I was right about Bush, and I bet I'm right about Obama too

[Syrinx]

When Bush was running for president in 2000, my judgment of him was correct. And yours probably was too.

Back then, I sized Bush up as a pampered scion of a treacherous old-money family, that had built its wealth upon the backs of others, intellectually bankrupt and unfeeling and uncaring.

History, I believe, has proven me correct.

Remember what the mainstream media were saying in 2003?

Remember what Chris Matthews said?

We're proud of our president. Americans love having a guy as president, a guy who has a little swagger, who's physical... Women like a guy who's president. Check it out. The women like this war. I think we like having a hero as our president.

Remember what Gordon Liddy said on Matthews' show (and Matthews loved it!)

and he's wearing his parachute harness, you know -- and I've worn those because I parachute -- and it makes the best of his manly characteristic

They were telling us to love Bush because maybe he had a big dick!

He has just won every woman's vote in the United States of America. You know, all those women who say size doesn't count -- they're all liars. Check that out.

And remember what Brian Williams (now the top news guy in the country) said.

And two immutable truths about the president that the Democrats can't change: He's a youthful guy. He looked terrific and full of energy in a flight suit. He is a former pilot, so it's not a foreign art farm -- art form to him. Not all presidents could have pulled this scene off today.

Greta took it even further.

Now, of course, President Bush flew fighters in the Air National Guard, but no pilot, no matter how experienced, can land on an aircraft carrier first time out. The president did take the stick for a short time during his flight, but he let another pilot handle the landing. Now, he -- when he got here he was absolutely mobbed by the 200 or so crew members who are normally on deck during flight ops, as they call them. The people in the multicolored jerseys reached out for a handshake, a photo, anything they could get of this president. One observer here tonight said it was like the Beatles climbed out of that plane, and that's very much what it looked like from here.

The corporatists were having orgasms left and right, over this rich kid that had never accomplished a single thing on his own.

They were ready to crown George W. Bush the messiah.

I knew they were ridiculous then, and you probably did too.

We were right about George.

And I think I'm probably right about Barack, too.

Obama truly is a uniter.

He's not a homophobe. He's not a racist. And he's no hater. Despite what you may read here.

Obama is a brilliant man, that deserves our support.

I was correct about Bush, and I'm confident I'm correct about Barack Obama, too.

I got the quotes from:

http://mediamatters.org/items/200604270005

[Syrinx]

1. and I want to make a prediction

Brian Williams will be on the Daily Show, and Jon Stewart will show Williams' quote, and Williams will defend himself by saying he learned a lesson, so they are being much tougher on President Obama.

[sohndrsmith]

3. That sounds frighteningly realistic. I hope you're wrong on that one! : ) n/t

[sohndrsmith]

2. Bush terrified me from the get-go. I remember explaining what was (then) nothing more than

intuition based on what I saw and read in the news - and being discounted, waved away, considered dramatic and ridiculous. I have never been able to understand why anyone would vote for the guy, much less support him and re-elect him.

I also remember feeling frustrated with the media because I didn't believe things were being reported honestly or objectively. But then again, I was a news-and-politics neophyte pretty much back then, and still am to some degree, but I was even more naive back then. I wasn't entirely stupid at any point, though, and I could read and comprehend.

I can't believe how ANGRY all these retrospectives are making me... I didn't see the press conference, but I've seen and read clips. I am so angry that it surprises me. Even the eleventh hour acknowledgment of seeing the "Mission Accomplished" fiasco as something he regretted - I guess I missed him taking any responsibility for that before now - and that's a trifling thing.

What happened to the all out gunning for war with Iran, anyway? I was sure he was hellbent on making that happen... Iran was such a focus, and then... poof... Not that they are not a threat now, or never were, but I really felt like Bush wanted to bully his way into that one and cooler heads talked him out of it. Thank God.

There is so much that has been destroyed... to call out one or two examples does this man's razing this country's strength and integrity a disservice in not acknowledging it's magnitude.


And I don't understand the anger directed at Obama.

[pipi_k]

14. Me too...I couldn't explain it...

just a feeling I had from the image he presented in various interviews I saw him give, and a short but telling rundown on his past.

