!! I luv ya. George is at home with the "rough men that stand ready in the night".

Jimmy Carter re-invented himself by building houses for the poor....um...er...giving them some place warm to fuck.

Obama's re-invention will be golfing with cronies.; 5/1/14, 6:44 PM
madAsHell said...: Calling Laura Bush!
Calling Laura Bush!

You need to pull the hair out of your husband's ears!!
I can't believe she missed this!!; 5/1/14, 6:50 PM
DKWalser said...: I sure do miss him.; 5/1/14, 6:55 PM
chickelit said...: Vote "yes" on California prop 41.; 5/1/14, 6:57 PM
Revenant said...: If the candidates on the ballot in 2016 are Jeb Bush and Hillary Clinton, I am moving to Canada.; 5/1/14, 7:10 PM
CWJ said...: Althouse,

Thank you for sharing that. I never would have seen it otherwise.

There are so many things that we might wish W had done differently in his presidency. But I just can't imagine anyone questioning his humanity.; 5/1/14, 7:12 PM
The Drill SGT said...: Bush cares...

Vets love him because of that...; 5/1/14, 7:28 PM
Phil 314 said...: I still like him. In the interview I really noticed how he smiles at the end of a phrase.; 5/1/14, 7:36 PM
paminwi said...: There is no way that Obama could say the same words about our vets and have it sound the same.

I did not like every decision Bush made but he is a good man and it shows!; 5/1/14, 8:02 PM
David said...: Looking more and more like his dad as he ages.

Pride and humility are hard to combine in a single individual. It works in him.; 5/1/14, 8:07 PM
Browndog said...: I saw a tape of Bush crying while hugging a vet at a parade a few years ago-privately taped.

I saw a tape of Michelle Obama making a speech saying that no one understood vets and their families before she came along.; 5/1/14, 8:24 PM
Jon K said...: When George W. was at a 26% approval rating towards the end of his second term, I was among those 26%. He made mistakes, but they were all made in his efforts to protect this country and improve the world. A lot of people put a lot of hate on him. It's nice to see more of the country coming back to a positive view of this man.; 5/1/14, 8:38 PM
CWJ said...: Compassionate conservatism may have been an unsustainable mode of governing, but as a star to follow, it seems to work for him.; 5/1/14, 8:45 PM
Beloved Commenter AReasonableMan said...: Revenant said...
If the candidates on the ballot in 2016 are Jeb Bush and Hillary Clinton, I am moving to Canada.

Their middle class have a higher standard of living than we do now. Praise the Lord for income inequality.; 5/1/14, 8:50 PM
Michael K said...: He is a hard act to follow, not that Obama is interested.

I disagreed with post of his domestic agenda but the Democrats determined the economic collapse when they took Congress in 2006.; 5/1/14, 9:06 PM
David R. Graham said...: He was constantly visiting wounded veterans in hospitals. No cameras, no reporters, just visiting. They knew he loved them. His error -- and he was in numerous and distinguished company -- was telling Americans to return to the malls post-11SEP01 rather than putting the nation on war footing, which it was then and is since until some leader actually drives the Mohammedan clerics to unconditional surrender. We have not yet reached the desperation of Tours. We will.

GWB loved his troops and cared for most of them, especially enlisted. He was traitor to at least one General Officer and that is the internal reason, besides the mall thing, that precipitated his decline in esteem and overestimation of the political capital he had after the 2004 election. And his wife is beautiful and sweet. He married well, which is about the best thing a man can do.; 5/1/14, 9:10 PM
Heyooyeh said...: The recklessness of the Bush administration is the cause of so many of those injuries.

That should be said amid the fawning comments here. Or am I the only one interested in actual cruel neutrality?; 5/1/14, 9:13 PM
CWJ said...: My lord ARM,

And after 5 years of this administration fixing the economy, you think your comment supports whatever incoherant thought you're trying to convey?

Well OK then.; 5/1/14, 9:21 PM
Gahrie said...: income inequality.

Income inequality is meaningless. What matters is standard of living. The gap in standard of living is lower in the U.S. today than in the past. 'Poor" people today have access to luxuries that Carniege and the Vanderbilts could only dream of.

