The Absentee President
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I came upon some interesting statistics the other night. Now, these statistics are from the government, not some left-wing liberal Republican-bashing web site. We’re dealing in just the facts, ma’am.
Since our Commander-in-Chief’s ill-advised election in 2000, he has spent 2,726 days in office. (We have 194 days of ineptitude and corruption left.) However, you’ll be interested to find out that George Bush has actually only served a total of 1,686 days). He’s actually made all this mess in less time than we thought. That’s because he’s spent 908 days on vacation at his ranch in Crawford, Texas. Then, let’s add the additional 132 days of vacation he’s spent split between Camp David and his parents house in Kennebunkport, ME. So, he’s been on vacation a whopping 36% of his term (or 1,040 days).
Now, here come the moderates and conservatives: “Oh, that’s ridiculous. He’s never not working. He’s the president! His job goes with him.” That doesn’t do it for me. In fact, it doesn’t work for a lot of us. Sitting in a golf cart, waving to reporters, and perhaps making a statement here and there doesn’t qualify as work. Here’s why George Bush’s spending 1,040 days away from Washington, D.C. is a testimony to his lack of character:
1. On George Bush’s watch (and nobody else’s), the United States suffered the most deadly terrorist attack in its history and on its own soil. This time it wasn’t an embassy in Africa or the Middle East. It’s disgusting to hear him portrayed as a hero when his administration’s shortcomings failed to prevent this attack, or at least minimize it. Since September 11, 2001, all the Bush administration has done is stonewall any investigation into these attacks. He’s been on vacation while the victims’ families continue to push for the truth.
2. As a result of 9-11, George Bush committed other people’s sons, daughters, mothers and fathers to an invasion of Afghanistan, supposedly to apprehend the perpetrator of this attack, placing their lives in danger. We’re no longer there to apprehend Osama bin Forgotten, that’s for sure. Do you really think it’s just fine that George Bush is extending military tours by months in Afghanistan and deploying soldiers sometimes up to 3 times (there aren’t enough soldiers to re-deploy to Afghanistan because of the Iraq war) and spending so much time away from DC? How would you feel if your loved ones were serving?
3. George Bush started another ill-advised war in Iraq. If you listen to all the speeches given by Bush and members of his administration (including the supposed Mr. Clean, Colin Powell) prior to the invasion of Iraq, you would think an attack by Iraq was imminent. These were nothing more than a pack of lies. There were no mistakes. Lies. There’s a difference. The real reason? Oil. Since the invasion of Iraq, more than 4,000 U.S. soldiers have died, as well as hundreds of thousands of innocent Iraqis. More than 5 million have been driven from their homes. I can’t imagine a reason that would justify this type of devastation. There is no upside here. George Bush has told the press that he has no trouble sleeping at night even though he’s sending people into harms’ way. In fact, he told one reporter he and Laura are having the time of their lives. Don’t you think our leader should at least feign some type of empathy I wonder how the families of those who have died in this blot on America’s history feel about that.
4. George Bush’s appointment of inexperienced cronies to key positions directly resulted in the hideous response to Hurricane Katrina. His administration was warned of the danger and the warning was ignored. President Bush added insult to injury by turning his back on the victims of Hurricane Katrina. It is appalling that in the United States of America, people can still be displaced with no clear road to travel five years after the storm. While he’s splitting vacation time between three locations, the victims of Hurricane Katrina are still, in some cases, waiting for money to reclaim what little they had to begin with.
President Bush has himself stated that he wasn’t intending to give up his life. He doesn’t see this as a full-time job. Well, if that’s the case, perhaps he shouldn’t be ‘the decider.’ I’m sure all the conservatives will rush to his defense, happy to portray Mr. Bush as something he’s not: a leader. It takes more than votes, a title, and the ability to start wars to be a leader. In fact, war is easy compared to diplomacy and learning to live in the world with other cultures and governments. George Bush has taken the easy way out at every turn and, as a result, has made the lives of his citizens more difficult and painful. This alone is his legacy.
