After the failed presidencies of Bush and Obama, the door has been opened for a paradigm shift.
8
W is the Lady Mary and Jeb! is the Lady Edith of the Bush family. Babs is Violet, Laura is Cora, and 41 says Lord Granthamish things like Golly gumdrops! Like Downton Abbey, the Bush saga is at an end. Thank God.
32
I extend a deep thank you to Donald Trump for his truth telling regarding the deeply flawed Bush family, and the widespread damage they created for America and the rest of the world. And an equal thank you to Ms. Dowd for her nice history today of the Bush family misdeeds over the decades. One tidbit I would add - just a coincidence I'm sure - Bush 41 was in Dallas the day JFK was assassinated.
I am a little puzzled with constant praise heaped on El Trumpo by Ms. Dowd.
After years of her razor sharp incisions into the Obama and Clinton regimes, El Trumpo is getting a free pass. Could it be her fear of him giving her the "Megyn Kelly" treatment?
I am a little puzzled with constant praise heaped on El Trumpo by Ms. Dowd.
After years of her razor sharp incisions into the Obama and Clinton regimes, El Trumpo is getting a free pass. Could it be her fear of him giving her the "Megyn Kelly" treatment?
56
What's this, a coherent analysis by Maureen Dowd! Has she finally decided to drop that tiresome much-more-clever-than-thou, hip insider schtick?
67
Believe me, no one is more pleased with the outcome than independents and conservatives. Next obstacle: Rubio.
8
Reading Maureen Dowd's columns is like driking a shot of whiskey! Straight up at that!
For a democracy to work well dynastic politics need to stop. And the American people "get it" and are acting on it.
President Obama's election was about "hope" and "change" and a rejection of "politics as usual/dynastic politics" of the Clintons. Now the rise of Bernie Sanders! Most people that are voting for Hillary are doing so because of the lack of a better choice. Most good candidates will not even try to oppose her since she has all the "super" delegates locked up.
Now to the Bush dynasty. This one may well be over and then again not. The dynasty will probably be behind the scenes.
For a democracy to work well dynastic politics need to stop. And the American people "get it" and are acting on it.
President Obama's election was about "hope" and "change" and a rejection of "politics as usual/dynastic politics" of the Clintons. Now the rise of Bernie Sanders! Most people that are voting for Hillary are doing so because of the lack of a better choice. Most good candidates will not even try to oppose her since she has all the "super" delegates locked up.
Now to the Bush dynasty. This one may well be over and then again not. The dynasty will probably be behind the scenes.
4
Maureen you forgot to mention Neil Bush the oldest brother who fleeced Savings and Loan depositors during his father's presidency and then high tailed it for France where he lives today, extremely comfortably.
Strange how this Bush's name never appears in the press!
Strange how this Bush's name never appears in the press!
43
A family of privilege and service is now a foot note on honor and Noblis Oblige. Maureen, you are right to hate Hillary but wrong to vilify the Bushes, they were the best America had to offer.
3
Gee, and here I had the perfect slogan for a Dem running against Jeb: "Let's beat around this Bush!"
6
I know you hate them but a little fairness please.
Jeb was a low energy candidate who seemed to think that competence would be enough and he could not energize people.
BUT
"Pop" Bush as you call him, fought for his country and had a life of service when he could have kicked back and done nothing. "Pop" also demonstrated the ability to put together a real international coalition when needed.
"W" did have 9-11 on his watch but his failing was the same as everyone else- nobody thought it could happen here. If Bush was guilty Clinton was even more so because he failed to take advantage of opportunities to get OBL although he had the 1993 WTC attack and a variety of other atrocities on his watch. AND IT IS A FACT there were no Al Queda attacks during the remainder of "W's" term. you can argue about iraq and honest people can disagree there because there certainly were mistakes in going into that war, but at least be honest.
Jeb was a low energy candidate who seemed to think that competence would be enough and he could not energize people.
BUT
"Pop" Bush as you call him, fought for his country and had a life of service when he could have kicked back and done nothing. "Pop" also demonstrated the ability to put together a real international coalition when needed.
"W" did have 9-11 on his watch but his failing was the same as everyone else- nobody thought it could happen here. If Bush was guilty Clinton was even more so because he failed to take advantage of opportunities to get OBL although he had the 1993 WTC attack and a variety of other atrocities on his watch. AND IT IS A FACT there were no Al Queda attacks during the remainder of "W's" term. you can argue about iraq and honest people can disagree there because there certainly were mistakes in going into that war, but at least be honest.
4
You give the Bushes far too much credit if you think that they singlehandedly gave us Trump. They did give us a lot of debt and death, looted the country, lied to us, and let bin Laden shatter our delusion of safety. By creating their mindless vacuum, the Bushes might have laid the groundwork, but the republican party, or what's left of it, is responsible for conjuring up the Trump creature. He has been put together out of bits and pieces of oblivious bigotry, stupidity, and plain old greed. Wimpiness is not the Bushes' bete noire; an opposition with half a human brain is.
How pathetic all of the Bushes are now that Jeb has been unceremoniously dumped. What a seedy bunch giving him half-hearted CPR after it was already much too late. They never had a clue, ever, even when they were "pulling the wool" over some Americans' eyes during W. And now they have a master wool puller in Trump doing that for some fact and sanity challenged republicans.
But this grumpy Monday morning, I'm relieved tp read your column without once flinching at your pinched criticism of Hillary or our president.
How pathetic all of the Bushes are now that Jeb has been unceremoniously dumped. What a seedy bunch giving him half-hearted CPR after it was already much too late. They never had a clue, ever, even when they were "pulling the wool" over some Americans' eyes during W. And now they have a master wool puller in Trump doing that for some fact and sanity challenged republicans.
But this grumpy Monday morning, I'm relieved tp read your column without once flinching at your pinched criticism of Hillary or our president.
24
Thank you, Ms. Dowd for one of your better columns. Now, I would like to see a column on how you think the arch bully and huckster-in-chief, Donald Trump, can be defeated as he appears unbeatable in today's political climate. So far, no one has been able to touch him. Any ideas?
13
Great morning column!! TY for the analysis of the Bushs' campaign. The best part though you left out was the excellent speech W gave for Jeb when he touched on what a leader is and was characteristics a President has to have. It was and still resonates as ironic in our Presidential Politics that such a statement, in a speech given by one of the worst Presidents in modern History, is a worthy definition of leadership and the Presidency...
9
I wish the Clinton's would give up the "common man" appeal. Or at least if they don't stop clenching to it, people would hopefully stop buying. And the same goes to Trump, of course. Or any politician who is "the same as you and I".
(I guess that's true if you don't count the millions!)
(I guess that's true if you don't count the millions!)
9
I guess this is the Democrats' way of dealing with something they can't understand. "We can't understand Trump, so he must have done this too." How else could Jeb Bush have lost when he had the money and the support of the party elites? He was a shoo-in, we all said so!
But pretty much all of us Republicans have understood for a year that Jeb Bush had _absolutely no chance_. I haven't seen a single debate, but I knew a year ago that I was not going to support another Bush. Nothing to do with Trump. Same for every other Republican I know. Throw all the money you want at that and it didn't make a bit of difference.
But Citizens United!
But pretty much all of us Republicans have understood for a year that Jeb Bush had _absolutely no chance_. I haven't seen a single debate, but I knew a year ago that I was not going to support another Bush. Nothing to do with Trump. Same for every other Republican I know. Throw all the money you want at that and it didn't make a bit of difference.
But Citizens United!
10
Well said. Jeb's fall was imminent as soon as Trump was given a pass to treat his opponent(s) as schoolkid(s)...in a typical bully's fashion. And we could almost feel sorry for the guy (...!), with enough time on his hands to brew about lost entitlements. W/Cheney/Wolfy/Condi misadventure has one equivalency with Wall Street: immunity for crimes committed. In spite of Obama's virtues in saving the U.S. from a deep depression, he can be faulted for not demanding justice when he had a chance. Can you imagine if any of the current candidates, demagoguing the issues, becomes president?
19
As I watched the Bush's leave the stage I put on the last act of Wagner's Götterdämmerung, hoping it is finally the end of influence for this horrible warmongering, corrupt, family. For this Donald Trump deserves applause..
47
" That fury has led to the rise of wildly improbable candidates in both parties."
Like, I am sure, a lot of people, I read this column with head-nodding approbation for its acuity.
Especially in its pivot from the gentility of the supposed bluebloods to the sickening consequences, in terms of blood and treasure, that the "guy you'd like to have a beer with" -- maybe even when he was visiting bars in Mobile on his Air National guard "duty" while John Kerry was dodging (most of) Charlie's bullets on the Mekong river -- caused, unto the generations.
But still, I was expecting a final pivot back to: "Any this show to go why Hillary is an evil and conniving pol and even Al Gore is less despicable."
But it wasn't there!
Or was it?
".., wildly improbable candidates in both parties": is Dowd not really referring to Bernie, as one might think, but to Hillary as the morally wildly improbable candidate?
This is all so confusing. I'm so used to getting Dowd's vitriol about Hillary straight, with no admixture of possible redeeming social merit.
Has Maureen finally tamed her demons over the Clintons?
Stay tuned.
Like, I am sure, a lot of people, I read this column with head-nodding approbation for its acuity.
Especially in its pivot from the gentility of the supposed bluebloods to the sickening consequences, in terms of blood and treasure, that the "guy you'd like to have a beer with" -- maybe even when he was visiting bars in Mobile on his Air National guard "duty" while John Kerry was dodging (most of) Charlie's bullets on the Mekong river -- caused, unto the generations.
But still, I was expecting a final pivot back to: "Any this show to go why Hillary is an evil and conniving pol and even Al Gore is less despicable."
But it wasn't there!
Or was it?
".., wildly improbable candidates in both parties": is Dowd not really referring to Bernie, as one might think, but to Hillary as the morally wildly improbable candidate?
This is all so confusing. I'm so used to getting Dowd's vitriol about Hillary straight, with no admixture of possible redeeming social merit.
Has Maureen finally tamed her demons over the Clintons?
Stay tuned.
8
Wow! You nailed the Bush story beautifully! I hope every supporter of G.W. and his horrific war reads your article.
42
Your giddiness at kicking a man where it hurts after he is out of the race is just plain cruel. We won't see Jeb again. Apparently, that is not enough for you. I can't imagine what you will say about Obama after he leaves office and Hillary if she too, loses. There is a lot of fodder for you out there Maureen. This has to be the worst field of candidates in the fifty plus years of following political campaigns. The future looks very bleak and you are spending time gutting a person no longer in the race with a fish scale knife.
15
Maureen, good to see you didn't miss the chance to keep up a new weekly consecutive streak of commenting on the 2016 election. Perhaps the late results from Saturday kept you off the Sunday pages. Is the Op-Ed page your new weekly home? Still, you really need to work harder and write at least TWICE a week.
We know you hate the Bushes. But I think you skipped a president who has now been in office 8 years when you try and account for who let the monster out of the permafrost. My guess is, there are those in the electorate who can't remember back beyond the current president and what they did that gave them the distaste for all the things you say. Trump has proven to be what they call a type of technology: disruptive.
We know you hate the Bushes. But I think you skipped a president who has now been in office 8 years when you try and account for who let the monster out of the permafrost. My guess is, there are those in the electorate who can't remember back beyond the current president and what they did that gave them the distaste for all the things you say. Trump has proven to be what they call a type of technology: disruptive.
1
Amen!
2
Thank you for this analysis of a richly deserved failure and a tribute to a family whose only success was 41. Barbara, W, Jeb--losers (and I do not care how many strands of pearl she wears).
17
"With his uncanny bat-like sonar, sensing how to psychologically gauge and then gut an opponent, Trump went straight for the Bushes’ biggest bête noire: wimpiness."
True. You gotta WANT to be president. Jeb's low energy demonstrated how much he DIDN'T want it.
Good riddance to the Bushes and their lies. They're mad at Trump for telling the TRUTH about their lies.
True. You gotta WANT to be president. Jeb's low energy demonstrated how much he DIDN'T want it.
Good riddance to the Bushes and their lies. They're mad at Trump for telling the TRUTH about their lies.
18
Mrs. Clinton should take heed of Mrs. Bush's lament about dynasties, no more Bush's and certainly no more Clinton's occupying the White House. One was more than enough for me.
8
good one, Mo, let's call what follows Vulgate.
2
I liquidated all my assets in 2004 and permanently moved abroad; George W Bush was President than. I sold my house for twice what I paid for it; my stock portfolio quadrupled; I could walk down any street in America without fear of being blown to pieces by Muslim extremeists. Invading Iraq was the right thing to do. Obama squandered that victory. If anyone had a choice, how many would prefer Dubya to President Obama?
2
Mo is right about both the Clintons and the Bushes!
3
But at least Ms. Dowd will still have Hillary to kick around! If she wins, we'll have four years of snarky, vitriolic columns about the Clintons. Or, Dowd could just go on vacation and recycle the columns she wrote during the eight years of Bill Clinton's administration.
Wouldn't it have been fun if Dowd had been around in the the early years of the U.S. to write about the Adams family, or in the early part of the 20th century to write about the Roosevelt family!
So, I wonder how Ms. Dowd feels about Trump's dust-up with the Pope. I guess we won't be hearing about that, because Trump is the Man of the Hour, 3 wives and all.
Wouldn't it have been fun if Dowd had been around in the the early years of the U.S. to write about the Adams family, or in the early part of the 20th century to write about the Roosevelt family!
So, I wonder how Ms. Dowd feels about Trump's dust-up with the Pope. I guess we won't be hearing about that, because Trump is the Man of the Hour, 3 wives and all.
6
Maureen, you are right about how angry and disgusted we all are. You should start preparing to write columns on a Trump vs. Sanders race. I would not leave the Supreme Court off the hook either for their role in abandoning the average American.
10
Was it only about a year ago that Jeb! was the perceived front runner, even before he declared his candidacy? So many in the media and elsewhere were bemoaning what they thought was the inevitability of another Bush-Clinton match until enough unsatisfied Americans rewrote the script.
Now rewritten, one hopes the mainstream GOP leaders will do some soul searching and realize that what they have to offer is not what the American people want. But they won't. What is likely is that they will reword the message in hopes we will like it better. They will work on passing more power and cash to their corporate overlords without our electoral blessing. But what I wonder is that if Trump The Unpalitable becomes the nominee, will they continue their voter suppression efforts on his behalf because he labels himself a Republican?
Now rewritten, one hopes the mainstream GOP leaders will do some soul searching and realize that what they have to offer is not what the American people want. But they won't. What is likely is that they will reword the message in hopes we will like it better. They will work on passing more power and cash to their corporate overlords without our electoral blessing. But what I wonder is that if Trump The Unpalitable becomes the nominee, will they continue their voter suppression efforts on his behalf because he labels himself a Republican?
3
How is it, Maureen, that you do not report about the claim that Hillary made during her initial involvement in this campaign that "she was poor after leaving the White House even though she had signed a book deal for ten million? Perhaps I missed that column. How about the robbery of the White House on
their way out the door that included furnishings and silverware? Didn't you think that your readers would be interested in that!
their way out the door that included furnishings and silverware? Didn't you think that your readers would be interested in that!
6
Why all of this talk of the end of the Bush dynasty? George P. Bush, Jeb!'s son, is already in Texas politics. We will be burdened with this family for a long, long time.
6
Jeb! was definitely not ready for prime time; but why the joy? Whereas Jeb tried to pass himself off as a "conservative policy wonk", Marco Rubio is a very conservative mouthpiece. If voters actually begin to listen to what he says, they will quickly conclude that Rubio is Cruz with a smile.
12
Before you chisel this epitaph in Greenwich granite, remember these three words: George Prescott Bush.
3
Despite money, organization, and political endorsements; it would seem that the Iowa, New Hampshire, and South Carolina dogs just never really liked the Bush line of dog food.
1
Although it took some time, Jeb's karma moment for fixing the Florida vote finally arrived.
29
If the Bush family truly had "utter contempt" for Donald Trump, they would announce publicly and unequivocally that they will not vote for Trump if he is the Republican nominee. That would include George H. W. and Barbara; George W. and Laura; and Jeb and Columba. That would make front page news. And show guts and gumption, not the "wimpiness" the Bushes abhor.
6
Do all your columns now have to demonize someone and let others go blameless? Yes, we all recognize Jeb's failings and weaknesses exploited by Trump, but this column makes Trump look prescient about the Iraq war. We all also know that his stump-speech early opposition to that war is just another Trump fantasy--well, actually a lie he repeats to suit his current agenda.
There's more than enough material in Trump versus Jeb to fill a column without making Trump come out looking like the good guy. I seem to remember a softball interview column with Trump a few weeks ago as well. Hmm...
There's more than enough material in Trump versus Jeb to fill a column without making Trump come out looking like the good guy. I seem to remember a softball interview column with Trump a few weeks ago as well. Hmm...
5
Thank god you didn't manage to skewer either Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama in this opinion piece. It actually makes it enjoyable!
