Interesting that Bush had highest rating ever

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evident

Lifer
Apr 5, 2005
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Originally posted by: Robor
Originally posted by: DixyCrat
Originally posted by: Moonbeam
Originally posted by: loki8481
Bush was given an unprecedented opportunity with the entire country behind him.

instead of being a force for good, he used it as a wedge issue to yield partisan victories while everyone was too afraid to be seen as anti-Bush (and hence anti-American) to stand up to him.

Right, everybody except Obama.

It's easy to be whatever your constituents prefer you to be.

No, it's not in this case. Back then if you were against the war you were considered un-American and/or a coward. Maybe you don't remember it but I sure as hell do. I'll admit it. I drank GWB's kool-aid on Iraq having WMD's and ties to 9/11. Maybe that's why I despise him so much now? Anyway, those who were against the war from the start are right and those who weren't are wrong. The OP is as well but he's more a fool because he excuses GWB&Co's actions.

Yep, remember "fuck france" and "you're either with us or against us!" it's why i hate bush so much now. I drank the iraq cool-aid as well.

Looks like france was right all along. Viva la France!
 

udneekgnim

Senior member
Jun 27, 2008
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Originally posted by: scruffypup
Bush had the highest approval rating in 2002 of any president ever, yet has been blamed solely for a war which has been questionable (mind you unfairly as all democrats had the same info as bush and voted for the war - anyone who wants to say otherwise,.. get real). Has now been blamed for the current economic downturn (which he is not at fault for - anyone who wants to say otherwise is ignorant of how the economy works)

Now the same American public thinks he is the worst, when they thought he was the best (at least based on opinion polls).

Is it short term memory? American society that likes to blame someone and looks for a scapegoat? Media Hype? An instant gratification society?

Get beyond the emotion and let me know something substantial,....

instant gratification society
 

Moonbeam

Elite Member
Nov 24, 1999
72,333
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Originally posted by: loki8481
Originally posted by: Moonbeam
Originally posted by: loki8481
Bush was given an unprecedented opportunity with the entire country behind him.

instead of being a force for good, he used it as a wedge issue to yield partisan victories while everyone was too afraid to be seen as anti-Bush (and hence anti-American) to stand up to him.

Right, everybody except Obama.

the same Obama who said he wasn't sure how he would have voted, who wasn't privy to the cooked intel given to congress, and who said his position on the war wasn't that far from George Bush's?

Links with context?
 

jonks

Lifer
Feb 7, 2005
13,918
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Originally posted by: scruffypup
Now the same American public thinks he is the worst, when they thought he was the best (at least based on opinion polls).

They never thought he was the "best president". You fundamentally misinterpret the metric. The question asked in approval rating surveys is "do you approve of the job the president is doing?" The question is NOT "Is the president doing the best job of any president in history?"
 
Dec 26, 2007
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Originally posted by: Infohawk
A political scientist would probably explain it by pointing out that any recently elected president would have been glorified post 9/11 and that the country was feeling defensive and wanted to come together behind a leader. And now, with this economy, and president would be villified.

The deeper explanation is that the average American is an idiot. Anyone with half a brain knew that Bush was not qualified to be the president from the beginning. The fact that it's taken most people so long to figure it out is pathetic.

Yeah, but neither Kerry nor Gore were any better IMO.

Hell for that matter neither Obama or McCain are better....
 

Craig234

Lifer
May 1, 2006
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Not to encourage cynicism, but a healthy recognition of the limitations of our democracy (voters' judgement, big money marketing, etc.):

Richard Nixon won re-election by the then-larget margin in historyjust before resigning for terrible corruption for which he woud have been impeached and removed.

Before that, LBJ was elected by the then-largest margin just before he got the nation into war in Vietnam with the public's approval.

On the other hand, a great president IMO, JFK, was barely elected in a close race despite his fame (Pulitzer Prize etc.), looks, money and so on - against 'Tricky Dick'.
 

ericlp

Diamond Member
Dec 24, 2000
6,133
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Originally posted by: Moonbeam
OP: Bush had the highest approval rating in 2002 of any president ever, yet has been blamed solely for a war which has been questionable (mind you unfairly as all democrats had the same info as bush and voted for the war - anyone who wants to say otherwise,.. get real).

M: Not true so it's you who isn't real.

OP: Has now been blamed for the current economic downturn (which he is not at fault for - anyone who wants to say otherwise is ignorant of how the economy works)

M: You are ignorant of how the economy works. It's all Bush's fault. See how intelligently I argue compared to you?

OP: Now the same American public thinks he is the worst, when they thought he was the best (at least based on opinion polls).

M: It's not just an opinion. It's a fact though it has never been true of me. I have known from day one he would be a total disaster.

OP: Is it short term memory? American society that likes to blame someone and looks for a scapegoat? Media Hype? An instant gratification society?