It is not standard practice for the President of the United States to spend 36% of both terms on vacation. No other president in our history has done so. With the crises caused by this administration, there’s even less justification for President Bush spending 1,040 days on vacation. A leader at least fakes it. He musters the ability to empathize with his citizens pain, even if he truly doesn’t feel it himself. Our arrogant, self-serving president has not shown that ability. He is truly devoid of conscience, soul and character, just three of the critical qualities that make a leader.
Comment by Larry on 12 July 2008:
I believe another devastating attack, possibly a more preponderant one since the economic devastation was greater, was under FDR’s watch. According to the National Park Service 2388 Americans died in this attack, 2752 died in the World Trade Center attack. The attack at the time was called Pearl Harbor, the outset of WWII.
There are many people who are proud of their sons and daughters in the military. These are the ones who have helped Afgan and Iraqi women and children get educations, jobs and rights, such as the one you are using now. Freedom to speak and think as you choose, as you please, something they didn’t have under Saddam or Al Quieda.
Many governments and many politicians were given the same information that led President Bush to the decisions he made, they held the same opinions. MI6 in conjunction with MI5 and “Box 850″ provided information, know known to have been misinformation, to various govenment agencies, including our own CIA. This information contained many documents, testimonials and photos alleged to be accruate and incontrovertable. Information proving Saddam Hussin was procuring and caching wmd’s. If a finger is to be pointed, point to many. The rhetoric is hackneyed and trying to turn Bush into an Oliver North is tiresome.
Katrina was indeed a deplorable cataclysm. That being said, one man or even a government can’t solve the woes. My wife and I spent days in the area as volunteers doing whatever was needed and wanted. Many did, individuals as well as various organizations. My point being, it’s us that make a difference during such calamity, not only a president or social services organization. Were you there?
Some of the things President Bush has accomplished deserves credit, he is not the villian ultra-liberals like to paint him as. He is munificent, courageous, dedicated and forthright in his ideas. Dedicated to making America a better place. Not all of his ideas are perfect, he is not a perfect man. I have never met such a person, albeit many have professed such. FDR, a Democrat, was also a good president. He and Bush share many characteristics. The things that you intimate President Bush is lacking, the qualities of leadership. The depiction of leadership you evoke is qualities everyone should possess. A sine qua non of leadership is, dynamism, gravitas, vision, stalwartness, command, sagacity and tenacity, all perspicuous in Bush.
Comment by Deb Della Piana on 13 July 2008:
Hey Larry, I hope we can agree to disagree on this one. I understand that Pearl Harbor was devastating and that WWII was a horrific war. I had no less than four uncles serve in WWII, one who came back emotionally devastated at the age of 20 and never recovered. However, I really don’t think we can compare WWII with the 9-11 terrorist attacks. If it’s possible for there to be a ‘legitimate’ or ‘worthwhile’ war, WWII was it.
The terrorist attacks were something entirely different. Intelligence was ignored prior to the attacks. The military was kept at stand down mode during the attacks, for some unknown reason. There was never an investigation after the attacks, and we still haven’t brought Osama bin Laden to justice seven years later.
As for Iraq, it’s not WWII. It is now pretty much an established fact that the Bush administration lied to Congress and the American public in order to justify the invasion. There were no WMDs. There were no mobile biolabs. There was no imminent attack on the U.S. coming. And Iraq as not involved in 9-11. Lying to justify invading a sovereign nation is an impeachable offense regardless of who is in power. Bill Clinton was impeached for lying to Congress and the American people about having sex with Monica Lewinski. I’m trying to understand why George Bush is still president of the United States. As the architect of those lies, he is responsible for the deaths of more than 4,000 Americans and more than a million Iraqis. More than 5 million have been displaced.
As for the troops, I am 100% in support of them. I know people whose sons and daughters have already done 2 and 3 tours of duty. I think they are incredibly brave to fight in this war. It’s ugly and unpredictable. However, it does not mean that I support the war. I do not. I believe that the best support we can give our troops is to set a timetable for their return without any further delay. For the record, I also do not support an attack on Iran by either the U.S. or Israel. Let me just get that on the table in advance of any military action. We are aggressively out of control and it needs to stop.
