>>North Korean nukes, Iranian nukes, a boiling Islamist cauldron, Oil for Food payola, increasing Russian nationalism, tinpot dictators in South America, a green light on the southern border with Mexico, unresolved Kosovo conflict, a growing Social Security deficit, etc. Then, eight months after taking office, 9/11. That's plenty of mess in my book.
North Korea had a program but not nukes. Iran still doens't have nukes. Islam has been boiling for centuries. Oil for food wasn't necessarily that big of a deal. Increasing Russian nationalism was the direct result of their own cronyistic evolution from communism to market and the US's willing democratic parters in new Europe (not something you can blame on Washington per se'). Tinpot dictators in South America? Eh, the tilt back left down there had barely started. Chavez was first elected (democratically) in 1998 before a brief but mostly unsuccessful coup by the nation's middle and upper classes against his policies. He wasn't as anti-US back then. You may recall one of this administration's first blunders was to encourage dissent down there (ended up on the losing side). The Kosovo conflict doesn't really factor in that much because the US and KFOR (sp?) stepped in to partition. President Bush reaffirmed our country's policy on this just this weekend (ahead of an official announcement btw). Growing social security deficit has been a long term problem. I actually agree with partial privatization and thought Bush's plan for a 1/6th investment by workers under 29(?) was a pretty conservative but sound approach to begin to deal with it. 9/11 is another story.
But let's look at what he inherited that was good - a pretty decent economy; a balanced federal budget (expense ledgers anyway); a simmering but mostly peaceful world - it was as good of a handoff as anything's been in my 30+ years of following this stuff.
I'm not even a Clinton voter (then or now), but the mess Bush is leaving is far worse than what he inherited IMHO.
TPS
North Korea had a program but not nukes. Iran still doens't have nukes. Islam has been boiling for centuries. Oil for food wasn't necessarily that big of a deal. Increasing Russian nationalism was the direct result of their own cronyistic evolution from communism to market and the US's willing democratic parters in new Europe (not something you can blame on Washington per se'). Tinpot dictators in South America? Eh, the tilt back left down there had barely started. Chavez was first elected (democratically) in 1998 before a brief but mostly unsuccessful coup by the nation's middle and upper classes against his policies. He wasn't as anti-US back then. You may recall one of this administration's first blunders was to encourage dissent down there (ended up on the losing side). The Kosovo conflict doesn't really factor in that much because the US and KFOR (sp?) stepped in to partition. President Bush reaffirmed our country's policy on this just this weekend (ahead of an official announcement btw). Growing social security deficit has been a long term problem. I actually agree with partial privatization and thought Bush's plan for a 1/6th investment by workers under 29(?) was a pretty conservative but sound approach to begin to deal with it. 9/11 is another story.
But let's look at what he inherited that was good - a pretty decent economy; a balanced federal budget (expense ledgers anyway); a simmering but mostly peaceful world - it was as good of a handoff as anything's been in my 30+ years of following this stuff.
I'm not even a Clinton voter (then or now), but the mess Bush is leaving is far worse than what he inherited IMHO.TPS