9
Too bad this essence of article has not been written fifteen years ago....excluding of course, the inept Jeb. The media did not do their job then at the Iraq invasion...Now, the media want to destroy Trump.....the same Trump supported by the media against Obama....Worst to come: the new pet and empty soul: Rubio....Gee, again, the media are brainwashed......Like him or not, Trump is surely less dangerous than Rubio and Cruz.....and will not be controlled by Israel like Clinton
6
Dowd mischaracterizes one of the foreign policy advisers that Jeb added to his staff as, "...one of the war’s woolly-headed architects, Paul Wolfowitz...." Wolfowitz was hardly "wooly-headed": he brilliantly used the slightly stupid G. W. Bush in his démarche to expend American lives and money to rid Israel of a threat to its existence, Iraq. Wolfowitz is an enemy of the American people, but he's not stupid or naive.
11
It all started with grandpa Prescott- banker to Nazis with no shame. He promoted Richard Nixon into the Vice Presidency in 1953 and again assisted him in 1968. We have a whole shady banking history with the Bush family; There was the S&L debacle (Neil Bush)in the eighties and the Silverado scandal and then not mentioned here was Jeb's one million bonus every year from Barclay's Bank- one of the biggest violator's of US sanctions.
Maureen and other columnists have not scratched the surface on some of Jeb's shady business dealings and in partcular assistance to a close friend accused on multi-million dollar Medicare fraud. See Http://www.campaignwatch.org/more1.htm.
I doubt we have heard the last of the Bush dynasty and its banking connections.
And you wonder why Republican voters are dissatisfied with GOP leaders?
Maureen and other columnists have not scratched the surface on some of Jeb's shady business dealings and in partcular assistance to a close friend accused on multi-million dollar Medicare fraud. See Http://www.campaignwatch.org/more1.htm.
I doubt we have heard the last of the Bush dynasty and its banking connections.
And you wonder why Republican voters are dissatisfied with GOP leaders?
29
The Bush dynasty will not be over until someone writes the story of W.'s days as an alcoholic, which remain a blank spot in his biography. We need names, dates, and events.
14
Oh Wow Mo! That's some red meat! I hope it drives a stake through the heart of the Dynasty.
8
I recently read that the GOP hasn't had a presidential pairing (VP & POTUS) that didn't include either a Bush or Nixon since 1929. Could this possibly be true?
1
"Trust us. We know best" As another commenter has pointed out, that's what Trump says, and it's working for him. It just doesn't work for Bushes anymore.
Incredibly if you are a reality TV star you can still use it.
Incredibly if you are a reality TV star you can still use it.
14
Wow, Maureen! As much as you got it wrong about Hillary, you got it right about the Bushes! Congratulations on your escape from Bushworld! Now if
Jeb's son, George P. Bush, will just stay out of national politics and will be content tp play a politician in Texas. Please, God!
Jeb's son, George P. Bush, will just stay out of national politics and will be content tp play a politician in Texas. Please, God!
5
I'm a little mystified why Jeb!(registered trademark) chose this moment to bow out of the race.
The Bush Family is, of course, dealing with the Frankenstein Monster, THEY created....
The Bush Family cultivated a reactionary, gut-level, un-compromising "true conservative values" religion that obediently did whatever aBush Family Executive told them to do............
But now the Monster will not obey.....and worse......the villagers have massed enough pitchforks and torches to KILL the Monster.
Jeb!(registered trademark) is also learning the hard way the true nature of Cuban Politicans. After having nurtured someone he saw as a lifelong ally, he was surprised when Cabana Boy Marco Rubio saw his opening to take over, and promptly stabbed Jeb!(register trademark) in the back.
This is similar to when the Miami Cubans gave Reagan a 2nd victory, after Reagan signed amnesty for all Cubans.....then the Cuban Community voted solidly for Clinton! only to stab Clinton in the back after he sent Saint Elian Gonzalez back to Cuba!!!
...
I was expected Jeb!(registered trademark) to at least hang in through the primary in his homestate, Florida......But the Monster tore off his head before he could get there.
Now the Monster turns on the Bush Minions,,,,,,Ted Cruz(junior senator from Texas,,the Bush State) and Rubio(Jeb's protoge).
The Republican Party has been dead since 2001.......only now its official.
The Bush Family is, of course, dealing with the Frankenstein Monster, THEY created....
The Bush Family cultivated a reactionary, gut-level, un-compromising "true conservative values" religion that obediently did whatever aBush Family Executive told them to do............
But now the Monster will not obey.....and worse......the villagers have massed enough pitchforks and torches to KILL the Monster.
Jeb!(registered trademark) is also learning the hard way the true nature of Cuban Politicans. After having nurtured someone he saw as a lifelong ally, he was surprised when Cabana Boy Marco Rubio saw his opening to take over, and promptly stabbed Jeb!(register trademark) in the back.
This is similar to when the Miami Cubans gave Reagan a 2nd victory, after Reagan signed amnesty for all Cubans.....then the Cuban Community voted solidly for Clinton! only to stab Clinton in the back after he sent Saint Elian Gonzalez back to Cuba!!!
...
I was expected Jeb!(registered trademark) to at least hang in through the primary in his homestate, Florida......But the Monster tore off his head before he could get there.
Now the Monster turns on the Bush Minions,,,,,,Ted Cruz(junior senator from Texas,,the Bush State) and Rubio(Jeb's protoge).
The Republican Party has been dead since 2001.......only now its official.
8
George Herbert Walker Bush did volunteer to honorably and bravely serve as naval pilot in an American military uniform during World War II. Bush 41 was Vice President, an ambassador to China and head of the CIA. Bush 41 did not invade, occupy and break Iraq. Bush did play with race in becoming POTUS where he put Clarence Thomas on the SCOTUS and Colin Powell at the pinnacle of the Pentagon.
The Bush clan out performed the Adams, Roosevelt and Kennedy families. And the Bush family is not done yet. There is still Jeb's half Mexican brown 4th generation son George P. Bush politically growing in Texas. And perhaps even one of W's daughters or another young Bush may one day turn to politics. Stay tuned.
The Bush clan out performed the Adams, Roosevelt and Kennedy families. And the Bush family is not done yet. There is still Jeb's half Mexican brown 4th generation son George P. Bush politically growing in Texas. And perhaps even one of W's daughters or another young Bush may one day turn to politics. Stay tuned.
5
Beautifully put Maureen. Brava!!!! W was the worst president we have ever had and his legacy, unfortunately, will haunt us for a long time.
19
Thank you Maureen, excellent write up. Unfortunately another dynasty takes over. And unfortunately again there is no one that is going to defeat that dynasty not with whats out there right now. Bloomberg is my choice, but good guys don't run.
3
Thank God and Greyhound he's gone. And Wolfi and that crowd too. Is there enough room in the jail in Den Hauge to hold all of them?
15
I agree that Poppy was a weak candidate, but you did not take into account that Ross Perot had 19 million Americans vote for him and would have had more if he did not espouse crazy conspiracy theories before the general election. His presence in the election did more to get Clinton elected than any other factor. I wonder if those 19 million are the same people supporting Trump now. W was a disaster. Enough said.
12
When I was young in America, I thought the people who got to the top - particularly in government - were not only the smartest and the most hard working, but the most decent. As I worked my way through life though, I came to believe that in too many professions its impossible to get to the top if you are honest. Only crooks rise to the tippy tippy top.
What happened? Was it always like this and I was too naive to know? Or did something change to make wealth excusable no matter your behavior?
Bill and Hill used to be the American ideal of rising on merit, today they look out of touch with their ill-gained millions and lunatic speaking fees even for their child. What changed? It or me?
What happened? Was it always like this and I was too naive to know? Or did something change to make wealth excusable no matter your behavior?
Bill and Hill used to be the American ideal of rising on merit, today they look out of touch with their ill-gained millions and lunatic speaking fees even for their child. What changed? It or me?
142
Is everyone counting Jeb? out too soon? Perhaps the Bushes are already quietly working for Jeb? to be the Savior riding in on a White Escalade at the Convention, if no one candidate has enough delegates to win.
Far fetched, probably, but years of Christmas cards to billionaires have to count for something.
Far fetched, probably, but years of Christmas cards to billionaires have to count for something.
11
Right on, right on!
3
We are not done with the Bushes. I believe that Jeb!'s son was recently elected to state-wide office in Texas. And to a position that, despite a mundane tite, has huge political power in the state. Look for another Bush run for President in, 8-12 years.
2
Jeb Bush was a signer of the Project for the New American Century, which was a precursor for the invasion of Iraq, even before his brother took office and 9/11.
Also, the line "My brother kept us safe" should have never been part of Jeb's campaign.
As for the exclamation point after "Jeb," I don't know if anyone on his staff was aware that this was not even original. Look up Lamar Alexander's run for the Presidency in 1996, where his campaign signs were simply "LAMAR!" and his signature clothing statement was a flannel plaid shirt. The millionaires and billionaires who supported Jeb! should have seen this coming. I for one am somewhat pleased that even the Republicans didn't go for the " he kept us safe" baloney. I never want to see Trump in the White House but he would be less of a danger ( I think) than any other Republican candidate (except maybe Kasich, who will never win the nomination)
Also, the line "My brother kept us safe" should have never been part of Jeb's campaign.
As for the exclamation point after "Jeb," I don't know if anyone on his staff was aware that this was not even original. Look up Lamar Alexander's run for the Presidency in 1996, where his campaign signs were simply "LAMAR!" and his signature clothing statement was a flannel plaid shirt. The millionaires and billionaires who supported Jeb! should have seen this coming. I for one am somewhat pleased that even the Republicans didn't go for the " he kept us safe" baloney. I never want to see Trump in the White House but he would be less of a danger ( I think) than any other Republican candidate (except maybe Kasich, who will never win the nomination)
18
I've always wondered how and when Family Bush was proclaimed a Dynasty unless WE the people put them there. Just like the House of Saud in Saudi Arabia when overnight the tribesmen Sauds were thrust upon the Saudis as 'Royals' by US. The Family Bush has had a negative impact on the American People - Senator Bush being inconsequential, Bush 41 bland and no real legacy that can be boasted of, Bush 43, totally incapable and unworthy of the highest office in the land, with a legacy which has severely harmed and send our Country and our people into a quagmire from which we cannot extricate ourselves and seems impossible to get out. And now Jeb! Thank God! we got wise to the Bushes. Perhaps there is still hope and salvation for us. Only the wise Bush matriach had the foresight although she was dragged into the Bush saga by Family loyalty. At 90 years, I guess she is now become a Pariah in her own home and household.
7
Okay, Jeb was limp. But Trump, who often contradicts himself within the same paragraph (Bush “lied” us into Iraq) is simply scatterbrained. If he was a curvaceous blonde, he’d be called Ditzy Donny.
1
"The underlying message of Bush campaigns is always: “Trust us. We know best.” "
Same for the Clintons. Good riddance to both.
Same for the Clintons. Good riddance to both.
8
Excellent column. With one caveat.
Bush Sr. was a real tough guy. Flying combat missions in those WWII planes was no job for a man without guts.
Bush Sr. was a real tough guy. Flying combat missions in those WWII planes was no job for a man without guts.
22
From his first appearance I could see that Jeb the Candidate was an empty suit and unelectable. And I'm just a mook in small town Northern California. What sorts of worlds do these high end donors live in which enable them to examine "a product" like Jeb and see a return on their investment? And I thought they got rich because they were so smart. They need to get out more and see America from a different perspective. At least then they could save some dough.
21
One Bush down, one Clinton to go.
15
Excellent - Bush family in America is a saga of entitlement in a meritocracy. How it happened - was it the trick of Kerl Rove's magic stick or Gore's stupidity of ignoring Clinton, history will determine. One think is sure - two Bush brothers are intellectually dump and Jeb is no comparison to Trump on IQ. Finally we are returning back to the intelligent candidates - they may be fox like clever - Cruz, strategically smart like Trump or manipulative like Macbeth - Hillary Clinton. Good for America. Let a smart person be our President.
3
You left out W's famous South Carolina smear that McCain fathered a black child: http://www.vanityfair.com/news/2004/11/mccain200411
Some dynasty.
Some dynasty.
18
Ouch. This column is going to leave a mark.
3
The most remarkable thing about the so called Bush "Dynasty" is how relentlessly mediocre (at best) it has been.
A "Dynasty" in sports is signified by a team that has won multiple championships, but more than that evokes and embodies greatness.
Which of the Bushes plausibly evoke "greatness" by any metric?
GHWB was "OK", while GWB was a world class world wrecking machine.
And "Jeb"? Enough said.
As far as putting Trump's rise at their feet, though, that wasn't really their fault.
Reagan set that in motion many years ago, and John McCain finished the job by nominating Sarah Palin. Once that was done, it was only a matter of time before somebody smarter and with a better act came along to finish off the GOP.
And really, could Trump be any worse than GWB was?
Hard to imagine.
A "Dynasty" in sports is signified by a team that has won multiple championships, but more than that evokes and embodies greatness.
Which of the Bushes plausibly evoke "greatness" by any metric?
GHWB was "OK", while GWB was a world class world wrecking machine.
And "Jeb"? Enough said.
As far as putting Trump's rise at their feet, though, that wasn't really their fault.
Reagan set that in motion many years ago, and John McCain finished the job by nominating Sarah Palin. Once that was done, it was only a matter of time before somebody smarter and with a better act came along to finish off the GOP.
And really, could Trump be any worse than GWB was?
Hard to imagine.
28
Maureen, I love NYT Opinion pieces enough to purchase an online subscription. You're one of my favorites. I don't always agree, but who does? Your assessment of George HW Bush was unfair. After reading about him from several sources, I feel he's honest and genuine. Say what you want about W and Jeb. But the old guy is a great American with vast service experience.
BTW, he didn't lose to Clinton b/c of arrogance as suggested. He bit the bullet on taxes, even though he knew it'd be political suicide. That tax increase gave Bill a great start at balancing the budget. HW is the last of a great breed, GOP moderates. The party has sadly lost its way...
I don't care if you post my comment. It was meant for you, I'm not looking for an audience. Thanks...
BTW, he didn't lose to Clinton b/c of arrogance as suggested. He bit the bullet on taxes, even though he knew it'd be political suicide. That tax increase gave Bill a great start at balancing the budget. HW is the last of a great breed, GOP moderates. The party has sadly lost its way...
I don't care if you post my comment. It was meant for you, I'm not looking for an audience. Thanks...
139
Jeb Bush was a solution in search of a problem.
1
You're so "spot on" right Maureen, the Bush dynasty absolutely ushered in Donald Trump and will inevitably watch his coronation as our next president, unless of course Hillary Clinton somehow miraculously morphs into an "all knowing, all seeing" messiah ready, willing and able to lead us to the Promised Land. But quite frankly the jury's still out on that one. Jeb Bush was simply excruciating to behold and generated about as much charisma as a baloney sandwich. Trump pegged him right, "low energy".
3
Great column. Wish I had written it myself!
1
For an insight into the Bush family's success watch the movie "Boogyman the Story of Lee Atwater". A story of consistent lies and deception to win at any cost.
11
If only this were true *sigh*
Here in Texas we still have Land Commissioner George P. Bush (Jeb's son), a statewide elected official who likened his job to being "dog catcher" and who immediately replaced long-standing employees of that agency with political cronies. He also absented himself from the job to campaign for dad. So the Bush dynasty will live on, seemingly through this self-important nobody. I guess he'll join the ranks of the many unqualified Republicans who plan to stair-step their way to the White House through Texas state government.
Here in Texas we still have Land Commissioner George P. Bush (Jeb's son), a statewide elected official who likened his job to being "dog catcher" and who immediately replaced long-standing employees of that agency with political cronies. He also absented himself from the job to campaign for dad. So the Bush dynasty will live on, seemingly through this self-important nobody. I guess he'll join the ranks of the many unqualified Republicans who plan to stair-step their way to the White House through Texas state government.
13
Now what? Look who's left to choose from. Not that he was a prize, but perhaps the best of a really bad lot.
1
whatever you may or may not think of Jeb Bush, he was the only candidate on the Right that appeared even remotely sane.
The real story here isn't why he did or did not become the nominee. The real story is the out of control, off the rails, electorate that think one of these other guys is better.
No matter how bad Jeb Bush might have been, he came from a political family with boundaries. Stupidity and fecklessness were a hallmark of the Bushes but they understood politics. The people left standing understand nothing but craven greed and "burn down the house" tactics to get what they want. And anyone who stands in their way, even and entire country, won't stop them.
The real story here isn't why he did or did not become the nominee. The real story is the out of control, off the rails, electorate that think one of these other guys is better.
No matter how bad Jeb Bush might have been, he came from a political family with boundaries. Stupidity and fecklessness were a hallmark of the Bushes but they understood politics. The people left standing understand nothing but craven greed and "burn down the house" tactics to get what they want. And anyone who stands in their way, even and entire country, won't stop them.
6
Despite my dislike for Trump, I rejoiced when he called out Bush on his family's legacy. He didn't go nearly far enough, but it was a good start, and long overdue.
16
Now that the Bush clan has retired, can Saint Ronnie go away now?