Failure at just about everything he did.

cocky...arrogant...sarcastic...defensive...intellectually lazy...childish


I never did figure out if he's really as stupid as he appears to be. Lots of people said, no...he really isn't that dumb. I've always felt that any "intelligence" he had was very likely of the kind that keeps drunks and fools from being affected by their stupidity while those around them suffer the consequences. Under other circumstances, he might have been a pretty smart sewer rat.

I've seen his kind a hundred times and I know what the outcome usually is...

[hamsterjill]

22. He terrified me, too.

But then again, I'm from Texas and I already knew he was just plain stupid and incompetent.

I could not believe that people couldn't see that.

But it's almost over!!!!! Doing the happy dance...doing the happy dance...

[Arugula Latte]

25. That was my overwhelming feeling before the 2000 election -- "How could people buy this crap?"

I couldn't believe how naive people were being; and how the media was just doing Bush's bidding and tearing down Gore for the M.F.ing STUPIDEST made-up crap imaginable. But, that was before the Internet had really taken off as a form of political discourse and organization, therefore we weren't able to make an end-run around the media like we did in '06 and '08.

[rufus dog]

34. 2000 I will give people a partial pass

Fine, if someone wants to use the excuse that they didn't know enough about Bush and wanted a change, now for the 60 million who voted for him and 2004 and the 57 million who voted for a ticket that included Palin, I'm sorry there is absolutely no excuse. NONE! Looking at the raw numbers it appears that only 3 to 4 million Americans changed from Republican to the Obama ticket. That after eight years of the worst President, if not in history then in their lifetime. That is what scares the living bejesus out of me, 57 ignorant Americans. Sure Bush/Republican policies were better for some Americans, but at least 50 million Americans voted against their own best interests and the best interest of the Country.

[mwb970]

51. I thought bush was worthless the very first time I saw him.

And I've thought the same thing every time I've seen him since, including at his embarrassing press conference yesterday.

Less than a week and this piece of crap will be GONE!!

[northernlights]

4. agree 100%

And I'll add a few cents.

Obama has inherited what is obviously a horrendous mess. The fact is none of us knows exactly how horrible the mess is, we can only try to guess and imagine.

It is totally unfair to think Obama can wave a wand and suddenly swing the pendulum this country has been on to the extreme left. The momentum I think has shifted, but it will take some time to get the country on course again.

In the meantime, he (and his team) can only do as much as he (they) can. And there is no way he can make every change first. He has to pick the most critical points and work them first. The rest will either be swept along with the momentum, or can be next in line for his attention. Some of the problems will simply take years to fix. For example, universal healthcare in Massachusetts has exposed the extreme shortage of doctors. This shortage isn't limited to Massachusetts and more doctors can't be made overnight -- that takes many years of training. No way around that little fact.

So to the people of individual groups who want their personal problems fixed first, I would remind you of this. People in our own country who worked just as hard as you, planned just as hard as you, and voted the *right* way just like you, are being thrown out of their houses and into the street, are lining up in shelters and soup kitchens, and are watching their children, husbands, wives and parents die in Iraq and Afghanistan. They were victimized just as much as you, but where your happiness, personal fulfillment and 401K has been damaged by *, their lives are literally on the line.

So I'm really and truly sorry that your individual desires for liberty and equality can't be the first thing he attends to on January 20. But we need to get this country back to work, fed, sheltered, and the rule of law established NOW. That has to be his #1 priority.

[rosesaylavee]

6. Brilliant minds think alike.

I must have started my post about the same time.

[Pacifist Patriot]

7. That has to be one of the best posts I have read in awhile.

I would only add that Obama and the people he has working with him are only human. They are going to make mistakes. But I would be willing to bet he will recognize them, own up to them, and scramble to rectify them.

[lonestarnot]

9. It's like we are starting over with all the repairs and lady liberty's dress being ripped and all.

[ruggerson]

10. People have not asked that they be addressed first

they have asked simply that they be addressed along with the other long laundry list of problems which face us.

And they have asked not to be slapped in the face by someone they voted for in overwhelming numbers.

It's not either/or, despite your snide references to "liberty and equality." Obama is quite capable of multi-tasking.