M: It is because a huge portion of the American people, mostly old and dying, are total backward ignorant and uneducated insular ingrown clowns who think they are great because they wave a flag around like apes hooting in a tree.

OP: Get beyond the emotion and let me know something substantial,....

M: You couldn't get much more stupid or emotional yourself. All you've done here is spout your ignorant ideas and rant.

I don't know why........

But I tend to be agreeing with you more and more for some odd reason.

 

NoStateofMind

Diamond Member
Oct 14, 2005
9,711
6
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Originally posted by: Robor
Originally posted by: DaveSimmons
I supported Bush after the invasion of Afghanistan. It was a just war to go after the Taliban for harboring AQ, it was well-executed and done with the approval of the rest of the free world. It even gained us respect with the rest of the Arab world.

Since then, under his command, his staff, his appointees we've had:

- cherry-picking of the evidence of WMD in Iraq to lie to the US public about the certainty of any thread
- lying to the American public about a connection between Iraq and 9/11
- lying to the UN about the certainty of WMD in Iraq
- lying to congress about how likely he would be to use the authority they gave him to decide whether to go to war with Iraq
- going to war in Iraq with no plans for managing the aftermath of "mission accomplished"
- 4,000+ American dead after "mission accomplished" because of that bungling
- tens of thousands of American soldiers crippled, poor care of veterans until shamed into better care by press exposes
- stripping troops and resources from Afghanistan instead of finishing the job there
- torture in "rendition" offshoring, Iraq and gitmo, including beating prisoners to death
- lying about whether torture occurred
- warrantless wiretapping of American citizens in the US and lying about same
- suppressing science that doesn't agree with his faith-based and political beliefs
- incompetent political appointees bungling the response to Katrina
- illegal partisan hiring tests for nonpartisan jobs, and illegal partisan firing
- illegally shredding emails and illegally using non-government accounts to hide government work
- almost restarting the cold war with Russia through arrogant bumbling in Georgia and Poland

... and I'm probably leaving out many other reasons why people don't approve of his job performance.

10/10 and QFT. :thumbsup:

9/10 he forgot the Patriot Act. :p
 

IronWing

No Lifer
Jul 20, 2001
68,858
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Originally posted by: bdude
He had so much potential. Squandered.

No. Bush was an utterly immoral little fratboy before he took office and he failed to grow into the job. The complete fuckup that was Bush's life up until 2000 was in plain view for those with eyes to see.
 

Vic

Elite Member
Jun 12, 2001
50,415
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Originally posted by: Evan
Not surprisingly, presidents typically enjoy high ratings for months after a dramatic event/crisis. 9/11 was a ratings booster for him. Unfortunate he squandered all that sympathy and good will after such a tragedy.

This is the correct answer.

People rally behind their leaders in times of crisis. Bush turned out to be a crappy leader.
 

seemingly random

Diamond Member
Oct 10, 2007
5,281
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Originally posted by: scruffypup
Bush had the highest approval rating in 2002 of any president ever, ...
jesse jackson or al sharpton (or even you) would have had the same - everyone was scared shitless. Maybe you weren't old enough to remember.

Now the same American public thinks he is the worst, when they thought he was the best (at least based on opinion polls).
...
And they voted for him twice. I agree, not much credibility. Some are finally waking up now. Maybe there's still hope.

Another thing to ponder is whether bush or palin is less qualified - a contest of dunces. I'm probably in a minority, but I still think quayle would be slightly more qualified than either of the above.
 

Red Dawn

Elite Member
Jun 4, 2001
57,530
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"Spending, the conduct of the war in Iraq for years, growth in the size of government, larger than any time since the Great Society, laying a $10 trillion debt on future generations of America, owing $500 billion to China, obviously, failure to both enforce and modernize the [financial] regulatory agencies that were designed for the 1930s and certainly not for the 21st century, failure to address the issue of climate change seriously,?

John McCain Oct 23 2008 :shocked:
 

skyking

Lifer
Nov 21, 2001
21,961
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I will always remember the post 9/11 Politics of Fear campaign. That defined GWB and his administration forever in my opinion.
 

DAPUNISHER

Super Moderator CPU Forum Mod and Elite Member
Super Moderator
Aug 22, 2001
28,284
19,939
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Originally posted by: Red Dawn
"Spending, the conduct of the war in Iraq for years, growth in the size of government, larger than any time since the Great Society, laying a $10 trillion debt on future generations of America, owing $500 billion to China, obviously, failure to both enforce and modernize the [financial] regulatory agencies that were designed for the 1930s and certainly not for the 21st century, failure to address the issue of climate change seriously,?

John McCain Oct 23 2008 :shocked:
Well, I guess the message here is- it is 4 years too late for Obama to run against Bush, but it is never too late to run away from him. ;)