Having lived through the mostly mediocre and some dangerous GOP presidents since Eisenhower, I am the most warn out by Reagan.
If the GOP continues to channel dead presidents, why can't they use Eisenhower as the standard bearer? NASA and Interstates were some of his accomplishments.
Can Saint Ronnie go away now ?
Having lived through the mostly mediocre and some dangerous GOP presidents since Eisenhower, I am the most warn out by Reagan.
If the GOP continues to channel dead presidents, why can't they use Eisenhower as the standard bearer? NASA and Interstates were some of his accomplishments.
Can Saint Ronnie go away now ?
25
Total misread by Bush of what the country wants right now. Really bad. He spent $100M and never had a chance. Last summer he tried to attack Trump by saying "he is not a true conservative"....LOL - almost exactly what Trump is running on. Yes Jeb, the voters don't want a true conservative....they don't even want a politician.
And you gotta give Trump his props for standing on a Republican debate stage and eviscerating W. regarding the Iraq War.
And you gotta give Trump his props for standing on a Republican debate stage and eviscerating W. regarding the Iraq War.
17
Can't we just ship the entire Bush-el basketful of them to Turkey or Russia and let eh make a couple of million bucks over there giving speeches and advice while destroying their moralities and economies in the process?
7
One can only sit and think wistfully what our country and the world would be like today if the SCOTUS had given the 2000 election to Gore instead of W. Any one judge would've tipped the scale the other way. Thank you GHWB, for your timeless gifts of Thomas and Alito, and then paving the way for Roberts. It's a slow-motion train wreck playing out over my entire lifetime!
23
Glad Maureen referenced Jeb's very un-presidential slouch. If he'd been elected, his demeanor would've been seen by Putin, Khamenei, and Kim Jong-un like he was wearing a big "Kick Me" sign on his back.
12
P.S. Maureen, you left out that George W. Bush committed both war crimes and crimes against humanity. (You must have run out of column space.) Sanctioning torture is not just criminal, it is moral depravity, punishable by both man and god.
20
It's so nice to read one of your columns Ms. Dowd without the almost obligatory(it seems) dissing of either Barrack Obama and/or Hillary Clinton.
The only thing I thought you could have added was the 'swift-boating' of John Kerry in the 2004 election. That the attack dogs of the Republican PACS could turn a legitimate Vietnam combat veteran into some kind of coward while W, who in typical Bush fashion, had Daddy get him into the Natioanl Guard to avoid the Vietnam War, came off as more patriotic, was representative of the points you made. The whole swift-boating debacle along with the other sleazy attack ads Republicans and their PAC dogs are famous for should be a sinister warning for Bernistas, who fail to recognize or acknowledge that should he win the Democratic nomination would be shredded by attack ads loosely based on his proposals and his past. And they would work, sad but true.
The only thing I thought you could have added was the 'swift-boating' of John Kerry in the 2004 election. That the attack dogs of the Republican PACS could turn a legitimate Vietnam combat veteran into some kind of coward while W, who in typical Bush fashion, had Daddy get him into the Natioanl Guard to avoid the Vietnam War, came off as more patriotic, was representative of the points you made. The whole swift-boating debacle along with the other sleazy attack ads Republicans and their PAC dogs are famous for should be a sinister warning for Bernistas, who fail to recognize or acknowledge that should he win the Democratic nomination would be shredded by attack ads loosely based on his proposals and his past. And they would work, sad but true.
17
Whew! This reminds me of those old westerns I loved as a kid. The anti-hero Trump rides into town--a corrupt town dominated by generations of the powerful Bush family that made its money through shady dealings and political office.
The dynasty started with Jeb and W's great-grandfather, Samuel Prescott Bush, who went from middle manager of a railroad company to president of a steel company and in charge of weapons procurement for the federal government during WWI. Seems he made a fair amount of money for himself.
Followed by Jeb and W's grandfather, Prescott Bush, who attended fine schools, including Yale, was a cheerleader and member of Yale's Skull and Crossbones secret society, became a banker whose bank was seized by the government during WWII under the Trading with the Enemy Act for holding gold for the Nazis, and became a politician and Senator from CT.
Next is George H.W. Bush and Barbara, who spawned 3 sons: Neil involved in the savings and loan scandal; George the TX governor, inept warrior and disastrous POTUS; Jeb the FL governor who got brother George elected POTUS, messed in the horrific Terry Schiavo death case, and helped his crony capitalist friends at taxpayer expense in FL
Then Jeb runs for POTUS. In rides trash-taking Trump to save D.C. Town from the mighty Bush dynasty. But in 2016 Trump didn't need to have a shootout with Jeb--he just ran the clan out town by verbal insult. Poof! one less political dynasty.
Now, who will run Trump out of town?
The dynasty started with Jeb and W's great-grandfather, Samuel Prescott Bush, who went from middle manager of a railroad company to president of a steel company and in charge of weapons procurement for the federal government during WWI. Seems he made a fair amount of money for himself.
Followed by Jeb and W's grandfather, Prescott Bush, who attended fine schools, including Yale, was a cheerleader and member of Yale's Skull and Crossbones secret society, became a banker whose bank was seized by the government during WWII under the Trading with the Enemy Act for holding gold for the Nazis, and became a politician and Senator from CT.
Next is George H.W. Bush and Barbara, who spawned 3 sons: Neil involved in the savings and loan scandal; George the TX governor, inept warrior and disastrous POTUS; Jeb the FL governor who got brother George elected POTUS, messed in the horrific Terry Schiavo death case, and helped his crony capitalist friends at taxpayer expense in FL
Then Jeb runs for POTUS. In rides trash-taking Trump to save D.C. Town from the mighty Bush dynasty. But in 2016 Trump didn't need to have a shootout with Jeb--he just ran the clan out town by verbal insult. Poof! one less political dynasty.
Now, who will run Trump out of town?
15
It sounds like Clinton and Bush dynasties both are ending, thankfully
9
The Bushes and establishment Republicans begot Trump. The GOP has been blowing dog whistles to racists and jingoists since Goldwater, creating the base to which Trump so astutely and overtly appeals. And the only thing truly shocking about it is the shock of the Republican establishment as Trump blusters his way to the nomination of "their" party.
13
Maureen Dowd superbly characterized the feeling of the electorate towards Jeb Bush and the Bush family. Another aspect is the 'dumbing down" effect in our society and the related rise of Trump. I still believe that the rise of a third party candidate or another GOP candidate will emerge to help avoid another "Goldwater landslide loss".
1
Happy to see Jeb gone. But read Krugman today on Rubio and wonder who is the real crazy in the Republican race. It is very sad when Trump looks like the most reasonable viable Republican. In Ohio we know about Kasich and it is not promising. So far his temper is under control and his acting is excellent. Daddy did have it right on pork rinds, no carbs and high protein. LOL
So I guess Hillary by default.
So I guess Hillary by default.
11
Maureen is always at her best when taking self-righteous politicians down a peg. Whether it the Bushes, Hillary or Obama - she pulls no punches. Now that Jeb is gone, she can turn her full attention to HRC, perhaps the most vapid candidate of our lifetime.
14
Ironically, it was Trump, the Republican, who challenged the Bush fallacy that America was forever safe under brother George.
Not one Democrat ever seriously confronted "Vice" and his band of storm troopers, as the roamed the country for years attacking President Obama for being soft on terrorism and proclaiming that "W" was our glorious protector.
Even Rudy Giuliani on Jan. 8th, 2010, during a Good Morning America interview, seemed to conveniently forget that the September 11th attacks happened under President Bush when he declared: "We had no domestic attacks under Bush; we've had one under Obama." Host George Stephanopoulos sat by smiling!
This is the one thing we can give Trump credit for, and I doubt very much, that Hillary or most Democrats, would have challenged "Jeb!" on this!
Not one Democrat ever seriously confronted "Vice" and his band of storm troopers, as the roamed the country for years attacking President Obama for being soft on terrorism and proclaiming that "W" was our glorious protector.
Even Rudy Giuliani on Jan. 8th, 2010, during a Good Morning America interview, seemed to conveniently forget that the September 11th attacks happened under President Bush when he declared: "We had no domestic attacks under Bush; we've had one under Obama." Host George Stephanopoulos sat by smiling!
This is the one thing we can give Trump credit for, and I doubt very much, that Hillary or most Democrats, would have challenged "Jeb!" on this!
29
In my best Playoffs, You are talking about Playoffs voice
Wolfowitz? You are talking about Wolfowitz?
Wolfowitz? You are talking about Wolfowitz?
Glad Jeb!'s no longer on the radar, but what I find disgusting is the incredible amount of wasted money - spent for nothing - when it could be used for so many more urgent needs.
21
Now if we can only escape from Clinton Inc...
But perhaps that's just me.
Goldman Sachs, Citicorp and Morgan Stanley apparently love her to death.
What do they see that I don't?
But perhaps that's just me.
Goldman Sachs, Citicorp and Morgan Stanley apparently love her to death.
What do they see that I don't?
24
Maybe with Bush's campaign put to rest Maureen can put this column about the mistakes of the Iraq war to rest. I agree with every word, but I've read it from her a dozen times. Time for some new material!
3
Maureen! You stun me...never before have I read such a shocking, unmitigated, deluge of truth...in your columns. For "The [Bush] Hollow Men", this is how their political world ends, "Not with a bang, but with a whimper."
Apologies to T.S. Eliot
Apologies to T.S. Eliot
40
If only Hillary would take the hint..
10
Bush would have been an OK president. His primary problem was that he was low on talent for show business that the American people are currently demanding in their presidential candidates; and couldn’t find it in himself to make outrageous promises he had no way of fulfilling.
8
But more Clintons ???? Ugh
9
A nice Jeremiad, Ms. Dowd, and oh, so true. The electorate has a lot to be angry about.
94
Right on, Mo.
9
"W.’s arrogant and delusional administration pulled the wool over Americans’ eyes about the Iraq invasion."
Speak for yourself. In the fall of 2002, my 75-year-old mother, an old-fashioned Republican, listened to George W. Bush give his various reasons for invading Iraq, and said, "He's lying! He wants to get us into a war."
She died before the United States began its campaign of shock and awe. But I will never forget that my loyal Republican mother could call a spade a spade, and other Americans were swallowing bilge because it was easier to do so.
Speak for yourself. In the fall of 2002, my 75-year-old mother, an old-fashioned Republican, listened to George W. Bush give his various reasons for invading Iraq, and said, "He's lying! He wants to get us into a war."
She died before the United States began its campaign of shock and awe. But I will never forget that my loyal Republican mother could call a spade a spade, and other Americans were swallowing bilge because it was easier to do so.
374
"The blustery billionaire painted Jeb as a “low energy” candidate with a wilting exclamation point who was desperately in need of an infusion of testosterone; a soft child of privilege who had to depend on Daddy’s friends for money and Mommy’s presence on the trail to bail him out, even as he feared using his surname on his campaign posters; an entitled wonk who pathetically tried to get more popular by taking off his rimless glasses."
Hey, Ms. Dowd, that was pretty unfair. Jeb is not a wonk.
Hey, Ms. Dowd, that was pretty unfair. Jeb is not a wonk.
8
This column should have run on the Obituary page.
13
Now if we could just get Hillary to drop out, the country could move into the 21st century.
16
Utter relief here, in South Florida. JEB! (no last name) sure had cherry-picked his so-called "accomplishments+; however, none could have been worse than the way that he devastated our Public Systems.
The whimp factor sure did hound John Earl Bush. Remember that Dana Carvey even outdid George H. W. on SNL, and George W. allowed Dick Cheney to control the reins of the Presidency--or, was he really that stupid?
Isn't it ironic that every one of the GOP candidates evoked the name of Ronal Reagan, and not one claimed any allegiance to either GWWB OR GWB. Not even the Jebster!
Trump shut Jeb down, just like Christie rightfully pegged Jeb's former protege, Marco Rubio, (did I tell you that my father was a bartender, my mother a maid?). And both of them live in Miami-Dade County, denying Climate Change, as Miami Beach slips into the sea.
http://thetruthoncommonsense.com
The whimp factor sure did hound John Earl Bush. Remember that Dana Carvey even outdid George H. W. on SNL, and George W. allowed Dick Cheney to control the reins of the Presidency--or, was he really that stupid?
Isn't it ironic that every one of the GOP candidates evoked the name of Ronal Reagan, and not one claimed any allegiance to either GWWB OR GWB. Not even the Jebster!
Trump shut Jeb down, just like Christie rightfully pegged Jeb's former protege, Marco Rubio, (did I tell you that my father was a bartender, my mother a maid?). And both of them live in Miami-Dade County, denying Climate Change, as Miami Beach slips into the sea.
http://thetruthoncommonsense.com
20
Good points, but I would add a Congress that got elected and got power in both houses, then failed to deliver, also has ownership in the rise of Trump. It should also be noted, the electorate on the Democrat side seems a bit put out with their establishment. Middle America ain't happy.
6
The scariest part is that any of the Republican candidates (now that Rand Paul is out) would put us right back into the Middle East quagmire with both feet first.
Let's spend our money on us for a change.
Let's spend our money on us for a change.
19
"The country is now aflame with anger and disgust about politicians and bankers...".
Yes, it is.
Anger and disgust at the juvenile media too, Ms. Dowd. You won a Pulitzer when mean ol Pharaoh was chairman or Egypt, round about the time you last wrote something other than a piece mocking the Bushes or the Clintons.
Yes, it is.
Anger and disgust at the juvenile media too, Ms. Dowd. You won a Pulitzer when mean ol Pharaoh was chairman or Egypt, round about the time you last wrote something other than a piece mocking the Bushes or the Clintons.
12
"The Bush men always recast themselves to woo voters. Poppy Bush shed his preppy striped watchband and pretended that pork rinds, rather than popcorn, was his favorite snack." Hilarious!
6
I almost fell off the sofa when George W Bush (campaigning for Jeb!) said "Laura was the best First Lady ever!"
I guess he never heard or read about Abigail Adams, Dolley Madison, Edith Roosevelt, Helen Louise Taft, Eleanor Roosevelt, Jacqueline Kennedy, Nancy Reagan, Rosalynn Carter, Hillary Clinton and Michelle Obama, among others.
Add another foolish quote to the long list of Bushisms.
I guess he never heard or read about Abigail Adams, Dolley Madison, Edith Roosevelt, Helen Louise Taft, Eleanor Roosevelt, Jacqueline Kennedy, Nancy Reagan, Rosalynn Carter, Hillary Clinton and Michelle Obama, among others.
Add another foolish quote to the long list of Bushisms.
18
Now now if we could only rid ourselves of that Clinton family with their baggage and scandals. They make the Bush family look good.
6
"When Poppy Bush ran against Bill Clinton, he simply assumed that the public would not choose a draft-dodging womanizer over him."
Bill Clinton. Donald Trump. Two peas is a pod.
Bill Clinton. Donald Trump. Two peas is a pod.
5
Maureen Dowd has finally returned to her old form by doing what she does best: attacking the Bushies. No "Barrys" or attacks on the Hill or Bill or superfluous references to Hollywood films.
I never want to hear from this "Dynasty" again as they've already done enough damage to the nation.
Keep it up Mo!!
I never want to hear from this "Dynasty" again as they've already done enough damage to the nation.
Keep it up Mo!!
12
Yes, Maureen, Donald Trumped Jeb Bush in South Carolina. Beat him like a drum. The Bush dynasty stumped for JEB! - George W. and his 90 year old Mother Bar - to no avail. Jeb was condemned to lose as soon as Donald Trump called him wan, low-energy, a wimp. Jeb removed his glasses, but Political correctness and dignity circled and went down the drain with The Donald's electrifying rise to the top of the clown heap of Republican Presidential candidates. Pathetic, that because he is a gentleman, Jeb will endorse his disloyal protege, Rubio, for whatever political position Marco wins - and we all hope that the young Cuban-American with the sunny smile in the empty suit will not win any GOP political position this year. Gov Christie warned us that Marco was a wind-up toy in GOP Debate. Jeb Bush was as woefully ill-advised as was his Father GHW Bush in 1988, losing his 2nd term to dirty tricks (Dukakis) and Bill Clinton because he glanced at his watch during a town hall meeting, and his brother, GW Bush who was euchred by Cheney, Rumsfeld, and Rove into starting two wars in Iraq and Afghanistan after he won the Presidency in 2000 thanks to Governor Jeb Bush of Florida and his Secretary of State Katherine Harris. What goes around comes around and now Jeb will eat humble pie by endorsing his very disloyal Florida protege, Marco Rubio if Marco will make it to the GOP Tea Party VEEP ticket in July.
6
Watching in horror... and relief. No one is happier than Jeb Bush about the end of Jeb! — a tomato can thrown into a fight he never wanted to be in; soft and pasty and slower than Gumby, Jeb kept looking back at his cornermen every time Trump smacked him in the face; he was Joe Frazier wondering where the heck George Foreman came from. It was good the fight was stopped, that the towel was thrown in; let's use it to mop up the rest of the GOP.
