Image from http://thechive.com/2009/01/28/bush-obama-darth-vader/
Okay, I’ve had it; I’ve really had it, with people – including some “progressives” – who continue to beat that boring and nonsensical drum that President Obama is just like George W. “OBusha?” Really?
Well, I guess it depends on what type of logic you use: One could say that I’m just like Mike Tyson . . . except he’s male and I’m female, he’s a former heavyweight boxer and I’ve never stepped into a ring, he’s black and I’m white. The only thing we have in common is road rage . . . but other than the million ways we’re different, using the logic of those who talk about “OBusha,” Tyson and I are one and the same, two peas in a pod. The leap in logic required to say that President Obama is like George W is more like a catapult.
President Obama has dismantled many of the Bush-era horrors. You can read about all of President Obama’s accomplishments atjackandjillpolitics.com, which I’m not going to list here – but for the sake of pointing out the differences between the two . . . well, for example, as his first act in office, President Obama signed the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act into law – a law that had been shot down under W. He breathed new transparent life into the Freedom of Information Act, and overturned Bush’s limits on what federal information is disseminated. President Obama has increased infrastructure spending . . . Bush, on the other hand, never made infrastructure a priority, the only president since Hoover who didn’t.
Unlike Bush, President Obama didn’t cozy up to the credit card companies, and in fact ended the Bush-era policy of protecting them. Under President Obama, we now have consumer protections where there were none, and the vultures’ predatory practices have been banned. Unlike the practices under Bush, credit card companies are now prevented from arbitrarily raising rates.
President Obama, as a Harvard-educated person, actually has some respect for scientific studies - not Jack in the Beanstalk theories, as the right is famous for endorsing. President Obama, unlike Bush, doesn’t have his staff rewrite the results of scientific and environmental studies and reports just because the results come into conflict with a warped belief that everything was created by god and that the presence of god explains it all.
Under Bush, corporations who outsourced jobs continued to be rewarded with tax breaks . . . not under this President. President Obama ended that practice.
We’ve all heard that President Obama has ballooned the deficit – well, when you use honest accounting instead of trickery and gimmicks, it’s true that the numbers aren’t as small. Bush (along with Reagan) didn’t list certain federal programs in his federal budget – he hid programs (including, amazingly, the costs of the war) to make the budget look smaller (and, of course, to give Fox News and right-wing pundits something to bleat about, with the constant refrain of how President Obama has blown the top off the deficit). What Fox doesn’t mention is that now, under President Obama, those pesky little budget items that Bush deep-sixed are included in the annual budget – including the costs of two wars.
Despite the fact that Republicans claim to be lovers of all things military, including our soldiers, under President Bush the “stop-loss” policy kept soldiers in Iraq or Afghanistan longer than their enlistment date. That’s over under this President. And while we’re talking about the military, Republicans, who grab every opportunity for a military photo-op to demonstrate their alleged support, didn’t do squat to actually help our soldiers or their families. It took this “liberal” president to order the Pentagon to cover the costs of families of fallen soldiers if they want to be there when the body arrives back in the US; it took this “liberal” president to end the Bush “blackout” on media coverage of our fallen soldiers; it took this “liberal” president to end Bush’s “blackout” policy on media coverage of war casualties; it took this “liberal” president to order better body armor for our troops, work to increase pay and benefits for the military, improve military housing, initiate a policy to hire military spouses, fund new Mine Resistant Ambush Vehicles (which are less vulnerable to roadside bombs), improve conditions at military hospitals, improve benefits for veterans, and authorize money to build more care centers for veterans. Under this supposedly militarily weak president, Don’t Ask/Don’t Tell was repealed. Under this supposedly militarily weak president, soldiers coming home from Iraq and Afghanistan return to a new and improved GI bill. Under this supposedly militarily weak president, the process of increasing the size of Special Ops units, improving technology and creating cyber security units was implemented. Unlike Bush, President Obama has made “no-bid” defense contracts a thing of the past. Unlike Bush, President Obama “suspended the Bush-era decision to purchase a fleet of Marine One helicopters from suppliers in favor of American made helicopters.” And Republicans paint themselves as patriotic?