[BlancheSplanchnik]

15. right on! I predict something else---

in a year, when one or the other "side" of the Obama skirmishes proves to have been right, there will be precious few threads in which those who predicted wrongly-- on whichever side of the opinion that turns out -- admit to their excessive hostililty here. (I have alot of respect for those who can admit to mistakes and clean up after themselves)

(Obama has picked an openly gay priest and a female priest to speak at the inauguration--have there been any posts around here from especially vitriolic accusers, admitting they cried homophobia and attacked fellow supporters here in error?)...


ANYWAY, aside from that....
I agree wholeheartedly with your eloquent post!! Wish I laid it out that well myself!

And yes, WRT the OP, I too had clear vibes from the start with bush...very bad vibes.

I have the opposite with Obama. Reallly good feeling vibes. Sure, some of that may be hero worship; we so long for a real hero at this point, and he fits the image, but as with turdweasel, you can look at the track record to get an idea of what to expect.

And we're seeing meaningful action already!

[Window]

18. Excellent post northernlights.

Peace

[rufus dog]

35. Well said Northern (if I can be so bold to be on a first name basis)

No one person nor administration can fix all of the issues left by Bush, It will take Obama and two to three other Presidents to clean up all of the Bush/Reagan messes. It is the old line about building a house, takes weeks to build it, you can tear it down in a couple of hours. Republicans have been tearing down the work of FDR for decades and the perfect storm of Bush/Cheney on top of the catastrophic Reagonomic generation has delivered us to this point. They didn't do any heavy lifting to make this a better Country, they focused on personal greed.

[Number23]

47. Fan FREAKING tastic

They were victimized just as much as you, but where your happiness, personal fulfillment and 401K has been damaged by *, their lives are literally on the line.

Northernlights, you get today's:

[Usrename]

53. Very good!

I remember a couple years ago when there was absolutely no solution in sight. Absolutely none. Everyone was sharpening their pitchforks but nobody knew who to point them at. I had no idea what to do.

It was Obama who proposed a way out of this place we are in. I had almost lost all hope. It's true. Between the media and the lawlessness I thought we had fallen too far into fascism to turn back. That may still be true, we don't know yet if Obama can be stopped, but at least he has shown us all that there is a way out.

The problems we face now are not so much with Obama, but with that whole Lieberman wing of the Democratic Party. Obama may appear to be part of that wing of the party leadership, but he (and Dean) have demonstrated to everyone exactly how to organize and defeat these guys.

[rosesaylavee]

5. I agree.

Obama is inheriting the biggest mess any president in our history has had to face. I don't think he will be 100% right, I don't agree with every step he's taken with his transition. But overall, I think he's got a brilliant mind and he's the only hope we have to survive as a nation and given global warming/climate change - perhaps as a species. He will have my vocal and active support to get done what he needs to get done to help this country.

Those quotes should NOT be read on an empty stomach, btw. Yeesh. Glad we are on the clean up part of this ordeal.

[Enthusiast]

8. I thought the same about Bush.

We were right. Obama has all my support. What else can we do?

[blm]

11. Now the mediawhores are acting as if they NEVER protected Bush or lied about his image. BTW, I knew

callgirls back in the 80s and early 90s who would fly from LA to Houston for the Enron guys, and they'd party with his 'friends' including W, who rarely could get his little 'package' in working condition.

Bush's hands are tiny and weak, too.

[Jennicut]

12. You are so right.

Syrinx, you are right on the money. Bush was spoiled scum since the moment I saw him in 1999 on my tv. Yuck. Obama struck me as perhaps a little experienced but a good man who could unite people. First impressions are very important.

[ananda]

13. Here's what I think about them.. Bush and Obama.

I never liked Bush from day one in Texas,
when he became governor. I knew it was
downhill from there.. and it's been a very
long hard slog having to live with that
idiotic psychopath in power, destroying
everything he touches.

As for Obama, I liked him from day one
when I first saw him speak several years
ago; and there's still something about him
personally that I like.

However, I do think that Obama leans way
too far right and I'm not sure why. I
don't like it, and I do think that he has
shown homophobic and sexist leanings.
However, I think he can change for the
better if enough people demand it.