9
Mo Do
The 911 failings you and your colleagues still don't illuminate is the fact that prior to the 911 attacks the CIA followed two of the future hijackers from an Al Qaeda conference to Los Angeles. Equally disturbing is the fact the CIA would not let an FBI agent assigned to them notify his superiors. So, it's not just the infamous memo about Bin Laden briefed by the CIA to George W Bush, it's the fact he knew that Al Qaeda had already been inside America for two years and did nothing.
No, it's not the Bushies that created Donald Trump, like all things in the bubble of hysteria passing today for conservative thought, it is the quest for ratings amongst Fox News and conservative talk radio that drives the agenda. Yes, it's solely in this heated bubble were logic and reasonable policy disputes are transformed into mass hysteria. I'm still hoping that the next Bush campaign will be for war crimes.
http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2014/01/13/the-al-qaeda-switchboard
The 911 failings you and your colleagues still don't illuminate is the fact that prior to the 911 attacks the CIA followed two of the future hijackers from an Al Qaeda conference to Los Angeles. Equally disturbing is the fact the CIA would not let an FBI agent assigned to them notify his superiors. So, it's not just the infamous memo about Bin Laden briefed by the CIA to George W Bush, it's the fact he knew that Al Qaeda had already been inside America for two years and did nothing.
No, it's not the Bushies that created Donald Trump, like all things in the bubble of hysteria passing today for conservative thought, it is the quest for ratings amongst Fox News and conservative talk radio that drives the agenda. Yes, it's solely in this heated bubble were logic and reasonable policy disputes are transformed into mass hysteria. I'm still hoping that the next Bush campaign will be for war crimes.
http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2014/01/13/the-al-qaeda-switchboard
13
Yup.
3
Not even one sentence disparaging Hillary today?
How refreshing.
How refreshing.
20
H. W. was the head of the CIA, how many innocent people did he have killed while overthrowing governments not friendly to the US. How many innocents did he kill supporting his Saudi partners in Kuwait? How many dead innocent people is W's responsibility? Jeb conspires to steal an election. The Bush family gave us Lee Atwater and Karl Rove, despicable human beings. Good riddance. Now if we can only get rid of the corrupt Clintons, we may actually become a better nation.
7
Celebrating the "Escape from Bushworld" and entering the exalted realm of "Clintonworld" is delirious.
If it is acceptable for the President of the United States to be dishonest and untrustworthy, why should any other American value honesty?
If it is acceptable for the President of the United States to be dishonest and untrustworthy, why should any other American value honesty?
3
Maureen it may be too late, since this will probably be your last Bush column, but you should visit the Poppy Bush library in College Station. I was dragged (not quite screaming) into it and you don't even have to read between the lines (in a place that is set up to honor him) to see that Poppy was chosen by the Republican bosses to go to Washington as their puppet. I have to admit I didn't look at very much after the introductory background entrance exhibit, I walked out when I came to the video of Millie (Mildred Kerr Busch) reading from her book, since I realized this place was way too intellectual for me. Millie is now dead but perhaps she had offspring who one day could run for office?
1
That is a spot on article, except for the implication that the rise of Trump is problematic. Contrary to Maureen's beliefs, Trump is incredibly serious about restoring order and prosperity.
25
"..wilting exclamation point".
That's quite an image. Hope I can get that out of my mind today. But it says it all! In three words, you summed it up very well, Ms. Dowd.
That's quite an image. Hope I can get that out of my mind today. But it says it all! In three words, you summed it up very well, Ms. Dowd.
9
No word about the stupidity of Americans.
I well remember the scene: Baton in hand, a Texan president stands in front of Chorus America, each loyal American before him singing from the same song sheet, all proud to be Americans; joined by both the liberal and the conservative press, the Washington think tanks, the congress. Only a few have the courage to turn away.
They faced a rain of derision as they are reminded that they are not true Americans. They are given harsh labels such as: liberal, unpatriotic, un-American. The President calls on everyone to stay together in this battle against terrorism. Those of his Washington advisors who do not agree with the music as the President has written it, mostly leftover civil servants and generals from the previous administration, are dismissed. Some leave Washington to write books about their dismissal, but in time their names and the names of their books fade into history.
The stupidity of Americans!
I well remember the scene: Baton in hand, a Texan president stands in front of Chorus America, each loyal American before him singing from the same song sheet, all proud to be Americans; joined by both the liberal and the conservative press, the Washington think tanks, the congress. Only a few have the courage to turn away.
They faced a rain of derision as they are reminded that they are not true Americans. They are given harsh labels such as: liberal, unpatriotic, un-American. The President calls on everyone to stay together in this battle against terrorism. Those of his Washington advisors who do not agree with the music as the President has written it, mostly leftover civil servants and generals from the previous administration, are dismissed. Some leave Washington to write books about their dismissal, but in time their names and the names of their books fade into history.
The stupidity of Americans!
10
Now the only thing left for the Bush family to do is to put their resources to work to assure that Trump does not get elected and that there is no blood on their hands when it happens.
The establishment is counting on Mitch to help pull that off. And he is hard at work to make that happen.
The establishment is counting on Mitch to help pull that off. And he is hard at work to make that happen.
2
GWB unwittingly transferred Saddam Hussain's karmas onto himself and the nation. Every day as he wakes up he does not see the next oil painting but the last man coming home without being whole. FWIW, The Donald had the courage to state what the media could not state over the last 13 years.
7
Well, we are quite one-sided here, no? For example, "Poppy" Bush did not have an ivory tower WW II experience.
3
Someone really needs to write a "Long Day's Journey into Night [or Right]" about the psychopathology of this family, Except that, unlike O'Neill's family drama, this one was a Weapon of Mass Destruction.
7
Thrilled he has left the race. Calls for less government while Terry Schiavo remains his shining example of less government.
10
" . . .in 2000, when the family had to pressure Jeb to help purloin Florida. In return, W. came out of his oil-painting exile to try and deliver South Carolina for Jeb. . ."
"Trump held the Bushes accountable for the trumped-up war. . ."
Pretty obvious reasons why most Republicans finally admit they can't trust their own politicians, and turn once more to a Hollywood entertainer for salvation.
"Trump held the Bushes accountable for the trumped-up war. . ."
Pretty obvious reasons why most Republicans finally admit they can't trust their own politicians, and turn once more to a Hollywood entertainer for salvation.
3
Let's at least give Donald Trump a round of applause for burying Jeb Bush's dream of a third Bush presidency. At the end of the day Jeb Bush couldn't count on his family name or connections to make a dent in the Trump juggernaut. Jeb Bush was laughable in the debates and his campaign never gained any traction. America can now sleep soundly knowing the Bush dynasty has been overthrown once and for all.
10
Dochoc, I agree completely, especially about my sympathy for Jeb being tempered by my memory of his role in making Terry Shiavo's family tragedy so much more excruciating, and of course, in making his brother President resulting in an excruciating tragedy for a nation - and the world.
And I too am intrigued by the thought of a Caro bio of Jeb, watching the little jeb! growing up in the Bush family, wearing his little rimless glasses, watching his dad and his brother throw the ball around Kennebunkport, watching his brother mess up over and over again, trying to be the "good" one, then later watching them both being sworn in as President of the United States of America.
Really, what choice did he have but run?
A tragedy, yes, but not so much a Shakespearean one as a Greek?
And I too am intrigued by the thought of a Caro bio of Jeb, watching the little jeb! growing up in the Bush family, wearing his little rimless glasses, watching his dad and his brother throw the ball around Kennebunkport, watching his brother mess up over and over again, trying to be the "good" one, then later watching them both being sworn in as President of the United States of America.
Really, what choice did he have but run?
A tragedy, yes, but not so much a Shakespearean one as a Greek?
5
And now all we have to do is get rid of the other candidate who represents a dynasty and believes to feel entitled to the presidency.
Wait until Trump gets his fangs into her.
Wait until Trump gets his fangs into her.
4
Thank you, Ms. Dowd. Great article, though I don't believe that the Bush dynasty is singularly responsible for the rise of Donald Trump, just as Hillary Clinton did not single handedly destroy feminism. Don't forget people like Ann Coulter, Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity.
But, for me the most interesting part of this article is the fact that Donald Trump put it out there that 9/11 happened on W's watch. For 15 years, not a peep from the press, including the NY Times, that there were memos flying around about an imminent attack by Al Qaeda, that both the CIA and the FBI had voluminous information about what was about to happen and yet....nothing. Condoleezza Rice did nothint. W. did nothing. Cheney did nothing. When I'd see those unstoppable yellow ribbon magnets being displayed on the bumpers of gas guzzling SUVs "support our tropps", I thought, "Fine. But they're in the wrong country." The question remains: why did we invade Iraq when Osama bin Laden was in either Afghanistan or Pakistan? Not one single media outlet questioned this bizarre turn of events, not one followed up on the fact that clearly the Bush administration had been made aware of what was going on. Still, to this day, I've never seen an article about it. And, yes, you're right, hundreds of thousands of soldiers have been killed or maimed because of the Iraq War, so where is their explanation for why we invaded Iraq?
But, for me the most interesting part of this article is the fact that Donald Trump put it out there that 9/11 happened on W's watch. For 15 years, not a peep from the press, including the NY Times, that there were memos flying around about an imminent attack by Al Qaeda, that both the CIA and the FBI had voluminous information about what was about to happen and yet....nothing. Condoleezza Rice did nothint. W. did nothing. Cheney did nothing. When I'd see those unstoppable yellow ribbon magnets being displayed on the bumpers of gas guzzling SUVs "support our tropps", I thought, "Fine. But they're in the wrong country." The question remains: why did we invade Iraq when Osama bin Laden was in either Afghanistan or Pakistan? Not one single media outlet questioned this bizarre turn of events, not one followed up on the fact that clearly the Bush administration had been made aware of what was going on. Still, to this day, I've never seen an article about it. And, yes, you're right, hundreds of thousands of soldiers have been killed or maimed because of the Iraq War, so where is their explanation for why we invaded Iraq?
13
There's no escape from Bushworld. The rest of us on this planet have to deal with 'America knows best', the resultant wars everywhere in Americas quest for profit and 'democracy', really corporate pillage desquised as capitalism. The Bushes are exemplary reps of the Oligarchy that destroys. The legacy of the Bush family and their cronies will be felt for decades. So forget the wishful thinking and begin to repair the damage.
8
The Bush family, especially W, should be held accountable for much, including corrupting elections and committing war crimes. But blaming THEM, or Barack Obama for the rise of Donald Trump and his ability to whip up the angry ignorati among Republicans, is absurd.
What should be clear was that Jeb Bush was rather reluctant to get into this campaign and was obviously shoved into it. Like his father and brother, he's just not that good at it, and has no love for it, stumbling even before he got out of the starting blocks, and stumbling ever after. NOTHING he did worked, and he and his campaign squandered $100 million convincing, basically, nobody that he should be nominated. His campaign, and obvious pain at every mis-step "Please clap" has been cringe-worthy even for this Progressive Democrat. Seeing him leave was a relief and he's not even good VP material--I don't think he can win Florida for Trump or Cruz, and Rubio cannot choose him (the Constitution says the President and VP cannot come from the same state).
Much as I detest Trump, and have for over 30 years, his ability to get away with murder has allowed him to make the GOP face what Dems have been saying for 15 years: W failed to take obvious steps to protect us prior to 9/11 and then started 2 bankrupting catastrophic wars, one in the wrong country (Iraq) and the other wrongly prosecuted (Afghanistan).
And Mo only got one teeny-tiny little dig in at Bill Clinton and none at Obama-- a record for her
What should be clear was that Jeb Bush was rather reluctant to get into this campaign and was obviously shoved into it. Like his father and brother, he's just not that good at it, and has no love for it, stumbling even before he got out of the starting blocks, and stumbling ever after. NOTHING he did worked, and he and his campaign squandered $100 million convincing, basically, nobody that he should be nominated. His campaign, and obvious pain at every mis-step "Please clap" has been cringe-worthy even for this Progressive Democrat. Seeing him leave was a relief and he's not even good VP material--I don't think he can win Florida for Trump or Cruz, and Rubio cannot choose him (the Constitution says the President and VP cannot come from the same state).
Much as I detest Trump, and have for over 30 years, his ability to get away with murder has allowed him to make the GOP face what Dems have been saying for 15 years: W failed to take obvious steps to protect us prior to 9/11 and then started 2 bankrupting catastrophic wars, one in the wrong country (Iraq) and the other wrongly prosecuted (Afghanistan).
And Mo only got one teeny-tiny little dig in at Bill Clinton and none at Obama-- a record for her
8
Billionaires don't mind throwing away tens of millions of dollars on Bush and on their puppets, but they are totally against paying a penny extra in taxes. I was raised that the more that you have, the more that you should give or the more that you owe and our family was totally on board with this. We are Democrats.
10
Welcome back Mo. Do with your original sharp wit that was almost forgotten now away from Hill and Bill for a pleasant change.
Am I to feel sorry for timid Jeb ? Not a change, so much money is wasted now with his super-pack. And Mama Bush who knew had so much flair always took to back seat when Nancy was the Queen. Mama looks even glamorous instead of looking homely with her nrw foxy silver do glowing skin and fire in her eyes.
If Bernie could run at 75 she could have dipped her toes too. No ?
Am I to feel sorry for timid Jeb ? Not a change, so much money is wasted now with his super-pack. And Mama Bush who knew had so much flair always took to back seat when Nancy was the Queen. Mama looks even glamorous instead of looking homely with her nrw foxy silver do glowing skin and fire in her eyes.
If Bernie could run at 75 she could have dipped her toes too. No ?
4
Thanks Maureen, for this delicious buffet of exquisite Schadenfreude. Your wit is always at its sharpest when Bushes are on the cutting board.
9
Just so you know, I am a recovering Republican. By 2002 I saw through all the lies. We were going to war to get even. Bush 41 had not slain the dragon and 43 had an excuse (911). At the same time, taxes were being slashed ( don't tell me this was for the middle class) and the deficit was going to soar. Do you remember all those years that Republican dogma was cut taxes for the rich and the rest of us would get the trickle down? Wake up America. Those slick word merchants are about to do it to you again. Trump, Rubio, and Cruz are talking war ( Mexico, Russia, ISIS, Libya, Syria, China, etc.), and proposing to knock the top off the deficit with another massive, rich man) tax cut. And one more thing to think about. If they are elected, 30 million ( at a minimum) will lose their health care and 12 million will be dragged to Mexico. Is this the America you want?
545
Unfortunately, the Schiavone abuse of power was not discussed as a teaching moment before Jeb, the abuser in chief, bowed out.
7
The American electorate has sopped it up and we all have paid a huge price. It is the same phenomenon as Trump or Kardashian or some nit wit athlete. Heck, the NY Times published an long obit on "Big Ang" of "Mob Wives" fame. The average person will never do the right thing. It means they have to think.
7
Can you imagine what Jeb Bush must be thinking this morning? He was the “golden boy” of that disgusting family. He was the one everyone expected to be sitting on the mountaintop one day. And what happened? It was all dashed by his half-witted older brother and the complete and utter incompetence of the American electorate. The poor schlep must be pounding his head against a marble wall as I write these words. Isn’t life strange?
The Bush dynasty should have been strangled in its cradle decades ago. Better late than never, ay? But there is a dark cloud behind this silver lining. It is hard to feel any sense of genuine relief when one takes into consideration all of the damage they were able to inflict upon this doomed nation.
The last time one Democratic administration was succeeded by another Democratic administration was on March 4, 1857, when Franklin Pierce tossed the keys to the executive mansion to miserable old James Buchanan. It hasn’t happened since. It will happen again on January 20, 2017. The Bushes have made the Republican Party unelectable on a national level.
Life is beautiful,
http://www.tomdegan.blogspot.com
Tom Degan
The Bush dynasty should have been strangled in its cradle decades ago. Better late than never, ay? But there is a dark cloud behind this silver lining. It is hard to feel any sense of genuine relief when one takes into consideration all of the damage they were able to inflict upon this doomed nation.
The last time one Democratic administration was succeeded by another Democratic administration was on March 4, 1857, when Franklin Pierce tossed the keys to the executive mansion to miserable old James Buchanan. It hasn’t happened since. It will happen again on January 20, 2017. The Bushes have made the Republican Party unelectable on a national level.
Life is beautiful,
http://www.tomdegan.blogspot.com
Tom Degan
15
Dear Ms. Dowd,
Okay, I get it; you really don't like the "Bushes". I would point out the Democrats seem to have a "proto-dynasty" going for them, the nascent "Clinton Line of Royalty" assuming Ms. Clinton both secures the nomination and, then, wins the election.
I would also point out that Ms. Clinton voted FOR W.'s, and the United States, invasion of Iraq. So, I guess, she also "played right into Osama's recruiting plans" much as the rest of Congress.
Beating this dead horse will only go so far but, as you point out, if this Iraq/DAESH "creationist" thing is going to continue then I guess Ms.Clinton was part of the problem no matter how she "spins" it.
Hence, Mr. Trump, who's original stand on the Iraq invasion shifts as much as the desert sands, can use the same badgering and hostile approach to her as he did with the now departed "JEB!".
But, really, gloating over the "Last of the Bushes" is a tad unseemly, don't you think?