The government’s response to Katrina was flat out disgusting, the direct result of the inept political appointment of Michael Brown as the head of FEMA. Prior to working at FEMA, Brown had absolutely no emergency management experience. His prior job was as the Judges & Stewards Commissioner for the International Arabian Horse Association. He was asked to resign from the IAHA. He then joined the Bush administration (2001) and went from General Counsel to Director of FEMA in just two years. However, let’s go back even further. We now know that the Bush administration ignored the warnings (prior to Katrina hitting) that the levees would not hold.
Just as we cannot liken either the 9-11 terrorist attacks or the war in Iraq to WWII, we cannot liken Bush to FDR. I think George Bush is one of the worst presidents in American history. Under his presidency our image around the world has gone from being the world’s moral compass to being a world bully. He has used the war on terror and the politics of fear to expand the powers of the presidency and to take away our civil rights. He started not one, but two, ill-advised wars stretching the military to its limits, and asking more of soldiers than they should have to give. Then he fails to support an education bill that will help the veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. He is ill-informed and arrogant. Sorry, he is no leader.
Deb Della Pianas last blog post..The Absentee President
Comment by Larry on 13 July 2008:
We can always agree to disagree my friend, that’s what America is all about, freedom. One of the things that attracted me to this website was the title, “hypocrisy”. So many are hypocritical and don’t even know it. Like attacking our government for defending our freedoms, yet using and holding it dearly in speech. Our federal government is there for one reason and one reason only. To protect our sovereignty and defends us against our enemies.
Anyway, about your response. You may have misinturpreted my post. In no way am I defending the President on the debacle in the Middle East. I stated openly, prior to going in, that we were making a grave mistake. However, like so many, after discovering the atrocities Saddam, Uday and Qusay committed on men, women and children I realized we couldn’t leave. Atrocities so vile, dispicable and draconian I dare not reveal what I know. Likening the mass murders to Auschwitz would only be the tip of the iceberg.
With that said, my point was more along the lines of what it takes to be a leader and what people expect from their government. I myself am a leader in my field and have been incorporated since 1980. I do well under Republican leadership although I view myself as a Centrist. The Democratic Party is a party of socialism and no business does well in a socialistic society. For what America was founded on, getting out from the onerous yoke of aristocratic British policies and government, to return to socialism is but one step closer to giving up our autonomy. No thank you, I’m not a socialist. I donate large sums of money and time for altruistic and humanitarian causes as I don’t believe it’s the government’s role to care for everyone. Besides, from what I’ve seen in the last fifty years or so they don’t manage money very well anyway. Not to mention a fundalmental law of economics, to reward a down statistic results in the proliferation of down statistics.
Moreover, we each and everone have their own views, but let me leave you with this. Shouldn’t the most preponderant characteristic of a great leader be the one who considers the greasest good for the greatest number involved? Some may suffer, some shall excell, but through each’s own involvement shall tell the tale. No successful government in history has succored and coddled a society into well being.
And in closing, let me leave you with this quote.
“The hottest layers of hell are reserved for those who in times of moral crisis maintain their neutrality.” Dante
Comment by Richard Cochrane on 13 July 2008:
Larry - Hypocrite is far too eesy of a word for those who ignore evil for their temporary comfort. But I think you are wasting your time using logic, reason and facts in this case.
Comment by Deb Della Piana on 13 July 2008:
Thank you, Richard, and bash away. I now take your comments as compliments. I am definitely staying on the other side.
Deb Della Pianas last blog post..The Absentee President
Comment by Richard Cochrane on 13 July 2008:
I’m pleased. I think a waste of time should be acknowledged.
Comment by Deb Della Piana on 13 July 2008:
Larry, I believe a great leader is one who doesn’t leave people behind. President Bush has done plenty of that. At one time, our leaders spoke of helping those less fortunate. We’ve redefined what a great nation is over the past decade or so, and we are not the better for our new definition. There’s too much corporate greed. Executives who drive companies into the ground receive severance packages that are so far out of line it’s barely tolerable. They manipulate stock and steal people’s retirement funds (which happened to my own brother-in-law), but rarely go to jail.