Perhaps as people, as strong voices for the
kind of change we really need, we can
persuade Obama to heed our wishes for a better,
more tolerant, and inclusive country.

[lostnotforgotten]

16. If Bush "Had A Big Dick" He Would Have Had Sons Rather Than Daughters

Small Penis equal girls as those are longer lived sperm.

Big Penis equal boys as those are the shorter lived sperm and have less of a swim to get to the egg.

Simple biology.

[CTyankee]

20. Now that's an interesting theory...what if the guy fathers both boys and girls?

Does that mean his d*ck is a "medium".

Thanks for the laugh...

[lostnotforgotten]

21. In Deep or In Shallow - Actually The Parents Would Have Choice With Better Equipment

eom

[annabanana]

32. a slinky... sometimes long and sometimes not....

silliest thing I ever heard...

[uponit7771]

30. 2nd time I've heard this

[mrreowwr_kittty]

31. Sperm come from the testicles so won't they have a longer way to go in a big penis?

BTW, your theory is the dumbest thing I've read in a long time.

[rufus dog]

36. that was my thought.

Maybe his wife calls him a 'Big Dick' all the time and he is confused about her meaning.

[Tangerine LaBamba]

41. She's mocking him,

and he thinks she's talking about Nixon.

[Tangerine LaBamba]

42. What's funny

is that the "twins" are products of in vitro fertilization, according to a lot of people in Washington.

Only George W. Bush could fuck up fucking.

[Occam Bandage]

33. That's pretty dumb. What if it's a small dick that ejaculates powerfully,

versus a big dick that just kinda dribbles? But anyway, all this conversation is pointless without a study showing a correlation between percentage of male children and penis length.

[Tangerine LaBamba]

40. Naw

Big dicks produce girls.

They knock the balls off the zygote and VOILA!!!

[LWolf]

17. I was right about Bush,

and I've already been right about Obama.

He's a center-right politician whose "uniting" doesn't include the left.

Which I've been saying since he declared his intentions of running in the primaries. Sorry I didn't bookmark them all, lol.

Here's one link I've saved, from 18 months ago, discussing the right-wing leanings of Obama's education plan:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.ph...

Apparently, I didn't consider Obama a weighty enough topic to put into my journal, lol. He rarely appears there, and then usually only in connection to whatever issue is under discussion.

Here's another more recent:

http://journals.democraticunderground.com/LWolf

[tomp]

19. i was correct about bush, also...

...and i have an entirely different view of obama. hmmm.

[Life Long Dem]

23. Yeah, I'm most likely right as well about Obama, since I was right about Bush

I have a hard time imagining the Beatles first time visit reception being equivalent to the flight suit landing reception.

[Uzybone]

24. Amen to that

The only thing I got wrong about Bush was that I underestimated his capacity for deception and evil.

[Politicalboi]

46. You mean

"misunderestimated" The first time I heard that come from Bush's mouth I knew he was an idiot. And I was just floored when the media just poo pooed it off. No big deal they say he's coining his own words. Like "Siblimbinable" That used to end the Daily Show for years coming out of the cows mouth at the end. Al Gore being so smart and Bush being so dumb I thought it was a slam dunk in 2000.

[A-Schwarzenegger]

26. "foreign art farm"

Good one, Brian.

[MadMaddie]

27. Syrinx you were right then and I believe you are right now!!

Well said!!

[HughMoran]

28. I feel the same as you

I consider myself a pretty good judge of character. Not only did I know that Bush was a childish moron the day he was sworn in, that night I had a bad vision of buildings broken in half and a smokey red sky. Bush was bad news from day 1.

Obama on the other hand is exacly my age and grew up in a big city environment just like I did. I can almost predict what he's going to do because he's a lot like me (except he's tall & handsome - lol). My comfort level with Obama is as high as it's ever been with any President in my lifetime.

[Tangerine LaBamba]

43. Bless her heart,

Molly Ivins tried to warn the rest of the United States - if you weren't able to do your own research on that waste of life cheerleader.

Oh, what Molly would have done with Chimpy Fucknuts.