By the way, there are many more "Bushes" in the garden calmly awaiting their dynastic chance so the underlying message may be, Poltergeist wise, "Trust us. We'll be BACK" (followed by eerie "whooshing' noises).
Okay, I get it; you really don't like the "Bushes". I would point out the Democrats seem to have a "proto-dynasty" going for them, the nascent "Clinton Line of Royalty" assuming Ms. Clinton both secures the nomination and, then, wins the election.
I would also point out that Ms. Clinton voted FOR W.'s, and the United States, invasion of Iraq. So, I guess, she also "played right into Osama's recruiting plans" much as the rest of Congress.
Beating this dead horse will only go so far but, as you point out, if this Iraq/DAESH "creationist" thing is going to continue then I guess Ms.Clinton was part of the problem no matter how she "spins" it.
Hence, Mr. Trump, who's original stand on the Iraq invasion shifts as much as the desert sands, can use the same badgering and hostile approach to her as he did with the now departed "JEB!".
But, really, gloating over the "Last of the Bushes" is a tad unseemly, don't you think?
By the way, there are many more "Bushes" in the garden calmly awaiting their dynastic chance so the underlying message may be, Poltergeist wise, "Trust us. We'll be BACK" (followed by eerie "whooshing' noises).
4
Jeb is just a man of average intelligence with a big name and a rich family.
As if we didn't need more proof that great wealth and intelligence are not necessarily synonymous.
As if we didn't need more proof that great wealth and intelligence are not necessarily synonymous.
17
As this Republican fiasco began, there were three adults on the stage: Bush, Graham, and Kasich. While never perfect (OK, maybe not even close), they certainly looked a lot better than the three irresponsible hot heads who keep dominating the news. What a mess!
8
W, Wolfowitz, Dick Cheney, et al have finally been exposed for the foul, evil liars that they were and are.
For that, the nation owes Donald J. Trump an enormous thank you.
Even if I'd never vote for him.
For that, the nation owes Donald J. Trump an enormous thank you.
Even if I'd never vote for him.
26
Trump is playing a fascist game and we better see it for what it is before it's too late. As Gail Collins so thoroughly details, our dear Mr. Donald expresses pure hatred, vilification, bigotry, xenophobia, misogyny and then when the voters give him a victory he speaks in a softer, forgiving tone and people think he has become and will be a nice guy. In Germany the professors had an opening at the early stages of the Nazi era to ring the intellectual alarm bells and were silent. It is time to flood every social and hard media space with the truth. Trump is an autocratic bully who after beating you up, picks you off the floor only to knock you down again. He is a fascist waiting to happen!!
30
As a Royal Family the Clintons are much, much more interesting. Bill's sexual escapades make great tabloid reading while the Bush clan is just plain dull.
Queen Hillary will be a wonderful Queen and despised by many. Princess Chelsea will follow along in her footsteps and they will reign for many years.
Queen Hillary will be a wonderful Queen and despised by many. Princess Chelsea will follow along in her footsteps and they will reign for many years.
5
Maureen, criticisms are what you do best and certainly, based on the utter shambles George W. made of the Presidency, you are justified in landing on the family claws and teeth at work.
You mention "dignity and decorum" and to what purpose? Not to be found with W, but all three Republican candidates fall way short in the category too.
Trump can crucify the Bushes and especially W. for a "delusional administration" but how does that differ from the offerings of Trump, Cruz and Rubio?
America is in serious political trouble and the escape hatches are currently closed. This is truly an "Oh, woe is me" moment in American history.
You mention "dignity and decorum" and to what purpose? Not to be found with W, but all three Republican candidates fall way short in the category too.
Trump can crucify the Bushes and especially W. for a "delusional administration" but how does that differ from the offerings of Trump, Cruz and Rubio?
America is in serious political trouble and the escape hatches are currently closed. This is truly an "Oh, woe is me" moment in American history.
19
"The dynasty has perished, with a whimper."
Now if only the Clinton dynasty would go away! Hillary is roaring so much that she has a cough that doesn't seem to go away. Now we may have to deal with "a draft-dodging womanizer" for another four to eight years, assuming the GOP doesn't succeed in their incessant attacks that are sure to come against the Clintons.
As for poor Jeb!, John Oliver had this to say about Barbara Bush being brought in to close the deal, so to speak:
“No! No. She could not be the closer. You bring on the closer when you have a lead. When your campaign is where Jeb Bush’s was, you don’t need a closer—you need a [expletive deleted] coroner."
OUCH!
Now if only the Clinton dynasty would go away! Hillary is roaring so much that she has a cough that doesn't seem to go away. Now we may have to deal with "a draft-dodging womanizer" for another four to eight years, assuming the GOP doesn't succeed in their incessant attacks that are sure to come against the Clintons.
As for poor Jeb!, John Oliver had this to say about Barbara Bush being brought in to close the deal, so to speak:
“No! No. She could not be the closer. You bring on the closer when you have a lead. When your campaign is where Jeb Bush’s was, you don’t need a closer—you need a [expletive deleted] coroner."
OUCH!
2
please put your pen to the task of exposing Marco Rubio, the phony bundler-funded collector.
18
Small quibble
It's not just the Bushes that have given rise to Trump. While they certainly played their part, Republicans in the House, Senate and Supreme Court haven't helped the Republican cause either.
People are disgusted with the Politics of the 1990s to the present where the Republicans elevated party over country. Whether because of government by subpoena, election stealing, nakedly partisan court rulings, or congressional obstruction, the dysfunction has led to deep-seated dissatisfaction within the electorate — including the once reliable sheep that could be wedged into line with anti-LGBT, anti-abortion, supply-side rabble-rousing.
Nowadays, all Americans feel their country has been sold down the river by a bunch of lying carpetbaggers. And they are right. The Bushes are part of that. But so are Gingrich, Starr, Bush, Cheney, Scalia, Boehner and McConnell. The one-sidedness of these men, their inability to find a middle road in a country that's radically split left and right, has increasingly made them political pariahs. You can see it in the poll numbers — especially when ones that compare the approval ratings of Congress and the President. At a 50 percent rating, a clearly partisan Supreme Court has sunk to it’s worst rating in it’s history.
Unrelenting, partisan politics is, perhaps, the larger part of what has given rise to Donald Trump — the candidate who doesn’t fit into a clear partisan mold.
It's not just the Bushes that have given rise to Trump. While they certainly played their part, Republicans in the House, Senate and Supreme Court haven't helped the Republican cause either.
People are disgusted with the Politics of the 1990s to the present where the Republicans elevated party over country. Whether because of government by subpoena, election stealing, nakedly partisan court rulings, or congressional obstruction, the dysfunction has led to deep-seated dissatisfaction within the electorate — including the once reliable sheep that could be wedged into line with anti-LGBT, anti-abortion, supply-side rabble-rousing.
Nowadays, all Americans feel their country has been sold down the river by a bunch of lying carpetbaggers. And they are right. The Bushes are part of that. But so are Gingrich, Starr, Bush, Cheney, Scalia, Boehner and McConnell. The one-sidedness of these men, their inability to find a middle road in a country that's radically split left and right, has increasingly made them political pariahs. You can see it in the poll numbers — especially when ones that compare the approval ratings of Congress and the President. At a 50 percent rating, a clearly partisan Supreme Court has sunk to it’s worst rating in it’s history.
Unrelenting, partisan politics is, perhaps, the larger part of what has given rise to Donald Trump — the candidate who doesn’t fit into a clear partisan mold.
10
Now that the smoke has cleared, Mama Bush had it right. The country doesn't need any more Bushes. She's the wisest of the clan.
5
Well, there is no doubt in my mind that George W wrecked the country and the middle east and got off clean. He should've been prosecuted for starting a war by lying to congress. That's not Jebs fault however watching him in action he came across as the same sort of nincompoop. I give Trump credit for calling him out on it, however he then backed down, he's all an act!!
As far as (The underlying message of Bush campaigns is always: “Trust us. We know best.” But that has been proven false.), is not this the same message that Trump and Burnie put out. They both talk lots of good stuff that can and will never get done.
As far as (The underlying message of Bush campaigns is always: “Trust us. We know best.” But that has been proven false.), is not this the same message that Trump and Burnie put out. They both talk lots of good stuff that can and will never get done.
5
The last paragraph perfectly sums up the average citizen's impression about their fellow countrymen- FED UP!
'W' was a massive failure on all fronts. Many hoped for better from Obama, but we're still living with international strife overwhelming globalization, zero-percent interest rates, which have begun to really hurt savers as the fed lies about inflation and Japanese robo-investing and other issues impact the stock market.
Who wants the geek with the tab collar shirt or the girl headed to an Ivy league school as class president. The character that throws spitballs, but gets straight A's anyhow seems like a cool choice to some. The very serious guy who seems older than the rest is attractive to others. BUT anything can happen.
'W' was a massive failure on all fronts. Many hoped for better from Obama, but we're still living with international strife overwhelming globalization, zero-percent interest rates, which have begun to really hurt savers as the fed lies about inflation and Japanese robo-investing and other issues impact the stock market.
Who wants the geek with the tab collar shirt or the girl headed to an Ivy league school as class president. The character that throws spitballs, but gets straight A's anyhow seems like a cool choice to some. The very serious guy who seems older than the rest is attractive to others. BUT anything can happen.
2
Seeing a smiling George W Bush last week in S.C. made me ill. He has caused so much unspeakable death and destruction while serving as the worst President in my lifetime. How is it that he gets to live out the remainder of his life in peace and comfort?
19
The Dowd hammer swings hard, hits squarely. I'm not complaining mind you but poor Jeb sure looks downtrodden, removed from time and space. I guess he might be qualified to get that bank job in South America or become a drug counselor. He and his brother might clean up some tumble weeds or clean bush.
5
DUBYAS' Failed presidencies and lying about the reasons for going to war in the Mideast were baggage that was far too heavy for anyone to carry across the campaign finish line. Leave alone the feckless Jeb Bush. Once he got the point where he was asking audiences to please laugh, I knew all was lost in his candidacy. Barbara's false look of horror when Dubya was booed at Obama's first Inauguration must now be supplanted by genuine horror among the entire Bush dynasty at Trump's victories. One thing I've always been curious about is why Poppy's daddy, Perscott Bush, Senator from New England, was a liberal Democrat. Why is his name never mentioned as part of the dynasty? Do they view him as some sort of aberration or skeleton in their closet? Now if they threw their support to Rubio, when Cruz leaves the race, Rubio would most likely overwhelm Trump's lead in the polls by attracting much of the latter's support. The Cruzbio hybrid monster is doing its damage to the GOP Elephant. It's their show to run, so if that's how they want to challenge the Democrats, they need only divide the vote between the two of them to assure Trump of the candidacy. What will take down the Trump juggernaut? A run as an Independent by Michael Bloomberg would guarantee that the balance of votes in the election would be thrown to the Democrats by his presence. Bloomberg versus Trump--now there's a confrontation I'd really enjoy watching!
3
Mainstream Republicans are still very mad about the catastrophe of the Iraq War; paradoxically, whatever few extra points Jeb! might have gained from the family brand name were quickly lost again because of this anger. That is why Jeb really only got about the same number of votes as the other "low energy" governor running this year-- Kasich.
This is also why Hillary is at risk when she plays her Dynasty card.
This is also why Hillary is at risk when she plays her Dynasty card.
4
Even Donald Trump has shown more kindness toward Jeb than you, Maureen. When he withdrew from the race, Trump described Jeb as a “good man” and thoughtfully added “It just wasn't his time.” In truth, family history and expectations aside, it's doubtful there was ever a good time for Jeb to be in politics – he just isn't mean enough. His situation gives a whole new meaning to the phrase “born into difficult circumstances.”
3
At last: History as it was, and without a hint of snark.
3
It looks to me that the Trump vs Bush was staged (a little help for Hillary?) Too many GOP candidates (quantity and little quality) and just 2 (or 3 for a short time) for the democrats (very convenient). Maybe a hint for the political cycle: Bush(Reagan) - Bush-Clinton-Bush-(Obama for a little change)-Clinton? - Bush? We'll see...Dynasties do not disappear just evolve (There are plenty of examples)
I think the quote is I come not to praise JEB! but to bury him. Oops, I meant Cesaer, put you get the point.(not an exclamation point though) The Bushes act as if they were stabbed in the back. Fact is nobody I know, except maybe my sister, liked the Bushes, any of them. Yet there they were for decades. Somehow always in our lives and business. Presidents, governors, CIA directors, always running for something. Maybe, just maybe this is it. Stick a fork him them.
6
What a beautifully written, superb obit for the dim dynasty. If only it were that simple to write off the Boucher family (they anglicised it to "Bush" way back when). Like Balzac's amoral protag Cousine Bette, one of them will surely rear his head to ensure the private gain and maintenance of the family good, along with a cabinet or key advisory post if the GOP wins in 2016...
7
I wait for you to be as tough on the lying, native fascist Trump as you've been on Bush and Clinton. In fact, you've been downright sweet to him this season. When he's nominated we'll have our own Hitlerian moment, the little man with the big mouth who rallies the masses with bombastic oratory. Bush and Clinton are bad but Trump's off the charts. A world run by Trump, Putin and Xi Jin Ping will be its own world history chapter, with no one to write it. According to that fool, climate change is "a hoax...a little wind, a little cold."
3
And now ladies and gentlemen, Ms Dowd will dedicate herself to bringing down Hillary. I have no issue with that idea since it means one less columnist at the NYT attempting to find fault with anything and everything relating to Bernie Sanders.
Now that Bush has quit, we'll be deprived of the opportunity to watch Trump turn full-blown 9/11 truther. What a disappointment. But look on the good side, if he wins, he actually might call for a real investigation.
I'm reminded of a Republican senator's defense of Nixon's failed Supreme Court nominee G. Harold Carswell many years ago - that mediocrity also deserved some representation in the government.
Well the Bushes more than took care of that, which is one more reason to happily bid farewell to this house of third rate politicians.
Well the Bushes more than took care of that, which is one more reason to happily bid farewell to this house of third rate politicians.
1
Bravo to Trump for speaking the truth about the culpability of Bush for our Iraq fiasco and for his failure in relation to 9/11.
What a shame that our politicians have their silence bought and paid for and hence cannot ever speak the truth.
4
Maureen, I'm a fan. And I firmly believe that W. and his neocon advisors should be indicted as war criminals. But "Winning was always more important than gentility. That’s what happened in 2000, when the family had to pressure Jeb to help purloin Florida," crosses a line. As if you wouldn't help out your brother within the full limits of the law. And speaking of "The Law," the SCOTUS is the villian in that particular narrative, not Jeb Bush.
1
Lady MacDowd, it is time to put the daggers away and the cauldron is also poisoned enough. A tragedy may have taken place in an American family, whether rich or poor, it is a malignant time to gloat. While I could never support Jeb Bush, the shadow of Iraq looming over him, there is reason to believe that he was once a fine Governor to Florida.
Let us leave this family and their sons alone, far away from the maddening crowd, and take your craft elsewhere to carve into our heads made of ire, venom and stone that we need a Republican nominee for the forthcoming elections to the highest office in the Country.
It is not Trump who now believes he is 'America', nor a brilliant Rubio to entice magpies, nor Cruz, with invisible horns growing out of his head. Let us go in search of a Red Knight to compete with the Queen of Hearts who is shouting 'Off with Their Heads!'.
Let us leave this family and their sons alone, far away from the maddening crowd, and take your craft elsewhere to carve into our heads made of ire, venom and stone that we need a Republican nominee for the forthcoming elections to the highest office in the Country.
It is not Trump who now believes he is 'America', nor a brilliant Rubio to entice magpies, nor Cruz, with invisible horns growing out of his head. Let us go in search of a Red Knight to compete with the Queen of Hearts who is shouting 'Off with Their Heads!'.
As a devoted Democrat, who's never voted Republican, I, nevertheless, admired and respected Herbert Walker Bush for his W.W.II heroism as a fighter pilot and for his going back on his pledge, as president, to "read my lips, no new taxes, when, in fact, he raised taxes.
Bush 41 also had the good sense to contain Saddam Husain in the Gulf War by ordering our troops off the battlefield after the liberation of Kuwait, there by containing the Iranian Shi'ites from destabalizing the region.
It's also worth noting that '41 and Barbara Bush were desegregationists as far back as when they lived in Houston Texas in 1962. For these reasons, I honor the Bush family, instead of vilifying them. The sins of the sons don't tarnish the accomplishments of the parents.
Bush 41 also had the good sense to contain Saddam Husain in the Gulf War by ordering our troops off the battlefield after the liberation of Kuwait, there by containing the Iranian Shi'ites from destabalizing the region.
It's also worth noting that '41 and Barbara Bush were desegregationists as far back as when they lived in Houston Texas in 1962. For these reasons, I honor the Bush family, instead of vilifying them. The sins of the sons don't tarnish the accomplishments of the parents.
