Why does Obama keep doing the things he blames Bush for?
There’s one big reason Barack Obama is getting nowhere by blaming his predecessor for all that ails us today, and it’s not because Americans have short memories. No, it’s because we have long memories — long enough to recognize Obama has been doing many of the very same things he and his supporters on the left criticize George W. Bush for doing.
The pattern has been obvious for some time, but the latest examples came with yesterday’s news that Obama was claiming executive privilege to withhold certain documents from a House investigation of the “Fast and Furious” gun-running scandal.
In that 2009-10 operation, federal agents allowed about 2,000 firearms to be smuggled into Mexico. But rather than tracking down the recipients in drug cartels, the feds lost track of them — until, that is, the weapons showed up on murder scenes. The guns have been connected to the deaths of scores of Mexican citizens and a border patrol agent, Brian Terry.
Not only did then-Sen. Obama slam Bush in 2007 for “try[ing] to hide behind executive privilege” to keep information under wraps when there was “something a little shaky that’s taking place.” (That case involved no deaths, just the firing of eight U.S. attorneys, whose service at the pleasure of the president was evident when Bill Clinton fired all 93 of them upon taking office in 1993.)
But, what’s more, documents the Obama administration has released indicate Fast and Furious was similar to a smaller operation federal agents tried in 2006-07. They ended it after realizing their gun-tracking methods didn’t work. The Obama administration didn’t just ignore those bad results; it quadrupled-down on the bad blueprint.
If that reminds you of our national debt problems, join the club.
Once upon a time — call it July 3, 2008 — Obama said it was “irresponsible” and “unpatriotic” for a president to add “$4 trillion [in debt] all by his lonesome.”
Maybe he found Bush’s profligacy irresponsible and unpatriotic because it took him eight years to accomplish, whereas Obama has pulled it off in just three (not counting the 2009 fiscal year that covered the first eight months of his presidency and included the first part of his “stimulus” and hundreds of billions in other spending he OK’d).
Of course, Obama blamed Bush’s large deficits in part on “tax cuts for the rich.” Then he extended those same tax cuts in 2010 as the economy was recovering from a recession, which was also the situation when Bush signed the cuts in 2001.
Then there was the “off the books” war spending. Obama moved the war spending on the books, all right. Now Obama requests the money not via supplemental budgets, but through the regular budgets Harry Reid’s Senate has ignored the past three years.
And defense spending is, by the way, more than it was even during the final Bush years.
Maybe that’s because Obama kept the Bush timeline for withdrawing our soldiers from Iraq. After trying to negotiate an extension to keep them there longer. Just as Bush had.
And maybe it’s because he ordered a troop “surge” in tribally fractured Afghanistan. The same kind of surge he said wouldn’t work in ethnically fractured Iraq. Which Bush ordered.
Even comparatively smaller things get the blame-but-copy-Bush treatment.
Lose billions of taxpayer dollars on job-creation “investments” at private alternative-energy firms such as Solyndra? Tell Congress you were just making loans under a Bush-era program.
Workers from the General Services Administration blow $840,000 on a lavish Las Vegas conference? Answer that the trend started under the previous administration.
Blame, copy, repeat.
In fact, Google returns more than 5.6 million results for “Obama blames Bush.” I didn’t have time to check whether the president followed his predecessor’s lead in each instance.
The ship of state may turn only slowly, but three and a half years is time enough for a president to plot his own course. It’s long enough to stop doing things he describes as mistakes by the old regime.
If he hasn’t stopped repeating mistakes by now, it tells us something about his judgment, competence or both.
The last three and a half years might not quite amount to “Bush’s third term.” But they have repeated the worst of Bush’s years in a way that offers no confidence for another go-round.
– By Kyle Wingfield
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236 comments Add your comment
UIC
June 21st, 2012
8:45 am
“Maybe he found Bush’s profligacy irresponsible and unpatriotic because it took him eight years to accomplish, whereas Obama has pulled it off in just three” – good comparison, Kyle. I think they both inherited similar situations.
…for your next column, write this. FDR’s administration spent $414B over his 12 years as President. President Obama spends that amount in two months. Gosh, President Obama’s administration spends too much money. Context not needed.
“Of course, Obama blamed Bush’s large deficits in part on “tax cuts for the rich.” Then he extended those same tax cuts in 2010 as the economy was recovering from a recession, which was also the situation when Bush signed the cuts in 2001.” – again, excellent comparison, the situations they inherited were exactly the same. I remember President Obama really pushing to extend those tax cuts, because he realizes the value of trickle down economics.