And nobody will ever convince me that the vast military-industrial complex is behind the war in Iraq. This was an unholy alliance that even Dwight D. Eisenhower, a military man, warned us about as he left office.
How do great leaders think?
“The test of our progress is not whether we add more to the abundance of those who have much; it is whether we provide enough for those who have too little.”
-Franklin D. Roosevelt
Deb Della Pianas last blog post..The Absentee President
Comment by Larry on 13 July 2008:
I said FDR was a great president — and he was. But Deb, those were different times, different problems, with a far less evolved society. FDR was a socialist, something we needed to get out of “The Great Depression”. Those policies aren’t needed now. As a matter of fact, they’re detrimental to our economic growth — for everyone, not just the wealthy. You teach a man to fish, you don’t give him one.
No one can take care of everyone, make everyone happy, but our nation is a munificent and benevolent one. We put more money, our government, into the UN and other world organizations than any other country around the globe. Individuals, Americans, are selfless and travel around the world helping others, more so now than any other time in history. It’s ludicrous and hypocritical of you to intimate otherwise.
Your comments: “At one time, our leaders spoke of helping those less fortunate. We’ve redefined what a great nation is over the past decade or so, and we are not the better for our new definition.” They hold no validity and are demeaning to those of us who have made a difference. You need to understand, it’s not our government that needs to make a difference, it’s us.
All I can say to you Deb, is if it’s socialism you seek, try France, Germany, Italy or any other European country that practices it, you’ll be back.
Comment by Deb Della Piana on 13 July 2008:
Larry, I cannot believe you are looking at this economy at this time and telling me that these programs are to the detriment of the majority of people in this country. I find that ridiculous.
Secondly, the problems we have now are largely created by our current president. I need to understand how you folks view what he has done in America or to America. He is not responsive to anybody but the rich and Corporate America. This is absolutely NOT the majority of Americans. In fact, comfortable is no longer the majority of Americans How do you think the economy got this way? We are spending $12 billion per month funding the war in Iraq. We are borrowing from every other nation we can find to continue this war. Yet, when he receives a piece of legislation to help underprivileged kids get medical coverage with a price tag of $35 billion over 4 years, he vetoes it and calls it “fiscally irresponsible.” I really do not want any more conservative justifications for what he’s doing because it doesn’t fly with me.
Where do you envision this war in Iraq going? When will we know if we win it? What is its purpose. Now, Nouri al Maliki wants no deal without a timeline for America’s withdrawal. Iraq is a sovereign nation and we ought to get out. It was not our territory to plunder. Don’t tell me we’ve helped those people because that’s just propaganda. We ought to get out now. IT IS THEIR COUNTRY AND THEY WANT US OUT. We have no business being there.
George Bush is divisive. He has ignored domestic problems because he’s been fighting wars for nearly his entire two terms. He has vetoed nearly every piece of legislation that would benefit the majority of Americans. He has assaulted the Constitution, and I find him positively reprehensible. He is not a leader.
As I’ve said. I respect your opinion, but I will never ascribe to it.
Deb Della Pianas last blog post..The Absentee President
Comment by Deb Della Piana on 13 July 2008:
Larry, this post was originally about our president taking 1,040 vacation days. In the situation the United States is in, that’s way too many days to be out of the office. We’ve lost sight of my original issue, which is that George Bush is an absentee president.
Even when the country has been in fairly good shape, no president has taken that much vacation time. And no president has stated that he doesn’t view the position as a full-time job, and no president has stated that he told us from the beginning he had his own life. Just George Bush. These are words from his own mouth.
It would seem to me that we should elect only those who take this job seriously. T
Comment by Larry on 13 July 2008:
Deb, I would never ask you to ascribe to any opinion other than your own, be your own counsel. But what I see out of you is not much more than Bush bashing and it’s hackneyed. All leaders do good and bad. I told you, I was not for the battle in Iraq and I’m still not. But, if we are the munificent, altruistic people that you think we are, we should help others in their struggle for democracy. No different than what the French did for us during our American Revolution.