5
I am sure the Bushes do not see any relationship between them and Donald Trump. But the connection exists. I do LOATHE Trump as a disease on our nation, but he at least is right in calling out the Bush's Iraq lie. The country is cynical in part because there is no public disavowal of this grotesque deception. What is the most loathsome of the Bush political legacy, particularly W's, is absence of self-reflection and admission about what this cost the country, in terms of human lives, maimings, money, place in the world, not to mention what it did to the middle east. A sad sad legacy.
436
Something tells me Trump's campaign was simply an accidental overshoot of his mouthing off all of these years on "Fox and Friends" and on CNBC's "Squawk Box". 2016 was opportune since he felt he had to avenge Bush Sr picking Dan Quayle over him as his VP and he started out sticking it to Prince Jeb who was on his way to a coronation. Now that he has gotten Jeb out and won a couple of primaries, Trump might just decide to declare victory and get back to his normal life. Hopefully he will put a few dents in Cruz and Rubio while he is at it, probably leaving Kasich as the last man standing.
I am doubtful if Donald Trump is serious on being the President. It is funny to see EVERY newspaper, magazine and TV show harp continuously about how to "stop" him or "defeat" him or run him out, etc... when the fact is Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio are much more odious and dangerous candidates. For all of his blustering about Mexican rapists and the infamous Wall, Donald Trump made his life in NYC, Atlantic City, Chicago and Las Vegas, not exactly Xenophobia Central. The notion he would stop all Muslims from entering the States or whatever else is being peddled out there is laughable. He is playing everyone for the fools we are so eager to be.
Prediction: By December 2017, most columnists and pundits will be fired ignominiously, and the political conversation in America will be a lot more constructive. Trump actually might have helped it happen, starting with his comments on W and 9/11.
I am doubtful if Donald Trump is serious on being the President. It is funny to see EVERY newspaper, magazine and TV show harp continuously about how to "stop" him or "defeat" him or run him out, etc... when the fact is Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio are much more odious and dangerous candidates. For all of his blustering about Mexican rapists and the infamous Wall, Donald Trump made his life in NYC, Atlantic City, Chicago and Las Vegas, not exactly Xenophobia Central. The notion he would stop all Muslims from entering the States or whatever else is being peddled out there is laughable. He is playing everyone for the fools we are so eager to be.
Prediction: By December 2017, most columnists and pundits will be fired ignominiously, and the political conversation in America will be a lot more constructive. Trump actually might have helped it happen, starting with his comments on W and 9/11.
14
Dowd is wrong. The Bushwackies aren't responsible for Trump. The Reeps are simply reaping the whirlwind. Fifty years of Republican appeals to racism and hatred created the success of the stubby-fingered vulgarian.
35
I heard Jeb speak maybe two or three times just after he entered the race and found myself utterly flabbergasted. This was "the smart Bush"? Had billionaires invested in this obvious loser eithout ever hearing him speak publicly or attempt to answer reporters' questions?
The long, painful denouement was not a surprise (to me, at least).
The long, painful denouement was not a surprise (to me, at least).
22
Regression toward the mean. Poppy was a sharp guy and a decent guy. 43 regressed toward the mean, and then some. Inherited privilege is abhorrent to nature. Natures wants the best; not that which is related to the best, but far from it. May the biblical mistakes of 43 be a lesson to us all. No more aristocracies.
18
"That fury has led to the rise of wildly improbable candidates in both parties. "
Ms. Dowd does the false equivalency dance, and again attacks Hillary for no real reason.
Ms. Dowd does the false equivalency dance, and again attacks Hillary for no real reason.
13
Ms. Dowd makes a good case for connecting the dots: "As the Bush dynasty falls, it must watch in horror knowing that it is responsible for the rise of Donald Trump."
16
I am only a little surprised that Trump's assertion that Pres. Bush failed to protect the nation despite warnings, and in contradiction of the ridiculous "Bush kept us safe!" did not lead to a complete rejection of Trump by self-identified Republican voters. When it has been said before by non-Republicans, vitriolic condemnation followed immediately, implying the speaker was bordering on treason. Just imagine if Pres. Obama had forthrightly stated this obvious fact.
What a difference in who makes the claim!
What a difference in who makes the claim!
30
Ms. Dowd has given a detailed account of the fall of Bush. When will she go into such detail about the actual exploits of the supposed front-runner? Surely she must know some of his business associates from country clubs she has visited or research she has done. Where are the stories and anecdotes from them about Mr. Trump?
The people didn't need the Bush dynasty eulogized; they need Donald Trump properly vetted.
The people didn't need the Bush dynasty eulogized; they need Donald Trump properly vetted.
9
Jeb Bush suffered from Post Trump Stress Disorder.The psychological domination and unnerving of Jeb Bush, by the alpha political male Donald Trump, is unprecedented in American political history. Jeb Bush's,zombie like, 140 million dollar candidacy, morphed into the surreal, claiming he would have "killed" baby Hitler, that he received an award from the NRA, which in fact had never existed,and was then given a rifle by Charlton Heston in the same NRA ceremony, which never happened. He then pontificated that "these are serious times that require serious leadership", which is of course ,why Jeb is no longer with us. His stilted campaign rhetoric reverberated like an out of tune piano in an empty concert hall, which would certainly be the case, if he was speaking.
8
As a former Florida resident who endured both terms of Jeb's governorship, and watched my Miami-Dade county cast vote being trucked up to Tallahassee then back again, then basically nullified, I can honestly say I could not have hoped for a better end to the Bush dynasty.
18
When Jeb! put out his list of foreign policy advisers, my jaw hit the floor when it included some of W's Not So Merry Band of Pranksters and Gangsters, I mean talk about tone deaf, and his staff was getting big bucks for this advice? Fool me once.....both money and time wasted.
Bush is gone and now the GOP is winnowing down to clueless, Trump, Carson, Rubio, dangerous, Cruz and sensible, for the GOP, Kasich.
The Dems have an entitled, untrustworthy, Clinton and a life-long independent socialist who is in the fold simply because third party presidential runs are ruinous in nature.
If this is the best that our two-party system can churn out, it is time to examine that system, overturn Citizens' United and hope that time doesn't run out on our democracy, for the sake of our children and their children.
Bush is gone and now the GOP is winnowing down to clueless, Trump, Carson, Rubio, dangerous, Cruz and sensible, for the GOP, Kasich.
The Dems have an entitled, untrustworthy, Clinton and a life-long independent socialist who is in the fold simply because third party presidential runs are ruinous in nature.
If this is the best that our two-party system can churn out, it is time to examine that system, overturn Citizens' United and hope that time doesn't run out on our democracy, for the sake of our children and their children.
9
Ms. Dowd needs a history lesson.
Bill Clinton had eight years to do something about Osama bin Laden. He did nothing. George W. Bush had been in office only eight months before 9/11. Ms. Dowd would learn something from reading the report of the 9/11 commission. She would see how absurd it is to elevate Bill Maher to the status of noted presidential historian.
Thanks to the Clinton administration Al Qaeda had a safe haven in the Taliban’s Afghanistan. How exactly was the Bush Administration to go after Al Qaeda, and AlQaeda only in the Afghanistan controlled by the Taliban? Maybe Ms. Dowd thinks the Taliban would have said, “Y’all come.” Ms. Down has also missed, apparently, the obiter dictum from this country’s current president that Afghanistan was “the good war.”
Ms. Dowd’s venting her spleen about the Bushes, with her Psychology 101 pretensions, reminds one of one-time Boston society, with the Episcopal English-ancestry Brahmins on the one hand, and the Irish Catholics (e. g., Kennedy) on the other. When it comes to the Bushes, our modern day psychological version is Maureen Dowd.
The Bush family governance, which ended in 2008. is not responsible for Donald Trump. It is the last eight years—a lackluster economy, world-wide chaos from the deliberate U.S. decision to become a second class world power, the sixties turmoil all over again. Exactly the conditions for the Trump demagoguery to flourish.
Bill Clinton had eight years to do something about Osama bin Laden. He did nothing. George W. Bush had been in office only eight months before 9/11. Ms. Dowd would learn something from reading the report of the 9/11 commission. She would see how absurd it is to elevate Bill Maher to the status of noted presidential historian.
Thanks to the Clinton administration Al Qaeda had a safe haven in the Taliban’s Afghanistan. How exactly was the Bush Administration to go after Al Qaeda, and AlQaeda only in the Afghanistan controlled by the Taliban? Maybe Ms. Dowd thinks the Taliban would have said, “Y’all come.” Ms. Down has also missed, apparently, the obiter dictum from this country’s current president that Afghanistan was “the good war.”
Ms. Dowd’s venting her spleen about the Bushes, with her Psychology 101 pretensions, reminds one of one-time Boston society, with the Episcopal English-ancestry Brahmins on the one hand, and the Irish Catholics (e. g., Kennedy) on the other. When it comes to the Bushes, our modern day psychological version is Maureen Dowd.
The Bush family governance, which ended in 2008. is not responsible for Donald Trump. It is the last eight years—a lackluster economy, world-wide chaos from the deliberate U.S. decision to become a second class world power, the sixties turmoil all over again. Exactly the conditions for the Trump demagoguery to flourish.
4
Nicely done. Molly Ivins is drinking to you in Elysian Fields. The Bushes reduced to her "shrubs."
But see--
http://www.globalresearch.ca/george-w-bush-and-the-bin-laden-family-meet...
"According to the Washington Post, the Carlyle Group met at the Ritz Carlton Hotel in NYC one day before 9/11. In attendance at this meeting were former president George H. W. Bush and Shafiq bin Laden, the brother of Osama:...
The Carlyle Group is a large private-equity investment firm, closely associated with officials of the Bush and Reagan administrations, and has considerable ties to Saudi oil money, including ties to the bin Laden family...
This CBC documentary focuses on the relationship between former President George W. Bush and the bin Laden family."
But see--
http://www.globalresearch.ca/george-w-bush-and-the-bin-laden-family-meet...
"According to the Washington Post, the Carlyle Group met at the Ritz Carlton Hotel in NYC one day before 9/11. In attendance at this meeting were former president George H. W. Bush and Shafiq bin Laden, the brother of Osama:...
The Carlyle Group is a large private-equity investment firm, closely associated with officials of the Bush and Reagan administrations, and has considerable ties to Saudi oil money, including ties to the bin Laden family...
This CBC documentary focuses on the relationship between former President George W. Bush and the bin Laden family."
5
By pinning the rise of the Donald on the Bushes, Ms. Dowd greatly oversimplifies and caricatures reality. But I've grown to think that is her style - and her depth - on many if not all subjects.
That any of our fellow citizens could consider a character like Trump fit to lead the nation is a spectacular debacle. And I have no particular fondness for any of the Bush family. The clueless yet arrogant George W, especially, has his share of the blood of countless innocents on his hands, and both Poppy and Jeb were his enablers in their own ways.
But to pin Trump on the Bushes leaves out a huge number of other guilty parties over the last fifty years, from the post Goldwater defeat Republican strategists to talk-radio lunatics to the Roberts Supreme Court. This column is not helpful, but instead is primarily all-too typically catty. Can't the Times do better than this in its op-ed pages? Doesn't the public deserve better analysis than that provided by Ms. Dowd in this column and so many others?
That any of our fellow citizens could consider a character like Trump fit to lead the nation is a spectacular debacle. And I have no particular fondness for any of the Bush family. The clueless yet arrogant George W, especially, has his share of the blood of countless innocents on his hands, and both Poppy and Jeb were his enablers in their own ways.
But to pin Trump on the Bushes leaves out a huge number of other guilty parties over the last fifty years, from the post Goldwater defeat Republican strategists to talk-radio lunatics to the Roberts Supreme Court. This column is not helpful, but instead is primarily all-too typically catty. Can't the Times do better than this in its op-ed pages? Doesn't the public deserve better analysis than that provided by Ms. Dowd in this column and so many others?
13
Let's pause to shed a tiny tear for poor Jeb Bush.
Let's pause to remember how he pandered to the religious right and tried to stuff a feeding tube down the throat of Terri Shiavo by pushing 'Terri's Law' through the Florida state legislature giving him the power to overrule a court's ruing that the feeding tube be removed.
And let's pause to remember his role (and that of his minion Kathleen Harris) in the Bush vs. Gore recount fiasco that lead to the selection of his idiot brother, G.W., as president.
And let's pause to remember his assault on public education while governor of Florida, his attempt to turn public education into a for-profit enterprise.
And finally, let's pause to shed the teeny-tiniest little tear for all the 1%-ers behind his "Right to Rise" super-PAC, who flushed $150 million down the toilet in a failed attempt to buy this horrible little man the nomination.
Let's pause to remember how he pandered to the religious right and tried to stuff a feeding tube down the throat of Terri Shiavo by pushing 'Terri's Law' through the Florida state legislature giving him the power to overrule a court's ruing that the feeding tube be removed.
And let's pause to remember his role (and that of his minion Kathleen Harris) in the Bush vs. Gore recount fiasco that lead to the selection of his idiot brother, G.W., as president.
And let's pause to remember his assault on public education while governor of Florida, his attempt to turn public education into a for-profit enterprise.
And finally, let's pause to shed the teeny-tiniest little tear for all the 1%-ers behind his "Right to Rise" super-PAC, who flushed $150 million down the toilet in a failed attempt to buy this horrible little man the nomination.
60
The public school system in Florida is excellent, a complete surprise to someone like me, new to the state (to look after an elderly mother) who assumed the worst. Jeb Bush can take a lot of justified credit in making education a real priority. Yes, he espoused many "no" Republican positions with no credible alternatives, but one coulld have the solace that he was aware and self-reflective and thoughtful, with the gravitas to be POTUS. Goodbye, Jeb!, we hardly knew thee.
2
Jebs! last gasp was the claim that America was a gun. Lots of children buried. Endless heartache endured. Lots of emergency rooms on lockdown. Lots of workers and students cowering in closets. The Bushes, the GOP, even the NRA should have understood that in time there would be more victims than perps.
Strange that the last Bush went for a bang - but ended with a whimper.
Strange that the last Bush went for a bang - but ended with a whimper.
19
"Don't kick a man when he's down."
It's one of those values we learn - or should have learned - as part of growing up. The remaining Republican field is a target-rich environment for columnists. Vultures pick over the carcasses of the dead. Eagles hunt prey that's on the move. Be an eagle; use those talons where they can do some good.
It's one of those values we learn - or should have learned - as part of growing up. The remaining Republican field is a target-rich environment for columnists. Vultures pick over the carcasses of the dead. Eagles hunt prey that's on the move. Be an eagle; use those talons where they can do some good.
12
The Exclamation point also secured the endorsement of Sen. Lindsey Graham prior to the SC Republican primary, reinforcing loser status for both of them.
I feel no sympathy for the man who is paid some $800 K a year to be an "advisor" for Barclays, a position so nebulous that they barely define it. There's also the murky Carlyle Group money that he has a share in.
Good riddance Jeb!
I feel no sympathy for the man who is paid some $800 K a year to be an "advisor" for Barclays, a position so nebulous that they barely define it. There's also the murky Carlyle Group money that he has a share in.
Good riddance Jeb!
20
Donald Trump had the guts to say what everyone knows is true about the Bushes. He's the only politician who doesn't tow the Party line and always speaks his mind.
He recognizes the Planned Parenthood does a lot of good things even though they make mistakes
He is able to come to the middle and no one else seems to have that ability. Everyone in politics lies either directly, through omission or selective memory, so the Donald is perfectly qualified.
He just not a polished politician and that why his exaggerations and policy changes seem so obvious. He has passion and that's what people seem to want, someone to get down in the trenches and cut deals to fix the obvious problems
He recognizes the Planned Parenthood does a lot of good things even though they make mistakes
He is able to come to the middle and no one else seems to have that ability. Everyone in politics lies either directly, through omission or selective memory, so the Donald is perfectly qualified.
He just not a polished politician and that why his exaggerations and policy changes seem so obvious. He has passion and that's what people seem to want, someone to get down in the trenches and cut deals to fix the obvious problems
7
Occasionally I think about where the United States might be if no Iraq war had been engaged. Sure, we might still be protecting a no fly zone which had isolated Iraq--big deal, we have been forward deployed in Europe for 70 years--but would there be such massive instability in the Middle East? Doubtful. Say what you will about the strong men who previously ruled these desolate countries, their fist kept the crazy elements now infesting the world at bay, it seems to me.
Absent Iraq, GWB's presidency would be such a different legacy.
Absent Iraq, GWB's presidency would be such a different legacy.
6
I'll grant you that on any planet, in any universe, the buffoonish Trump would be a wildly improbable candidate for any elected office, but not so Sanders. He is the logical result of a country that has seen our wealth move towards the already wealthy, young adults graduating from college straddled with astronomical debt unable to find jobs, a nation with a crumbling infrastructure and a Congress unwilling to spend money to repair it even though it would give rise to more jobs, people unnecessarily sick and dying for lack of health care, politicians who refuse to acknowledge accepted science because they are beholding to their donors and would rather see the planet destroyed than lose their next election, people in jail for smoking weed while bankers who ruined people's lives free and prospering, ...