“In fact, Google returns more than 5.6 million results for “Obama blames Bush.” I didn’t have time to check whether the president followed his predecessor’s lead in each instance.” – don’t bother…since you didn’t add context to the previous statements, there is no reason to believe you do it if you listed other instances.
GT
June 21st, 2012
8:49 am
If Obama is responsible for this economy I think it only right Bush should take his responsibility for 9/11 which was on his watch. Very similar logic, only I find it more digestible for Bush which ran a very rag tag operation and invited intrusion. The security was outsourced at the airports not working for our government, save money lose lives a Republican theme. Not too different from the enemy seeing weakness in Jimmy Carter, only a different weakness of too hands on in Carter’s case.
This weakness of Bush was taken advantage of by even his cabinet members,Rumsfeld. Wall Street and fellow members of his own party. Jack Abramoff, Tom Delay, Jeff Skilling and Bernard Madoff all had a field day under that administration, until it became so obvious that all these crooks had gotten into the inter-circle, maybe Madoff being the exception to that relationship, but certainly enjoy the loose regulations.
If you can con billions for you own personal purposes and be practically one man would not it be logical that an organization could laundry even more, since the accountants in the US government were obviously asleep, or just didn’t care since so much stolen was going back to the GOP as contributions. You kind of wonder now in this superpac if this foreign money that the GOP is collecting for casinos owned by foreign investors is not this kind of carelessness all over again.
Tiberius - Banned from Bookman's and proud of it!
June 21st, 2012
8:51 am
This is the result you get when you elect the least vetted, least qualified candidate to ever inhabit the Oval Office.
The grieving parents of an American agent want answers to their son’s death. Their government, who created the program that may have provided the murder weapon to his killer, should be bending over backwards to get this family answers instead of stonewalling.
If Obama and Holder were men of principle, they’d do everything possible to provide this family with closure, irregardless of the political consequences those answers might bring.
Rafe Hollister, suffering through Oblamer's ineptocracy
June 21st, 2012
8:53 am
Kyle, great article!
For the libs, if Bush was wrong on all these issues, you have two choices.
Either Barry is wrong for following Bush’s lead, and you should quit defending him. Or, Bush was right to begin with, and you were wrong to criticize him and need to apologize.
Take your pick!
Grasshopper
June 21st, 2012
8:55 am
“yes, weapons from fast and furious were found at the agent terry crime scene, but there is no evidence any of them were used to kill agent terry,”
The weapons were placed at the scene as decorative accessories.
Thomas Heyward Jr.
June 21st, 2012
8:59 am
“Why does Obama keep doing the things he blames Bush for?”
.
Because he has been bought by the same people who bought the Bush Crime Family Syndicate, the Clintons , and John Kerry jr Romney.
.
It really is that simple.
.
They can’t buy Ron Paul though……hence the shrill rhetoric about him.
.
You dummies get the government that you deserve.
brad
June 21st, 2012
9:05 am
Googled “Republicans blame Obama”, and got “About 94,200,000 results”. You’re pathetic, Kyle.
Tiberius - Banned from Bookman's and proud of it!
June 21st, 2012
9:05 am
“They can’t buy Ron Paul though”
That’s because no one really wants him, Thomas Heyward Jr.
There has to be a certain value to a product to make it marketable, and Ron Paul’s value in the political market is very, very small.
Class of '98
June 21st, 2012
9:05 am
“Really?” is the same person as “Becky”, and both are morons.
Tiberius - Banned from Bookman's and proud of it!
June 21st, 2012
9:08 am
brad, the “They do it too!” defense only works in kindergarten.
What you’re saying with your comment is that Obama didn’t really turn out to be the different kind of President you hoped he would be. Thanks for finally seeing the light.
iggy
June 21st, 2012
9:09 am
Unemployment numbers are……..drum roll please…….UP again!!
Obamas failed policies continue to fail.
THE MAJOR DAWG
June 21st, 2012
9:11 am
He does it because he is not a leader, he had no experience in leading.