(And you still have the best screen name in all of DU.)

[machI]

50. On the morning of January 21, please post what you dreamed about

I want to know what the next eight years are going to bring us.

[FrenchieCat]

29. I was right about the mess some call Bush throughout......

and I will be proven right about what I think about Barack Obama as well....which is that he is the exact opposite of everything Bush represents.

[rufus dog]

37. Here is a question that always bothered me.

Supposedly Bush had 90% approval ratings after 911. It is often repeated, but just sounds impossible.

If the question was "do you think Bush is doing an adequate job?" How did 9 out of 10 people say yes?

[Tangerine LaBamba]

44. People were scared

Bush made a good speech, although it's hard to imagine how anyone could have made a bad speech for that event.

And everyone though there would be more attacks.

Americans rally around their leader in times of distress, no matter the party affiliation. So, Chimpy Fucknuts got an undeserved break and scored high in the polls.

Same thing happened with Guilian, who, until 9/11, had been a loathed Mayor and was leaving office with absolutely no prospects.

In short, people were scared and wanted to believe. They didn't stop to think that this had happened on Bush's watch, and no one knew about the memo that said bin Laden was going to attack the United States.

[mwb970]

52. The most amazing thing was the suddenness of bush's "approval" after 9/11.

September 10: bush is doing a mediocre job, supported by fewer than 50% of the public that just elected him, with the number dropping every month.

September 12: He's a hero, he's a hero, he's doing a great job, 90+% of the people approve of him. (Of course this number drops in every subsequent month, leading to his current 20%ish rating.)

Not me. I thought he was an idiot on September 10, and I still thought he was an idiot on September 12. And I still think he's an idiot to this very day.

[Political Tiger]

38. I've been thinking the same thing.

I think a lot of us here were well ahead of the curve when it came to Bush. We tried to tell them...Republicans and such...that Bush was a disaster and was leading this country down the road to disaster, but they didn't listen!

With Obama, I feel he is going to go down as one of the greatest presidents ever. I have never felt this much confidence in a president ever.

We were right then, and I feel we are right now!

[HCE SuiGeneris]

39. He is brilliant.

Let's hope his vision is as piercing as his campaign rhetoric.

I am willing to support him 100% if his words ring true.

[VPStoltz]

45. My first and only perception of him has been that he was a liar. Plain and simple.

It's a perception I had wished everyone had had.
Look at what thinking he was a plain speaker got us into.
It hasn't changed to this day.

[DUlover2909]

48. I feel you man 100%. I could see Shrub was total douche from A to Z from the beginning.

"Subliminable"? That did it for me. Total asshat. I already hated his dad. I thought, "OMG, there's no freakin way this guy can beat Al Gore." Well, it turns out I WAS RIGHT! He didn't beat Al Gore. He should have never been made President. The only reason it was even close was because a bunch of idiots in Tennessee wouldn't vote for their own man and Clinton got a hummer from an intern. Things were going well for America back then. That could have continued. Instead we got the Al Quaida decade and endless debt. Thanks Rush Limpdick and all of your idiot robots.

The USA is a ridiculously wealthy country. If any nation can bounce back from Shrub's fuck-ups it's ours. Thank goodness we have a liberal genius in charge now. I feel the way you do about Obama. He'll get it turned around, with our help.

[Wetzelbill]

49. I took one look at Bush and just knew the guy was no good

I thought he was more of a spoiled fool than anything, I think he ended up being more than that, a bully for one thing. Mean-spirited at times and condescending. But I knew this fool would be a screw up, he just oozes it.

As for Obama, I can't figure the cat out. I just know he seems to always be about 3-4 steps ahead of everybody else. I used to think he was naive, now I think the guy probably has the patience of Job to deal with the rest of us dull-witted people. Will he be a good president? Policy-wise, I think he'll be good. Will he be great? I don't know. I'm not an easy sell and I trust no politician totally. He could be great though, we'll see.

[TheKentuckian]

54. I'd argue I've been near dead right on every President from Reagan on

and haven't been surprised in the least. Obama will do us justice, if anyone can. My concern is that we may have screwed the pooch too much to climb out within the attention span of the electorate.