25
No doubt the Bush Dynasty has ended with a wimper with baby brother Jeb. Jeb enjoyed the Dynasty lead going into the Republican race and certainly didn't seem prepared to debate anyone at most of the debates. So now we are stuck with Trump in the lead and the choices that remain to unstuck him from the lead. These dynamics will be influenced by that other incomplete Dynasty named Clinton with Hillary Rodham Clinton leading the charge. She too enjoyed the uncrowned lead going into the race and not doing anything much so change that perception until that gnat called Bernie flew into the race. Do we need yet another Dynasty with the flavor of a Arkansas good old (and she is) girl turned NY carpet bagger?
8
I agreed with the senior Mrs. Bush's admonition that we had enough Bush's when she uttered it. To call the senior Bush a blue-blood doesn't really paint a fair picture of the man. For all of his limitations, he left Yale to fly planes in WWII for the Navy. He was shot down in the Pacific. That he had a sense of duty is what stands out in my mind. While not humble, he was modest and a gentleman unlike the current crowd. It always strikes me as odd that decent people get ridiculed for their decency. Jimmie Carter comes to mind as well as George Sr. Whether Jeb did or didn't get his brother elected no longer matters because he has pulled out of the race. The blowhard leading the pack of wolves who are still contending is a populist in someone's fairy tale. He'll invite our vote but not to Trump Towers. The other two senators, the Robot and the Joe McCarthy clone are truly scary.
55
Things are definetly looking up. We have been conditioned to June and Ward Cleaver moving back into the White House. At least we know what to expect. Boomer corruption and continued dysfunction. The selected pieces from Hope and Change will soldier on. The Donald will go back to making money. Bernie may move to Denmark. All will be well.
4
I keep hearing that the Republican establishment is responsible for the rise of Trump. I disagree.
Middle America is sick to death of Political Correctness. The rise of Trump is a direct result of liberal whining about microagression, 'safe spaces' and, yes, #blacklivesmatter, as if other lives did not. Until the Democratic Party reaches out to the aggrieved who are not a minority and not publicly puling about their grievances, the Republicans will continue their dominance of Congress, state houses, state legislatures and the judiciary. Only a massive voter turnout and a blatantly unqualified Republican candidate can stop the Presidency from going the way the rest of the country has gone.
Dan Kravitz
Middle America is sick to death of Political Correctness. The rise of Trump is a direct result of liberal whining about microagression, 'safe spaces' and, yes, #blacklivesmatter, as if other lives did not. Until the Democratic Party reaches out to the aggrieved who are not a minority and not publicly puling about their grievances, the Republicans will continue their dominance of Congress, state houses, state legislatures and the judiciary. Only a massive voter turnout and a blatantly unqualified Republican candidate can stop the Presidency from going the way the rest of the country has gone.
Dan Kravitz
13
A nice summation, and a sad one. Two things left out, however. Bush Senior would have probably had his second term if it were not for H. Ross Perot splitting the ticket. And, let us not forget, his son got his second term, by being re-elected, apparently, quite fairly, by the American people. (Swift boating a war hero.)
28
Excellent insightful piece. In Jeb's inner world rather than an exclamation point there apparently existed a question mark. A question about whether or not he actually wanted the job he was striving for. The lack of fire in the belly, lackluster performance, and prevalent sad sack even at times deer-in-the headlight facial expression seemed to reveal conflict and confusion regarding why he was even there doing something about which he only feigned interest. Jeb apparently failed to transcend his family's spoken/unspoken presidential expectations and more importantly also ignored those old wisdom dictates: "First Know Thyself." & "To Thine Own Self Be True."
34
Thank you, Maureen, for this honest and clear analysis of the Bush men. It is particularly George W that began this nation on a downward spiral, from getting us entangled in a part of the world that we have no business being in to almost ruining our economy. Many people may not agree with me, but I credit President Obama for getting us back on track again. His task was Herculean, including having to face the venom spewed against him by the so-called Grand Old Party. Yet his ominous "reward" may be having every good he did unraveled before this country's eyes by a blustering, bigoted, unqualified successor.
129
Jeb!'s (geez that slogan was never gonna work) entire problem could be seen in his God-awful concession speech. He first blamed the moderate Democratic President for all of the dysfunction in Washington and then bemoaned the fact that he wouldn't be able to unify the country with that, special, Bush magic. Then he ended with "I, therefore, will be suspending my campaign for the Presidency. A campaign that was an historic waste of time, money and low energy...Please stop clapping."
13
Trump boldly put the nail in the Bush dynasty with his comment in the debate on taking us to war on lies. Republicans assumed the base was onboard but there was unrealized resentment. Trump is telling the GOP their conservative platform is screwing the people, and the masses are angrily, strongly responding. GOP's belatedly getting it, which they better as the old way is gone, passe, as quickly as that. Decades of think tanks and elites or not. Trickle down has been shown not to work, tax cuts on the rich don't benefit all.
Those still hoping for maintenance of the status quo will continue to scratch their heads and not understand why their favorite old school candidate didn't win. Many are just uncomfortable with change, let alone sudden change. But it can happen, esp when politics get extremely out of balance.
Lessons for you, DNC and Democrats. This is an historically important election, and business as usual isn't going to win. Bernie Sanders democratic socialism is barely left enough to drag us toward the center, we are so far out to the right.
Those still hoping for maintenance of the status quo will continue to scratch their heads and not understand why their favorite old school candidate didn't win. Many are just uncomfortable with change, let alone sudden change. But it can happen, esp when politics get extremely out of balance.
Lessons for you, DNC and Democrats. This is an historically important election, and business as usual isn't going to win. Bernie Sanders democratic socialism is barely left enough to drag us toward the center, we are so far out to the right.
18
Hillary Clinton is a truly terrible candidate that as a part of elite political establishment is directly responsible (with her husband Bill and the Bushes among many others) for the terrible national conditions of permanent war, colossal national debt, a lack of courage and vision to balance the federal budgets, corruption of the politics, job insecurity created by the free trade and unjust burden to compete with the underprivileged Chinese workers without any human and environmental rights (deprived even of good air to breed), but in spite of all those tragic facts, we should vote for her because she is a women?!
If this idea ultimately prevails, I wish you all good luck and good night!
If this idea ultimately prevails, I wish you all good luck and good night!
14
One can only hope that after you diagram and magnify all of the cons and scams that the Bush's, bankers, Wall Street and politicians used against the American people that they will finally get it. I think one of the lessons learned out of this fiasco is how important education is to the general population. There has been a constant drum beat to dumb down the general public, especially making higher education too expensive for children of most lower- to middle-class families to achieve.
17
The candidate affected most severely from switching to contact lenses is Dr. Ben Carson. Before he entered the race he wore glasses. With them he looked and sounded reasonable and informed. But after discarding glasses for contacts, he became a winking, blinking, eye-closing disaster. Those distracting mannerisms totally obliterate what he has to say.
5
Dowd forever the Marquise de La Schadenfreudenne. Thank you to all the bigger people and more grounded voters who went positive with their energy and helped Hillary win in Nevada, and hopefully will take the next step in South Carolina- Amen!
As for Jeb! - I said everyone could stick a fork in that popover last June, and predicted the rise of the orange man. At the most basic level people do not like being totally conned and lied to. It may have taken fifteen years, but it finally sank in, life began to stink for a lot of people in 2001, and it had much more to do with the Bushes than the Bin Ladens. And come to think of it, what was the 1st Iraq adventure about? Bailing out Kuwait? They sure have been grateful back to us in return. Yes, it may have taken fifteen years, but the fact that the planes that come sight seeing that day directly into the WTC were all piloted by Saudis. The Bushes and the neocons all were expecting Trump to be expelled headlong to Hell when he extemporized that we'd been lied into war - and spoke contemptuously of conspiracy theory kooks. This from a party that has wasted $100,000,000 going after the cause of death by terrorist mob of four embassy personnel in Benghazi?
Yes, the laughter is resonating. It wasn't the 'tired' meme that was remarkable about this take down - it was that Trump spoke Birther, then Truther implied aspersions and innuendos and lived to make a victory speech in the most U.S. Military populous Ft. Sumpter State.
As for Jeb! - I said everyone could stick a fork in that popover last June, and predicted the rise of the orange man. At the most basic level people do not like being totally conned and lied to. It may have taken fifteen years, but it finally sank in, life began to stink for a lot of people in 2001, and it had much more to do with the Bushes than the Bin Ladens. And come to think of it, what was the 1st Iraq adventure about? Bailing out Kuwait? They sure have been grateful back to us in return. Yes, it may have taken fifteen years, but the fact that the planes that come sight seeing that day directly into the WTC were all piloted by Saudis. The Bushes and the neocons all were expecting Trump to be expelled headlong to Hell when he extemporized that we'd been lied into war - and spoke contemptuously of conspiracy theory kooks. This from a party that has wasted $100,000,000 going after the cause of death by terrorist mob of four embassy personnel in Benghazi?
Yes, the laughter is resonating. It wasn't the 'tired' meme that was remarkable about this take down - it was that Trump spoke Birther, then Truther implied aspersions and innuendos and lived to make a victory speech in the most U.S. Military populous Ft. Sumpter State.
13
With each presidential election campaign I am reminded that our 'leaders' are clueless. The Republicans more than the Democrats. When I was younger I used to excuse them because I thought I just didn't understand. But now I do. The candidates play to the lowest of low. Trump is a genius at that but I would be ashamed of him as president. The truth is kept from us by the very people we elect to lead us. This year is especially sickening. Hillary appears cool and clear but her background is disgusting. She never mentions the over supply of poor people or the elderly who can't live on Social Security. They are simply not in her field of vision and as they cannot do anything for her she ignores half the population. Hillary has a severe fear of being broke so she will do anything to earn or steal money. Look at the stupid decision to do private speeches for Wall Street Banks and then won't allow the release of what she said. Hmmm, makes me wonder. Quite a risk. Especially those of us who were and still are victims of the Clinton's. I watched a tape of Bill being interviewed by Democracy Now. He got furious and lost it but he lied and lied. Hillary's fake smiles, stiff presentation and memorized paragraphs just leave me cold. Talk about Marco Rubio. I love Bernie Sanders but they are so busy destroying him with the help of the NYT. But it has been very entertaining but sad as we march to fascism. The Democratic party is considered far right in Europe and to me too.
4
Small quibble
It's not just the Bushes that have given rise to Trump. While they certainly played their part, Republicans in the House, Senate and Supreme Court haven't helped the Republican cause either.
People are disgusted with the Politics of the 1990s to the present where the Republican party became more important than country. Whether because of government by subpoena, election stealing, nakedly partisan court rulings, or congressional obstruction, the dysfunction has led to deep-seated dissatisfaction with politics.
Americans feel their country has been sold down the river by a bunch of lying carpetbaggers. And they are right. The Bushes are part of that. But so are Gingrich, Starr, Bush, Cheney, Scalia, Boehner and McConnell. The one-sidedness of these men, their inability to find a middle road in a country that's radically split left and right, has made them pariahs. You can see it in the poll numbers — especially when one compares the approval ratings of Congress verses the President. At 50 percent, the Supreme Court has the highest disapproval rating in it’s history.
Unrelenting, partisan politics is the larger part of what has given rise to Donald Trump.
It's not just the Bushes that have given rise to Trump. While they certainly played their part, Republicans in the House, Senate and Supreme Court haven't helped the Republican cause either.
People are disgusted with the Politics of the 1990s to the present where the Republican party became more important than country. Whether because of government by subpoena, election stealing, nakedly partisan court rulings, or congressional obstruction, the dysfunction has led to deep-seated dissatisfaction with politics.
Americans feel their country has been sold down the river by a bunch of lying carpetbaggers. And they are right. The Bushes are part of that. But so are Gingrich, Starr, Bush, Cheney, Scalia, Boehner and McConnell. The one-sidedness of these men, their inability to find a middle road in a country that's radically split left and right, has made them pariahs. You can see it in the poll numbers — especially when one compares the approval ratings of Congress verses the President. At 50 percent, the Supreme Court has the highest disapproval rating in it’s history.
Unrelenting, partisan politics is the larger part of what has given rise to Donald Trump.
10
Very nice article. Hit the spot. Bush seemed to be, at his best, a schnook, as Mr. Rubio undoubtedly played him for one as a dutiful protege only to bite off the hand that fed it. The Republicans are filled with non deserving types, who seem bent on pretending that they have something to offer the American people. It was a great article, since it skipped over Republican policy entirely, and did not pretend as the Republicans have pretended for years that they actually stood for something other than being the human shield for unbridled corporate power. With that in mind, Rubio would seem to be their man. One look at his voting record would tell you that, but now the great remake of this also failed candidate is being undertaken, and, for sure, we will all be in for another great laugh, as Cruz rips him apart. What's left in the runoff is not the Three Musketeers, but rather, more like Mo, Shep and Larry.
5
I was amazed that Jeb Bush threw hit hat into the presidential ring since his father and brother had not demonstrated any real success or competence at being president.
His dad converted a 91% approval rating after Desert Storm into a one term presidency. And his brother left Obama with two poorly prosecuted wars, a shattered banking system, a shattered auto industry, a collapsing housing market, and an economy shedding 700,000 jobs a month.
The fact that he even entered the race with that family presidential history is mind-boggling, and shows he didn't have the good judgment necessary to be the president. He must've counted on Americans developing a severe case of collective amnesia with regard to his father and brother's terms.
What could his slogan possibly be? My dad was a mediocre one term president and my brother was a two term president and much worse. Third time's the charm. Vote for me!!!
The economy was in bad shape with a large deficit when Clinton took over from Bush 41 and in good shape when he left office with a budget surplus. The economy was in good shape with a budget surplus when the Bush 43 took over, and in bad shape when he left office with a huge deficit. Like father like son I guess. The economy is once again in good shape with a reduced deficit. By every metric the nation that Obama leaves to the next president will be better than the terrified and fiscally shattered nation that he inherited when he took office. That is indisputable.
His dad converted a 91% approval rating after Desert Storm into a one term presidency. And his brother left Obama with two poorly prosecuted wars, a shattered banking system, a shattered auto industry, a collapsing housing market, and an economy shedding 700,000 jobs a month.
The fact that he even entered the race with that family presidential history is mind-boggling, and shows he didn't have the good judgment necessary to be the president. He must've counted on Americans developing a severe case of collective amnesia with regard to his father and brother's terms.
What could his slogan possibly be? My dad was a mediocre one term president and my brother was a two term president and much worse. Third time's the charm. Vote for me!!!
The economy was in bad shape with a large deficit when Clinton took over from Bush 41 and in good shape when he left office with a budget surplus. The economy was in good shape with a budget surplus when the Bush 43 took over, and in bad shape when he left office with a huge deficit. Like father like son I guess. The economy is once again in good shape with a reduced deficit. By every metric the nation that Obama leaves to the next president will be better than the terrified and fiscally shattered nation that he inherited when he took office. That is indisputable.
18
The Republican Party has counted on the electorate's obtuseness to overlook the failures of their ideology, which anyone but a lunatic would know by now have massively failed in terms of foreign and domestic policy.
But lunatics still are abundant in our population; not just on the GOP political stage unfortunately.
The transfer of wealth from the Middle and Upper Middle Classes to the Plutocracy is still ongoing.
GOP donors won't waste their resources much with the current crop of losers running for President, even if Trump cinches the nomination.
They will instead concentrate on and fund the strategy that has been so successful even with a Democrat in the White House: voter suppression, vote-rigging, gerrymandering, dirty tricks, armies of lobbyists, obstruction etc.
They will be very content to stack the Congress with their shills come what may in the Presidential race.
But lunatics still are abundant in our population; not just on the GOP political stage unfortunately.
The transfer of wealth from the Middle and Upper Middle Classes to the Plutocracy is still ongoing.
GOP donors won't waste their resources much with the current crop of losers running for President, even if Trump cinches the nomination.
They will instead concentrate on and fund the strategy that has been so successful even with a Democrat in the White House: voter suppression, vote-rigging, gerrymandering, dirty tricks, armies of lobbyists, obstruction etc.
They will be very content to stack the Congress with their shills come what may in the Presidential race.
8
The country was ready for a fresh face 8 years ago. That's how an inexperienced Obama got his start.
Now Americans seem ready for someone completely outside the political system. GOP candidates have done a good job explaining and promoting the concept of "citizen government".
The GOP primary has been vibrant and presented a diverse set of candidates. Finally, those in the "establishment" lane have some competition. This time republican, independent and even some democratic voters will not be forced to go along with a party's selection.
Party-line voting democrats, meanwhile, are stuck with a Clinton facing a potential indictment and a 40-year politician posing as a revolutionary. On the surface they refuse to battle, but underneath their supporters are seething.
Now Americans seem ready for someone completely outside the political system. GOP candidates have done a good job explaining and promoting the concept of "citizen government".
The GOP primary has been vibrant and presented a diverse set of candidates. Finally, those in the "establishment" lane have some competition. This time republican, independent and even some democratic voters will not be forced to go along with a party's selection.
Party-line voting democrats, meanwhile, are stuck with a Clinton facing a potential indictment and a 40-year politician posing as a revolutionary. On the surface they refuse to battle, but underneath their supporters are seething.
