>> What long lasting improvements did he accomplish during his 8 years?
The most important one, of course, was avoiding further attacks on the US homeland by waging an intense war on terrorism. You guys have short memories, but on 9/11/01 that was the primary concern of most people in the country. At the time I pointed out that our biggest enemy, as a nation, was the short memory of liberals. And that has proved true.
Bush's TARP program prevented the recession from becoming a Depression. Although Obama has screwed it up badly, Bush essentially salvaged the economy before Obama took office. Without TARP, the economy would likely have collapsed far beyond what it did.
The biggest tax cut in history was big but given your economic training from the School of CJ economics, I don't you'll see the benefit in it.
As a well-informed person, I would have to say the impeccable response to Katrina, but I realize you don't agree about that.
Winning the Iraq War was big, but was nullified by incompetent mismangement by his successor, after Bush brought us back from a near-defeat.
Transitioning the Pentagon from Cold War era technology to modern era.
While his successor has cut access to off-shore drilling and has been lukewarm on new drilling technologies, Bush was strong on both counts and the dividends are rolling in. In Obama's first term he significantly cut both Offshore and Domestic exploration and production.
But very near the top is that he got control of the AIDS epidemic in Africa, which it is fair to say saved more lives than any president in our lifetimes, perhaps in history. Not Americans, but important nevertheless. And Obama will never have that kind of claim to his credit.
Other things, like the Rx drug benefit, are arguable, particularly now that Obamacare has destroyed its fiscal sensibility.
That's enough for now. The list could go on all night but I've got work to do for the next hour. |