Just watch Obama will run the dirtiest nastiest campaign ever seen, since it is obvious he has no real plan for his agenda,
Ask Clinton, he even disagrees with him on taxes.
brad
June 21st, 2012
9:12 am
No, Tiberious, I’m saying that whipping out google search numbers to prove your point is not valid. Sorry if the nuance is too much for you.
tiredofIT
June 21st, 2012
9:12 am
To all of you who blame President Obama for the death of the federal agent, aren’t you the ones who always say its not the gun it the person using the gun? If President Obama is guilty then I submit so is the gun manufacture.
tiredofIT
June 21st, 2012
9:14 am
“Just watch Obama will run the dirtiest nastiest campaign ever seen, since it is obvious he has no real plan for his agenda,” What did Romney do to his republican opponents?
brad
June 21st, 2012
9:16 am
Googled “tiberious is a prick”, and got “About 6,260,000 results”.
GT
June 21st, 2012
9:17 am
This country has had two wars that were unpaid for. Corruption at the highest order in Wall Street and federal government, huge tax cuts to the wealthiest American who actually enjoy the spoils of war more than the general population. Now the Republicans want to balance the budget on the backs of the poor, the elderly, the sick, the children. You really like being that kind of people?
This congressional hearing is a distraction from the real issues. We should have legalize drugs instead of another unpaid for war against them. Let get back to 30 million uninsured Americans, Wall Street’s takeover of this country and the danger that presents our sovereignty. Money tainting the justice system and govenment and where there is weak government there is corruption.
Finn McCool (The System isn't Broken; It's Fixed)
June 21st, 2012
9:17 am
Romney leans on govs to be more dower: Bloomberg’s Michael Bender reports: “Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign asked Florida Governor Rick Scott to tone down his statements heralding improvements in the state’s economy because they clash with the presumptive Republican nominee’s message that the nation is suffering under President Barack Obama, according to two people familiar with the matter.
salon.com
Tiberius - Banned from Bookman's and proud of it!
June 21st, 2012
9:19 am
tiredofIT, no one is blaming Obama for the death of Brian Terry, at least not anyone on this blog. Nice of you to attempt to create that false impression, however.
We are saying that the program developed and executed by his Justice Dept., under the direction and knowledge of his Attorney General, provided a stunningly stupid method of going after Mexican drug lords that might have provided the method of that American’s death.
And if you were Brian Terry’s parents (or even remotely intellectually honest with yourself), you’d want answers, too.
the red herring
June 21st, 2012
9:20 am
kyle–you are right—obama took the worst from bush and made it much worse. both presidents had to deal with their own recessions and neither in my opinion handled it really well but bush handled his ok until he let spending get out of control. Now Obama has made spending much much worse. We can’t keep borrowing 40 cents of every dollar we spend. If you think we can then you are part of the problem not the solution. Also you are probably eating out of the government trough, drinking that free bubble up and eating that rainbow stew. It is indeed time for a change in washington d.c. then maybe we will have some hope. If we stay this course we will have none.
Adevarul
June 21st, 2012
9:22 am
Holder says contempt citation unwarranted…The only thing warranted is a warrant for the arrest of this arrogant, lying S of S. He and WH and DoJ are in this up to their necks and Americans will never know a fraction of the truth or their motivations as long as those involved at the top can lie and use executive privilege to do what they want with impunity. The many dead Mexicans unfortunately can’t point their fingers at Holder but a dead border patrol officer’s family needs to sue the WH, Holder and the DoJ for wrongful death. Truth.
Tiberius - Banned from Bookman's and proud of it!
June 21st, 2012
9:22 am
I see that someone wee-wee’d in brad’s Wheaties this morning.
How about trying something new and different, brad? Try debunking Kyle’s arguments with reason and intelligence.
clyde
June 21st, 2012
9:22 am
The reason that Obama keeps doing the things he blamed Bush for is so he can continue to blame Bush.Obama’s side of the press never reports what he’s actually doing.
“Never use a preposition to end a sentence with”.
Tiberius - Banned from Bookman's and proud of it!
June 21st, 2012
9:24 am
“according to two people familiar with the matter.”
It only takes two people at salon.com whispering to each other to start a rumor.
ellen
June 21st, 2012
9:25 am
TIREDOFIT said :”To all of you who blame President Obama for the death of the federal agent, aren’t you the ones who always say its not the gun it the person using the gun? If President Obama is guilty then I submit so is the gun manufacture.”