Again, it must be stressed that the biggest problem poor people face in the U.S. today is obsesity.; 5/1/14, 9:27 PM
wildswan said...: I like that point about PTS being an injury - something you're going to recover from.; 5/1/14, 9:34 PM
The Godfather said...: "As a result of decisions I made . . .." Have I missed when Obama said anything like that?; 5/1/14, 9:57 PM
Revenant said...: Their middle class have a higher standard of living than we do now. Praise the Lord for income inequality.

Income inequality is measured by comparing the lowest fraction of incomes to the highest fraction, and thus by definition has nothing to do with the middle class.; 5/1/14, 10:00 PM
Bob Ellison said...: What a good man!; 5/1/14, 10:18 PM
n.n said...: Bush seems to be an authentic act.

re: I'll follow you

A legitimate authority can only be earned through voluntary assent.; 5/1/14, 10:41 PM
Mutaman said...: Find those WMDs yet Buddy? You did a heckof a job.; 5/1/14, 10:55 PM
Mutaman said...: Find those WMDs yet buddy? You did a heckof a job.; 5/1/14, 10:56 PM
Paul said...: We live in a country that demonizes such a decent and honest man, and practically worships a mean spirited, shallow malignant narcissist.

The Frankfort School's work has been most effective. We are watching the decline of the greatest civilization in history, and there really is no way to plug the holes in it's hull fast enough to prevent its capsizing.; 5/1/14, 11:02 PM
Illuninati said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 5/2/14, 5:45 AM
Nichevo said...: Heyooyeh, why would you even pretend to neutrality? What's the point?; 5/2/14, 6:24 AM
Illuninati said...: I believe Mr. Bush is an honest decent human being however I do not think history will judge him kindly. It was Bush who fell for the dangerous myth that Islam is a religion of peace and that Al Qaeda has hijacked this otherwise peaceful religion. Islam is not a religion of peace because all Muslims must support jihad which is a fundamental tenant of Islam. Many Muslims will disagree with the tactics used by Al Qaeda but share its goal which is the Islamization of the entire world. Western Civilization may not be at war with Islam but Islam certainly is at war with us.; 5/2/14, 6:46 AM
Robert Cook said...: "The recklessness of the Bush administration is the cause of so many of those injuries.

"That should be said amid the fawning comments here. Or am I the only one interested in actual cruel neutrality?"

You took similar words right out of my mouth! (Except, I would add "criminality" to "recklessness."); 5/2/14, 7:12 AM
Big Mike said...: I think the reason the military troops and the veterans like Bush so much and respected his leadership was their sense that he appreciated them and respected them. The reason Clinton and Obama do not command the same level of respect is the sense of the troops that neither they nor their staff have any respect for the military at all.; 5/2/14, 8:04 AM
Mark said...: Now isn't the time to praise W., now is the time to bury him.

Forget him. His time is done. No decision he makes today, or has made since leaving office, helps or harms soldiers in the field. No words from him will make the economy better or worse. No prescriptions will alter the state of our health care system, our national infrastructure, any of the things that will make our lives or the lives of our children better or worse.

It's all on Obama, and has been since we elected him.

Obama is an honourable man.; 5/2/14, 8:12 AM
Beloved Commenter AReasonableMan said...: Revenant said...
Their middle class have a higher standard of living than we do now. Praise the Lord for income inequality.

Income inequality is measured by comparing the lowest fraction of incomes to the highest fraction, and thus by definition has nothing to do with the middle class.

No. This is only true of some simple measures of income inequality. Obviously declining middle class incomes contribute to income inequality.; 5/2/14, 8:17 AM
JackWayne said...: Bush is a nice guy. That's been clear for years. But I see him as lacking in principles. One story out of many - he swore to uphold the constitution but when he was confronted with a constitutional issue - campaign finance reform - he punted to the court saying that he thought the bill was unconstitutional but he'd let the court sort it out. I prefer a mean man with principles than a nice man with none.; 5/2/14, 8:26 AM
Paul said...: "Obama is an honourable man."

The most delusional statement ever uttered. We truly have an army of brainwashed borgs among us.; 5/2/14, 8:49 AM
MathMom said...: Mutaman -

I lived in Saudi Arabia during the Iran-Iraq war. Saddam Hussein was using WMD on the Iranians, and on his own people. We were afraid he was going to use them in the Eastern Province of SA.

Only a fool would think that there were no WMDs. Everyone knew they were there, from evidence. There is no reason to believe that Saddam Hussein had found Jesus Christ as his personal Savior and destroyed these weapons.