If it weren’t for massive Republican opposition, the prison at Guantanamo Bay would have been closed; if it weren’t for massive Republican opposition and scare tactics by the right, terrorists would be housed at a new U.S.-based “super max” facility instead of Gitmo. The fact that nobody has ever escaped from a Super Max facility hasn’t prevented right-wing pundits from predicting a bloody, Freddy Krueger-like outcome should terrorists be housed in a U.S. prison.
I have one thing to say to those who call President Obama “OBusha”: “OBullshit.”
OK, so if it wasn’t for “massive Republican opposition” on a number of issues, we’d have decent policies from this administration? I guess there’s another difference between Bush and Obama — Bush didn’t back down so easily and he fought for what he was told to believe in. Comparisons aside, opposition and angry talking heads wouldn’t stop a true progressive. Either Obama is incredibly weak or he is actually what we used to know as a moderate Republican.
Well stated, Julie! As for the Allison Brickers of the world (and FireDogLake) who were and never will be content with any President – who probably either don’t vote or vote for the least electable non-candidate candidate – smdh – Idealism is a wonderful thing. Keep fighting for it, but at some point if you’re not part of a viable force for the betterment of ALL people – not just the disillusioned – you ARE part of the problem.
Basic take – Obama either IS a New World Order supporter and/or one-party Republocrat or not. And I cannot make up my mind which it is.
As one obvious Repug posted, he has done a LOT of things which I voted for him expecting him to HALT. Especially the tortureand wars for oil and territorial pissing contests. And I wanted Bush/Cheney impeached, or at least criticized, for fuck’s sake. But no, it’s live-and-let-live, even when they ALL are trying to tear the nation apart – for profit.
So yes, he has done more good for the country than W did. But as I’ve said before, the difference is Obama uses lube when he fucks you, or merely sleight-of-hand, so you don’t see the injection till it’s already penetrated. But you’re still fucked. Either he is unable to summon the balls to call these Norquist Traitors what they are and throw their asses in jail, or he is the puppet there for the show (and to convince the Democratic South to vote Republican…)
And AGAIN, he has bailed on the American people and given in to the uberrich. With the lowest income tax EVER, their only response os to demand (not even ask, but demand) MORE.
He’s your president? He ain’t mine anymore, and I guarantee race has NOTHING to do with it, only ACTIONS (read “inactions”…)
But mainly, I wanted the US to attempt to regain some self-respect.
I missed something! Bachmann add . . . ?
Ad – as in advertisement. Person thinks the advertisement is somehow part of the article.
I agree whole heartedly with the content of the article, but the one thing that surprised me was the Bachmann add at the end… WTF mate?
Let us make the Facts plain:
Now we have wars in Libya, Pakistan, Yemen, Sudan, Afghanistan, and Iraq.
Obama Requested & received from Congress in conjunction with CIA authority to Assassinate Americans without due process.
Continues the program of extra-judicial kidnappings known as “Rendition”
Continues Bush-era torture policies.
Requested and received extension of PATRIOT Act.
Doled out even more money to his criminal Wall Street FEDERAL RESERVE banker buddies.
Requested FEDERAL RESERVE undertake QE1 and QE2, i.e. reckless printing of massive amounts of dollars further worsening inflation.
Keep living in denial; the federal government is the enemy of all FREE people, regardless of what puppet-in-chief resides at 1600 Pennsylvania.
You are so right that Obama is nothing like George Bush; he is worse.
amen!!! he is WAY WORSE than Bush or any president, including Clinton!!
btw congress shortstopped the closing of the gitmo internment(torture) camp, obama did try to close it and indeed ordered it closed.
and the federal mint always prints new money, TO REPLACE old, worn out bills…however much of whats printed is usually stored until needed to replace bills being pulled out of circulation, and one of the few ways the government can help stimulate the economy is to buy back treasury bonds, infusing the market with money, it will eventually sell those bonds BACK after the economy booms again, to remove excess money from the economy. did you ever take an economics course? or even an american government course?
Great read. This can’t be said enough…and “How easy they forget” goes for both sides! Not just the conservatives!!