_________
again, another LIB who doesn’t (or can’t) read the news…..the person using the gun to kill Agent Terry was GIVEN the gun by OUR GOVERNMENT ! our govt purposely handed over these weapons to the drug cartel with ‘high hopes’ that they’d catch these guys. Little did they know that the mexican cartel obviously isn’t as STUPID as our present govt is ,in that they took these weapons (that were handed to them on a silver platter by our govt) , escaped with them, then turned around and killed one of our OWN ! the govt KNEW this was happening, yet played stupid to it all. WHY do you think Holder is about to be held in contempt ??? And while Terry’s family is begging for answers as to why and how their son was murdered, the govt is refusing to answer, as far so as for MR OBAMA to put a seal on the information ! WHAT a COWARD !!!
tiredofIT
June 21st, 2012
9:26 am
While we are looking for answers I want to know why Wall Street hasn’t be broken up after collapsing the economy and stealing our citizens savings and retirement funds. Good job Bush for Sept 2008. I will take a little of the blame because I vote for him the first time he ran.
K Mom
June 21st, 2012
9:29 am
@ Tiberius, actually someone did say the President is responsible:
Ellen
June 21st, 2012
8:10 am
Apparently you didn’t (couldn’t) read what I said either….Yes, Bush used his executive privilege, but not to HIDE A MURDER that the government is responsible for !! That’s exactly what Obama is doing !! HIS administration is personally responsible for the death of Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry, but they want it swept under the rug ! Pay attention to the news !!!
Lil' Barry Bailout (Revised Downward)
June 21st, 2012
9:30 am
USA Today: Confidence in public schools at all-time low.
———
Even public schools were better under Our President Bush.
K Mom
June 21st, 2012
9:34 am
Lil’ Barry, didn’t Romney say…
Romney said of Obama, “he wants another stimulus, he wants to hire more government workers. He says we need more fireman, more policeman, more teachers. Did he not get the message of Wisconsin? The American people did. It’s time for us to cut back on government and help the American people.”
I’m just sayin…
Lil' Barry Bailout (Revised Downward)
June 21st, 2012
9:36 am
I sure hope he said that!
Smaller government means a more prosperous, more free American citizenry.
kayaker 71
June 21st, 2012
9:38 am
The irony of Bozo and his gang of thieves being called stupid and inept is really off the wall. Bozo is far from stupid. He told us that he wanted to essentially change this country. A lot of voters were just not listening. He has attempted, over the last 3 plus years to do just that. And he has been pretty successful. Give him four more years and he will certainly finish the job. I don’t blame Bozo for what he has done….. I think that it has been disastrous for this country and its citizens. We can right the wrongs of this clown by just voting him out of government housing. Who do I really blame for this decline in our country since Bozo took over? The Bozo voter. The insane liberal with the Bozo sticker on the bumper of his car is just as complicit in this whole mess as Bozo ever thought about being. You are just as responsible for the demise of what we hole dear as this inept social experiment that you call a President. And you are too stupid to even realize it.
tiredofIT
June 21st, 2012
9:38 am
LLB: USA Today: Confidence in public schools at all-time low.
It should have read confidence in parents to do their job is at an all time low.
Lil' Barry Bailout (Revised Downward)
June 21st, 2012
9:39 am
President Romney gets it. Americans know how to grow the economy better than government, and especially the economically retarded Obozo.
tiredofIT
June 21st, 2012
9:42 am
President Romney will make us the next Ireland. Remember when the republicans where praising the Irish and their low corporate taxes. Look again, not such a pretty picture.
Darwin
June 21st, 2012
9:43 am
So the last time we had a Democratic party president, he was impeached by a Republican led Congress. This time, it’s contempt charges against the AG. It appears to me that everytime the Republicans gain control of Congress, they start bullying and trying to extend their power. Why are Republicans like this?
Tiberius - Banned from Bookman's and proud of it!
June 21st, 2012
9:43 am
K Mom, at some point you may wish to understand the difference between “an administration” and “personally” responsible.
To enlighten you, Holder is a member of the Obama administration. He heads up the Dept. of Justice. His department provided the policy and the weapons in Fast & Furious.
Do you understand that now?
ellen
June 21st, 2012
9:46 am
yes, K-Mom, Obama and his administration IS responsible for the death of Agent Terry. You don’t think so ? The fact that Obama and his wagon full of idiots knew the cartel had escaped with these weapons and were warned that US agents would be targets using these weapons, yet ignored it , doesn’t make them responsible ? Why is Obama wanting this information sealed ? Why won’t he speak with the family of Agent Terry ? Why won’t he give Americans answers to what went wrong with this ‘fast and furious’ plan they came up with ? I believe once these papers are uncovered, we’ll find that not only Holder was well aware of what was going on, but Obama’s name will be smeared all over it too ! Obama didn’t waste any time contacting the Trayvon Martin family when their son was killed in an altercation with a white hispanic, yet, an American US Border Patrol Agent is murdered by the Mexican Cartel over a year ago, and Obama won’t speak to the family of this hero? As I said before, he’s nothing but a coward !
finn mccool
June 21st, 2012
9:47 am
And why would romney be better? What proof do we have?