Grow up.; 5/2/14, 8:55 AM
Illuninati said...: AReasonableMan said...
"No. This is only true of some simple measures of income inequality. Obviously declining middle class incomes contribute to income inequality."

Yeah for Obama and his economic policies.; 5/2/14, 9:32 AM
Mark said...: Paul, you should brush up on your Shakespeare.; 5/2/14, 9:33 AM
Illuninati said...: MathMom said...
Mutaman -

"I lived in Saudi Arabia during the Iran-Iraq war. Saddam Hussein was using WMD on the Iranians, and on his own people. We were afraid he was going to use them in the Eastern Province of SA."

Interesting. My son just signed up for a PHD program in Biology. One of his future professors told my son that he was involved in inspections in Iraq and that his team found definite evidence of WMD. He didn't tell my son why that information was not made public.; 5/2/14, 9:40 AM
Henry said...: AReasonableMan wrote: Obviously declining middle class incomes...

Check your assumptions. Quote: But incomes for the middle class and poor in the United States have since been growing more slowly than elsewhere.

My question, looking at the Times' opaque table, is different: What happened to Austria? What happened to Norway?

Now it's true, based on the charts in the parent article that median income is declining since 2008, but that's fairly standard across the board. Canada is an outlier in that it suffered far less of a downturn than other industrialized countries. Coincidentally, it also trended toward greater economic freedom at the same time. Bizarre, isn't it.

The charts in the parent article also show that when we start doing apples-to-apples comparisons -- that is, comparing the US to other large industrialized countries (Germany, France) as opposed to the small cold countries that progressive love to cite (Norway, Canada), the U.S. middle class is doing substantially better than their counterparts.

It's interesting, at least psychologically, that you -- and many of the commenters at the Times, translate the fact that "other countries are catching up" into "the US is declining." Nativists all.; 5/2/14, 9:46 AM
EdwdLny said...: " It's all on Obama.." He hasn't shown the morals or courage to take responsibility for anything. Ambassador Stevens could not be reached for comment.

" Obama is an honourable man. " The fool wouldn't know honor if it knocked on his door and bit him on the ass. That you can make such a declaration in public indicates your gross ignorance and asinine stupidity.; 5/2/14, 10:20 AM
Bill Crawford said...: "And grievously hath Caesar answered it ... Here, under leave of Brutus and the rest, (For Brutus is an honourable man; So are they all; all honourable men)"; 5/2/14, 10:40 AM
Revenant said...: No. This is only true of some simple measures of income inequality. Obviously declining middle class incomes contribute to income inequality.

There's nothing obvious about that at all. Indeed, it is possible for income inequality to decrease even while the middle class is being impoverished; that was the norm for communist nations, for example.; 5/2/14, 10:44 AM
Robert Cook said...: "Interesting. My son just signed up for a PHD program in Biology. One of his future professors told my son that he was involved in inspections in Iraq and that his team found definite evidence of WMD. He didn't tell my son why that information was not made public."

Hussein's possession and use of WMD--nerve agents and suchlike, not real WMD (nukes)--has always been public knowledge. We were friends with him at the time he used these weapons against Iran and his own people.

Later, he dismantled his programs and destroyed his stocks of WMD. When the new UN inspectors returned to Iraq in the months before our illegal invasion in 2003, they found no evidence of extant WMD or programs to reconstitute them. They did not complete their inspections as they were told to leave the country for their own safety, as the American/British invasion was to commence on schedule.

So, Bush's claims of not wanting war, of going to war only as a "last resort," were shown to be lies all along.; 5/2/14, 10:47 AM
MathMom said...: Illuninati -

It didn't fit the narrative.; 5/2/14, 10:47 AM
Robert Cook said...: "There is no reason to believe that Saddam Hussein had found Jesus Christ as his personal Savior and destroyed these weapons."

Nope, not at all. He destroyed them under UN sanctions after being driven out of Kuwait by Western forces. One of his sons-in-law later defected to the West--before being lured back to his death by Hussein--and he was debriefed by our intelligence agencies, during which he affirmed having been in charge of and having overseen the destruction the WMD.; 5/2/14, 10:51 AM
Drago said...: ARM: "Their middle class have a higher standard of living than we do now. Praise the Lord for income inequality."