What you’re doing here however, is regressing to Bush bashing rather than looking at our government’s role in the world. I agree, I do not want our troops there. Twelve billion a month of borrowed money will come back to haunt us and it’s emasculating our economy. However, if our presence wasn’t really desired do you think we would be there? How many men or women have you personally known that have been in any conflict in the Middle East? I have known dozens, heard horrid stories from many. Personal accounts from our men and women in the military who know the plebians of Iraq desire our presence. You need to quit listening to the liberal media outlets. Nouri Al Maliki was doing nothing more than what all politicians do, pandering to the opposition. If they truly requested us to leave we would have no choice, we would be gone.
And yes, for what’s going on in the world I think our economy is still relatively strong, the envy of the world. I’m doing well myself, not as well as in the Reagan years, but sufficiently nonetheless. I don’t know if you quite understood my position and why I said FDR’s policies aren’t needed now. Let me be perspicuous. Our federal government should have no role in social issues or programs. Social agendas should be within the purview of state and local government only. You sighted the Constitution, go back and see what role our founding fathers said the federal government should play. It’s like I said, maintaining sovereignty and defending us against our enemies.
As far as FDR’s dogmas and policies, read up on it. Everyone knew he was a socialist, it’s not just me saying that. I have no objection to social programs when needed, after all, I told you I was a Centrist. Social Security, one of FDR’s, now a debacle. “The New Deal” tripled federal taxes between 1933 and 1940. It made it too expensive for employers to hire people and discouraged hiring in general. But FDR came to the rescue with the “WPA”, Works Progress Administration. He extended Hoover’s relief program under the new name of Federal Emergency Relief Administration, a form of welfare. The CCC, Civilian Conservation Corps, was formed to hire people to work on rural and local projects, work for the government. He coerced Congress to give the Federal Trade Commission new and broader regulatory powers. The same Trade Commission that has gotten our trade deficit to where it is now. You can thank FDR for FICA as well, established in 1939 and responsible for collection of social security funds. Oh, and don’t forget, FDR was a war time president also.
The long and short of it is this, some were good, some were bad. History has proven his ideas worked, we came out of the depression and are stronger today because of it. But make no mistake about it, Roosevelt himself said many of these programs were to be short term, not to be equated with a way of life.
We could go on infinitely about the pros and cons of each president, they all have some of each. I imagine it’s up to the desires of each of us to decide which is our personal favorite. I believe the difference between you and I is that I view leadership as one who has to make hard decisions for the benefit of the most. Some do not like that point of view and some like to censure those who lead. But let me put it another way. Hypothetically, if you led 100 people and you had to sacrifice one to save the rest, what would you do? You don’t think Bush is empathetic, but he has to make these types of decisions all the time. You are probably thinking you would ask for volunteers, but say no one does. Then what?
As callous as it may sound I shall tell you what I would do. I’d talk to each and everyone of them, see what each had to offer to society. I would culminate the list of attributes and choose the one who had the least to offer to the most people, he or she would stay behind. If it were myself, I would stay behind. Tell me, what would you do?
Comment by Larry on 13 July 2008:
Deb, I’m pretty sure Mr. Bush takes his job seriously. I hadn’t heard those words specifically, but I do recall something about the comments, “he doesn’t view the position as a full-time job” and “he had his own life”. A little out of context if you ask me. The first was in reference to comparing the presidency to the tenure of a legislature.In the last twenty years the tenure of a Senator has risen from sixteen to twenty-six years. The second was in reference to what he was going to do after his term and his life on the ranch in Texas.
As far as his absenteeism, hey, it’s the American way baby. Check your poles, Americans love their time off work. The vast majority would prefer time off work than more money.
Comment by richard cochrane on 13 July 2008:
Larry- suffer the hater’s ignorance its is inexplicable. Keep it up Deb reveals herself.