All I’ve seen is vietnam deferments and flip-flops on every issue.
All that doesn’t add up to a winner.
Tiberius - Banned from Bookman's and proud of it!
June 21st, 2012
9:48 am
Darwin, try to take the politics out of this situation and put yourself in the shoes of Brian Terry’s family.
You know that there is a lot more information out there that Holder isn’t making available. That is fact. Congress wants that information on behalf of your family and your dead son.
Why doesn’t Holder provide those documents?
1. It would make his department look bad.
2. It would make him look bad.
3. It would make his boss look bad.
There are NO other reasons why this stonewalling is occurring.
Lil' Barry Bailout (Revised Downward)
June 21st, 2012
9:50 am
It appears to me that everytime the Democrats gain control of the Executive branch, criminal behavior results.
——–
Fixed.
Tiberius - Banned from Bookman's and proud of it!
June 21st, 2012
9:51 am
“And why would romney be better?”
Because he has said that he’d do exactly the opposite of what Obama has done; i.e. be successful in fixing the economy.
“What proof do we have?”
Oh, now we want proof before electing someone, Finn? Whatever happened to “hope”?
Lil' Barry Bailout (Revised Downward)
June 21st, 2012
9:52 am
Why is President Romney superior to his predecessor? Well, he’s a real American for starters.
iggy
June 21st, 2012
9:53 am
Too funny. The libtards only argument is “but but but”.
Tiberius - Banned from Bookman's and proud of it!
June 21st, 2012
9:54 am
“All I’ve seen is vietnam deferments”
Nice attempt to throw mud on the candidate who actually ENTERED the draft, Finn.
History shows that Romney, after his deferments, entered the draft while the Vietnam War was still on, yet wasn’t high enough on the list to be drafted.
Epic fail on your part again.
md
June 21st, 2012
9:55 am
“Kyle, you’re asking the wrong question. You should be asking – Will Romney be any different from Bush and Obama on these issues?”
Well……there’s one sure way to find out…………
Active on Bookman's blog because I don't go into immature name calling rants like a child
June 21st, 2012
9:56 am
“Well, he’s a real American for starters.”
So Barry is now the arbitrator on who is a real American?
Keep the laughs coming. If nothing else you are funny
markie mark
June 21st, 2012
9:57 am
Man, maybe some of you guys on the left missed this point, so let me spell it out for you. Holder has said, under oath, over and over, that he was NOT aware of Fast & Furious. (he has had to retract that statement, but still swears he didnt know the depth of the operation). Holder has sworn the White House (OBAMA, kids) knew NOTHING about the operation. Period.
Executive Privilege is ONLY invoked to shield White House and upper Cabinet staff’s communication….you still want to convince us that Obama and Holder were not involved in this operation? BS
And for the claims that this was started by ATF under Bush? It was….and as soon as the Bush administration found out about it, THEY SHUT IT DOWN.
Finn McCool (The System isn't Broken; It's Fixed)
June 21st, 2012
10:00 am
So we should quit holding Bush accountable? We should stop pointing out that the reason we are in the situation we are in has a lot to do with his policies? And we shouldn’t point out that electing another Republican to the White House will resurrect all those bad policies?
It sounds like the Cons want the liberals to stop mentioning Bush because, as they see it, our current situation began on January 21st, 2009.
md
June 21st, 2012
10:05 am
“If Obama is responsible for this economy I think it only right Bush should take his responsibility for 9/11 which was on his watch. Very similar logic, only I find it more digestible for Bush which ran a very rag tag operation and invited intrusion. The security was outsourced at the airports not working for our government, save money lose lives a Republican theme.”
Hope one knows that the hijackers actually first came in for their intel and training under the Clinton Administration and that numerous weapons have been smuggled through our airports even with the impenetrable Federales on the job……………..
md
June 21st, 2012
10:07 am
“huge tax cuts to the wealthiest American who actually enjoy the spoils of war more than the general population”
I certainly hope the “GT” isn’t in reference to the Institution of higher learning where they teach one to look at the entire equation…….which in this case would include the fact that EVERYBODY got those tax cuts.