ARM and his lefty pals would like to remind us that the great leftist leaders like Mao, Stalin, Castro etc have all been successful in driving greater income "equality".

And I think we all know what that means.

So, having noted that, who wants to sign up for 'greater income equality' under leftist leadership?

Come on!

Step right up!

What do you have to lose?; 5/2/14, 10:54 AM
Drago said...: Cook: "We were friends with him at the time he used these weapons against Iran and his own people."

Another day, another marxist lie by cookie.

Have a great "October Surprise" day cookie!

You must have been reeling with joy at the Mayday celebrations yesterday.; 5/2/14, 10:55 AM
Drago said...: Cookie: "Later, he dismantled his programs and destroyed his stocks of WMD."

LOL

Sure he did cookie.

Sure he did.

What a moron.

BTW, what do you think was loaded into the continuous line of transport trucks hauling materials into Syria during the months and weeks leading up to the kickoff of combat operations?

I guess Assad just "found" the chemical weapons he needed just when he needed them via magic pixie dust.

Gee, they are the same agents used by Hussein in Iraq!

What a coincidence.

Nothing to see there.

Nope.

Nothing to see.; 5/2/14, 10:57 AM
Illuninati said...: Robert Cook said:

"So, Bush's claims of not wanting war, of going to war only as a "last resort," were shown to be lies all along"

In my lexicon, there is a difference between an untrue statement based on faulty intelligence and a lie. Personally I think that there were WMD that ended up in Syria.

The evidence seems to indicate that George Bush really did believe the myth that Islam is a religion of peace. He thought that he would be the great liberator and that if the USA stopped supporting dictators in the Middle East that the violence and hatred would cease. All he had to do is to free the Iraqis and allow them to vote and they would celebrate their freedom with peace and goodwill for all men.; 5/2/14, 11:31 AM
Rusty said...: income inequality.

Doesn't exist. Since wealth is always in a state of flux what we have now is an inequality of opportunities. However "income inequality" is a great meme to interfere with market forces.; 5/2/14, 1:19 PM
mikee said...: I imagine an Althouse post in May 2021, in which former president Obama is found celebrating the accomplishments of those service men who were wounded in the wars of 2009-2016 by inviting them to join him at this retirement abode.

Nah, I can't imagine anything remotely like that ever happening.; 5/2/14, 2:42 PM
ObeliskToucher said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 5/2/14, 2:42 PM
ObeliskToucher said...: The Godfather said...
"As a result of decisions I made . . .." Have I missed when Obama said anything like that?

He's always saying "As a result of decisions Bush made..."; 5/2/14, 2:44 PM
Robert Cook said...: "I guess Assad just "found" the chemical weapons he needed just when he needed them via magic pixie dust."

It's not even proved Assad is the one who used the nerve gas, much less that the gas--whoever deployed it--was a part of Hussein's mythical stockpile of undestroyed WMD.; 5/2/14, 3:01 PM
Trashhauler said...: The recklessness of the Bush administration is the cause of so many of those injuries.

Reckless? Time to consider what President Bush's successor would have done with Saddam Hussein still in charge, the Taliban still ruling Afghanistan, and Al Qaeda at its zenith.

Each war is fought differently and none is fought flawlessly. Anyone of an historical bent would judge our losses in Iraq as low, despite the carping of unschooled critics.

Reckless? How so?; 5/2/14, 3:11 PM
Trashhauler said...: "You took similar words right out of my mouth! (Except, I would add 'criminality' to 'recklessness.')"

Far be it for anyone to question your military expertise, but one might want to ask how differently you would have conducted the war.

Then too, would you care to name the statute that was violated? Or was your opinion based on your obvious policy disagreement?; 5/2/14, 3:22 PM
MathMom said...: Obelisk Toucher -

I say you win the thread: He's always saying "As a result of decisions Bush made..."

Priceless.; 5/2/14, 5:06 PM
Paul said...: I'm sorry liberals, but your Presidents don't hold a candle to ours.

Obama spend time with vets? What a joke.

Clinton? Did he ever? What do you expect for a real draft dodger.

Carter? Nah, to much malaise.

And why? Cause both Bushs were military men. Yea yea W didn't go to Vietnam, but he actually put in to go, but being in a interceptor unit, and not enough points, he was held back.

And that is why even though I have differences with both Bushs on some subjects, especially the Sr. one, I do respect them.; 5/2/14, 10:05 PM