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NYTimes - So Little Time, So Much Damage
I said it beforehand, I said it the night of the election, and I've been saying it ever since: Bush is gonna do his best to burn this place to the fucking ground before he leaves office. Partly because he is a loathful and reprehensibly evil man, partly because his party lost.
I don't know if the Democrats do this, but I know that the Republicans sure shit all over Congress when they lost their majority in 2006. The Republicans hadn't passed an expenditure bill, so the Democrats took over having to a) fix the problems the Republicans purposely created while b) dealing with them threatening to filibuster all major bills on the floor so that they couldn't c) actually get to any of the promises they made to their constituents. The idea was that the Republicans could then say "SEE! They got the majority and couldn't keep any of their promises! Look at the record!"
This time it's a different branch of the government and some of the slimiest players aren't in office anymore. The Democrats don't have a filibuster-proof majority, so we may still see a little resistence from Congress (though Obama's popularity should limit that to Reps and Senators from places of concentrated social conservatism). This means it's up to Bush to throw up the biggest roadblocks.
What remains to be seen is how far he will go. Sure he'll continue to attack the freedoms of US citizens, but what about their lives or livelihoods? When I warn people that he will try and sabotage Obama's first 100 days the response is usually, "how much more damage can he do?!"
Two words: bomb Iran.
It doesn't make sense that anyone would go that far just to spite their political opponant, but in the past 8 years the Bush Administration has surprised me more and more with their utter lack of reverence for America's Constitution and the welfare of her citizens. How much do YOU trust that they have our best interests in mind? For me that answer is: not at all.
President Bush’s aides have been scrambling to change rules and regulations on the environment, civil liberties and abortion rights, among others — few for the good. Most presidents put on a last-minute policy stamp, but in Mr. Bush’s case it is more like a wrecking ball. We fear it could take months, or years, for the next president to identify and then undo all of the damage.
I said it beforehand, I said it the night of the election, and I've been saying it ever since: Bush is gonna do his best to burn this place to the fucking ground before he leaves office. Partly because he is a loathful and reprehensibly evil man, partly because his party lost.
I don't know if the Democrats do this, but I know that the Republicans sure shit all over Congress when they lost their majority in 2006. The Republicans hadn't passed an expenditure bill, so the Democrats took over having to a) fix the problems the Republicans purposely created while b) dealing with them threatening to filibuster all major bills on the floor so that they couldn't c) actually get to any of the promises they made to their constituents. The idea was that the Republicans could then say "SEE! They got the majority and couldn't keep any of their promises! Look at the record!"
This time it's a different branch of the government and some of the slimiest players aren't in office anymore. The Democrats don't have a filibuster-proof majority, so we may still see a little resistence from Congress (though Obama's popularity should limit that to Reps and Senators from places of concentrated social conservatism). This means it's up to Bush to throw up the biggest roadblocks.
What remains to be seen is how far he will go. Sure he'll continue to attack the freedoms of US citizens, but what about their lives or livelihoods? When I warn people that he will try and sabotage Obama's first 100 days the response is usually, "how much more damage can he do?!"
Two words: bomb Iran.
It doesn't make sense that anyone would go that far just to spite their political opponant, but in the past 8 years the Bush Administration has surprised me more and more with their utter lack of reverence for America's Constitution and the welfare of her citizens. How much do YOU trust that they have our best interests in mind? For me that answer is: not at all.