3
Please don't forget - there are some younger Bushes in the pipeline, currently working their way up the Republican party ladder. We may not have seen the end of this dynasty, although it is a relief to have Jeb out of the race.
What I find most interesting in all this discussion of dynasties is that there is rarely mention of a true American dynasty - the Kennedys. Only one became president, but Kennedy family members have held many important positions in U.S. government, and all have served honorably and well. Maybe that is the difference.
What I find most interesting in all this discussion of dynasties is that there is rarely mention of a true American dynasty - the Kennedys. Only one became president, but Kennedy family members have held many important positions in U.S. government, and all have served honorably and well. Maybe that is the difference.
4
When I try to explain the reality of America to my neighbors, who are from all over Europe, they look at me incredulously. They simply cannot fathom that everything they believed about America is a lie.
The myth and fantasy they have embraced was comforting to European order. How could it be true that the president that led a charge into Iraq is an idiot and was simply acting out his own wild west cowboy fantasy.
Right now they are watching their own leaders allow millions of refugees over run their own countries and are quaking with fear of the future. No longer being able to rely on America racing to the rescue is leaving them with no where to turn.
I can only say to them, now you know how I felt before I left America 13 years ago.
The myth and fantasy they have embraced was comforting to European order. How could it be true that the president that led a charge into Iraq is an idiot and was simply acting out his own wild west cowboy fantasy.
Right now they are watching their own leaders allow millions of refugees over run their own countries and are quaking with fear of the future. No longer being able to rely on America racing to the rescue is leaving them with no where to turn.
I can only say to them, now you know how I felt before I left America 13 years ago.
5
Last I checked, President Obama has been in office over seven years. Still, Ms Dowd claims it's the Bushes who are responsible for the rise of Donald Trump. It seems to me our society has devolved to the point that a substantial portion of Americans voters has decided a xenophobic bankruptcy expert is their choice for president. At what point do we simply say it's the people who are responsible for this guy to rise?
The consistent anti-Bush rant, of course, has valid points. But there is such limited perspective, and judging from the echo chamber of comments here, it is obviously red meat to Dowd's following....all those self-proclaimed open-minded folks. And so the end result is the demonizing of a Republican who has been pro-immigration, saved millions of lives in Africa --- funny how this massive humanitarian feat is never referred to...hate for W trumps humanity, and expanded the safety net for seniors. As Al Gore would say, this is an inconvenient truth that doesn't fit into the Dowd narrative. Unless and until we openly and constructively assess policies and step back from eviscerating those with whom we disagree, we are all continuing to nurture the era of Trump. We should be ashamed of ourselves. But we never are.
The consistent anti-Bush rant, of course, has valid points. But there is such limited perspective, and judging from the echo chamber of comments here, it is obviously red meat to Dowd's following....all those self-proclaimed open-minded folks. And so the end result is the demonizing of a Republican who has been pro-immigration, saved millions of lives in Africa --- funny how this massive humanitarian feat is never referred to...hate for W trumps humanity, and expanded the safety net for seniors. As Al Gore would say, this is an inconvenient truth that doesn't fit into the Dowd narrative. Unless and until we openly and constructively assess policies and step back from eviscerating those with whom we disagree, we are all continuing to nurture the era of Trump. We should be ashamed of ourselves. But we never are.
2
This is an illuminating column about the demise of a political dynasty that, through its craving for destructive and unjust wars, has inflicted more harm on this nation than any adversary or enemy can ever dream of inflicting.
With all his flaws, and they are many, Donald Trump, in a moment of unvarnished candor, described to the nation, faithfully and truthfully, how George W. Bush lied his way into taking America to war in one of the most destructive and costly wars against a country that did America no harm, Iraq, thus unleashing dormant but powerful religious forces that have destabilized the entire Middle East and that now threaten to destabilize the world.
Not only did Jeb Bush add his brother's dangerous advisers to his own team, he brazenly invited him to campaign in South Carolina, but the voters knew better.
May the voters continue to spare this nation the thirst of all political dynasties for power and greed, so that American democracy can function unhindered by the corruption of money and the influence of special interest groups.
The voters knew better, however.
With all his flaws, and they are many, Donald Trump, in a moment of unvarnished candor, described to the nation, faithfully and truthfully, how George W. Bush lied his way into taking America to war in one of the most destructive and costly wars against a country that did America no harm, Iraq, thus unleashing dormant but powerful religious forces that have destabilized the entire Middle East and that now threaten to destabilize the world.
Not only did Jeb Bush add his brother's dangerous advisers to his own team, he brazenly invited him to campaign in South Carolina, but the voters knew better.
May the voters continue to spare this nation the thirst of all political dynasties for power and greed, so that American democracy can function unhindered by the corruption of money and the influence of special interest groups.
The voters knew better, however.
16
Ms. Dowd's thesis that the Bushes created Trump is something only a myopic so-called progressive could write, since ii is a certainty that Trump is the creation of one of my rules of politics, which is that to every political action there is an opposite and wherever possible more than equal reaction.
Progressives have treated all Republican voters with contempt, and with especial contempt for rural, small town, and otherwise traditional Americans whose only sin, other than voting Republican, is to go to work in the morning, or take care of the kids, attend church at least once in a while and, heaven forfend, know which end of a gun not to point at someone. These people have never been referred to by progressives as anything but bigots, misogynists, stupid, too-dumb-to-vote-their-interests, bible thumpers, red-necks, killers, and war-mongers for getting on to a decade now. Trump is their champion to get their reputation back. I'm no Trumpster, but this is the reason for his being pure and simple.
Ms. Dowd's reference to Lee Atwater is symptmatic to this myopia. Ms. Dowd correctly points out the first George Bush's quaint thinking that America would not vote for Bill Clinton with all his personal defects when they could vote for George the First's dignity and war record. However, the Lee Atwater reference is now just as quaint. Compared to the insults piled on Trump's voters, Lee Atwater was Mother Teresa.
Progressives have treated all Republican voters with contempt, and with especial contempt for rural, small town, and otherwise traditional Americans whose only sin, other than voting Republican, is to go to work in the morning, or take care of the kids, attend church at least once in a while and, heaven forfend, know which end of a gun not to point at someone. These people have never been referred to by progressives as anything but bigots, misogynists, stupid, too-dumb-to-vote-their-interests, bible thumpers, red-necks, killers, and war-mongers for getting on to a decade now. Trump is their champion to get their reputation back. I'm no Trumpster, but this is the reason for his being pure and simple.
Ms. Dowd's reference to Lee Atwater is symptmatic to this myopia. Ms. Dowd correctly points out the first George Bush's quaint thinking that America would not vote for Bill Clinton with all his personal defects when they could vote for George the First's dignity and war record. However, the Lee Atwater reference is now just as quaint. Compared to the insults piled on Trump's voters, Lee Atwater was Mother Teresa.
4
Perhaps if y'all stopped behaving quite so stupidly and angrily...
Not one of Ms Dowd's best.
The betting odds on Trump are now 3:1, and that's probably way too low. 10:1 is more realistic. Trump is a sui generis. Of the Republican candidates, most were senators and governors, with almost no name recognition, so all started out with their fair share of the vote, around 6% each (since there were 16 of them). Trump was a popular TV star with 100% name recognition who polled 1/3 of the Republican voters in the nomination contests. One needs a majority to win, and Trump now has a narrow majority of elected delegates, because the winner with a 1/3 plurality gets somewhat more than his share of the electable delegates (a large number of delegates are super delegates who are appointed, not elected, and who are strongly inclined NOT to vote for Trump).
The anti-Trump field has been winnowed from 16 to 4, and JEB's 9% will probably split between Senator Rubio and Governor Kasich. If none of the last four drop, it is unlikely that anyone will have a majority at the convention, and it's highly unlikely that the 2/3 anti-Trump voters will decide to give him the nomination even if he has the plurality.
It's not at all clear at this point whom the Republicans will nominate, but it is very unlikely to be Mr Trump.
The betting odds on Trump are now 3:1, and that's probably way too low. 10:1 is more realistic. Trump is a sui generis. Of the Republican candidates, most were senators and governors, with almost no name recognition, so all started out with their fair share of the vote, around 6% each (since there were 16 of them). Trump was a popular TV star with 100% name recognition who polled 1/3 of the Republican voters in the nomination contests. One needs a majority to win, and Trump now has a narrow majority of elected delegates, because the winner with a 1/3 plurality gets somewhat more than his share of the electable delegates (a large number of delegates are super delegates who are appointed, not elected, and who are strongly inclined NOT to vote for Trump).
The anti-Trump field has been winnowed from 16 to 4, and JEB's 9% will probably split between Senator Rubio and Governor Kasich. If none of the last four drop, it is unlikely that anyone will have a majority at the convention, and it's highly unlikely that the 2/3 anti-Trump voters will decide to give him the nomination even if he has the plurality.
It's not at all clear at this point whom the Republicans will nominate, but it is very unlikely to be Mr Trump.
7
Big Business is is now slippery Hillary Clinton. Slipping in a comment that they have left Bush to support Trump is a lie that is totally misleading.
To date, Donald Trump has not take any money from Wall Street or any one else. It is slippery Hillary who has received far more money from big business than any other candidate, Republican or Democrat.
Politicians under today's election laws, if they want elected need the support and donations from high-power people and organizations connected to business, finance, oil, politics, media, industry, academia and foundations who ultimately control the election. No matter what the rhetoric or party platform, the end-game effects are the same, because the network remains the same.
However, the results of this presidential nomination and election process could be different from the past. There are three presidential candidates, Sanders,Trump and Carson who are not taking money from these influencers. If for no other reason, I would vote for one of these atypical opportunities that could lead to a much-needed political transformation.
To date, Donald Trump has not take any money from Wall Street or any one else. It is slippery Hillary who has received far more money from big business than any other candidate, Republican or Democrat.
Politicians under today's election laws, if they want elected need the support and donations from high-power people and organizations connected to business, finance, oil, politics, media, industry, academia and foundations who ultimately control the election. No matter what the rhetoric or party platform, the end-game effects are the same, because the network remains the same.
However, the results of this presidential nomination and election process could be different from the past. There are three presidential candidates, Sanders,Trump and Carson who are not taking money from these influencers. If for no other reason, I would vote for one of these atypical opportunities that could lead to a much-needed political transformation.
5
For so many election cycles, dark money has floated into the pockets of candidates from both parties, who promise a fair deal to the public and then proceed to make sure that real money gets the deal. I am astounded on how long it has taken the public so long to follow the money. The bad news about this new awakening is the blame for stagnant wages, etc. is being placed on the government and the President, instead of those conference rooms and private clubs, where the real money divides up the American economy.
15
The fact that Jeb Bush is already out of the presidential race and Hillary Clinton is the Democratic front runner sadly indicates that the Republicans are smarter than the Democrats.
Over the last 24 years the left has controlled the White House for 16 years and the right only for 8.
That fact indicates the true responsibility for the tragic conditions of our country – the permanent war, the colossal national debt, the educational system hovering around 30th place in the world, the corrupted electoral process, the constant trade deficits and dependence on the foreign countries to produce the goods for our everyday needs, and the free trade regime that equaled our human rights to those of the Chinese workers that have to cover up their faces with the mask due to substandard quality of air they breathe.
Statistically speaking, the democrats are two times more responsible for the current conditions than the republicans because they were two times longer in charge!
Over the last 24 years the left has controlled the White House for 16 years and the right only for 8.
That fact indicates the true responsibility for the tragic conditions of our country – the permanent war, the colossal national debt, the educational system hovering around 30th place in the world, the corrupted electoral process, the constant trade deficits and dependence on the foreign countries to produce the goods for our everyday needs, and the free trade regime that equaled our human rights to those of the Chinese workers that have to cover up their faces with the mask due to substandard quality of air they breathe.
Statistically speaking, the democrats are two times more responsible for the current conditions than the republicans because they were two times longer in charge!
4
Or more accurately, the Republicans ran the roost for half the time and presided over blowing a budget surplus, the major terrorist attack, two economic crashes, two wars, and a drowned city.
Bravo.
Bravo.
Only if you don't count the Discretionary Wars.
I am puzzled by all the talk of moderate Republicans being trumped. My memory must be failing me but I seem to remember a stolen election in 2000, followed by an immediate ignorance of warnings of terrorism, followed by 9/11, followed by gleeful exploitation of latter by neo-cons who lied to invade Iraq and destabilize the Middle East further. I seem to remember a systematic gutting of the Federal Government, the willful nomination of incompetents to head crucial agencies (FEMA) just to be able to then denounce gov't incompetence. I seem to remember a bumbling incompetent W who couldn't speak English, and devlish ploys by Rove & co, the swiftboating of Kerry. I forgot to vote in 2000 because I didn't like Gore, and didn't care really. But then I woke up and realized that a President Gore, or Kerry, would not have been the catastrophe that W and the GOP were. In my feeble mind GOP running crazy has been the case since 2000 at least. Outrageous comments, insults, dirty tricks, ruining the country, favoring only the plutocrats, ... After all the GOP has put the country through, frankly, whining about Trump baffles me. I really don't see much of a difference, except that Trump, on many subjects, actually is more moderate than the "traditional" GOP. I have yet to hear convincing analysis of why he would govern worse than W?
609
Excellent! Pop used race. W used gay bashing. There was nothing left for J man. Except, of course, W's record. Ouch.
108
Let's hope we never forget the word "Bush" for when the next generation of have it all's comes along!!
Gay "bashing"?? Evidence please. And not supporting same sex marriage is not the same as "bashing gays".
2
The choice voters faced with Poppy Bush versus Michael Dukakis was really no choice at all. Dukakis had nothing to recommend him and thoroughly botched the chance to draw appeal from moderate voters, and Bush could say that he'd be the 3nd term of the magnificent Reagan.
Any political campaign from either side would have used the creepy criminal traced back to the Democrat. Gukakis was perfect for Massachusetts but the party erred in letting him get the nomination.
Race wasn't a fact despite revisions to history since.
I have never heard of any anti-gay charges about George W. Bush hen or since, and it appears you got played.
Any political campaign from either side would have used the creepy criminal traced back to the Democrat. Gukakis was perfect for Massachusetts but the party erred in letting him get the nomination.
Race wasn't a fact despite revisions to history since.
I have never heard of any anti-gay charges about George W. Bush hen or since, and it appears you got played.
2
Reading your column reaffirms the fact that within the Bush family, the guilty never get punished. W. never seriously went after Bin Laden, but decided that Saddam made a far better culprit to punish. Now W. after all his malfeasance goes off to paint by the numbers and it is Jeb who is punished.
Revenge has been served, and it is quite cold I might add. Destroying the Bush political dynasty is something for which I am grateful. Thank you Donald J. Trump. Wouldn't it be great if he had the good sense to stop when he's ahead?
Revenge has been served, and it is quite cold I might add. Destroying the Bush political dynasty is something for which I am grateful. Thank you Donald J. Trump. Wouldn't it be great if he had the good sense to stop when he's ahead?
184
Sorry, there are still "little Bushes" coming up. Keep and eye out for them. The Bush family has not given up.
And those members of congress and the United Nations that voted for the war using the same information that the President used. When does their punishment come? Oh, and the fact that is has been all but ascertained that the gas found and used in Syria was the WMD that were shipped by Iraq just before the invasion. Perhaps that is another tidbit that the Times neglected to inform their readers about.
Get real! Unlike the Republicans, the Democrats should speak the truth and disconnect themselves from political lies.
The reason why we never seriously went after Ben Laden was because he was in Pakistan with the approval of the Pakistani government. Under Bush, we did not have the technology to find and covertly enter Pakistan like we do now under Obama.
The reason why we never seriously went after Ben Laden was because he was in Pakistan with the approval of the Pakistani government. Under Bush, we did not have the technology to find and covertly enter Pakistan like we do now under Obama.
1
Yes, Trump highlighted Jeb's wimpiness. But Jen made it worse - and made it stick - by playing the role in almost every public appearance. Jeb knew what was happening but was seemingly incapable of successfully challenging the caricature Trump ascribed to him. Jeb's previous role, as the smart one, was also irreparably damaged by his very poor speeches and, more important, interactions. He would have been destroyed in a general election debate. So, good for Trump for taking him out.
Ironically, the message you ascribe to the Bushes (“Trust us. We know best.”) is also Trump's message. What's the difference? The messenger. Still, don't count the Bushes out. The next generation is already in the wings and politically active.
Ironically, the message you ascribe to the Bushes (“Trust us. We know best.”) is also Trump's message. What's the difference? The messenger. Still, don't count the Bushes out. The next generation is already in the wings and politically active.
31
A POX on the Houses of Kennedy, Clinton and the House of Bush.
Not another from any of them....ever.
Not another from any of them....ever.
Jeb was used to being dissed by his mom and accepting it, so he was unable to fight back at Trump.
1
"Still, don't count the Bushes out. The next generation is already in the wings and politically active."
You're right Mike. George Prescott Bush, Jeb's son, a nephew of 43 and a grandson of 41, was elected Texas Land Commissioner in 2014 and is already being touted as a candidate for higher (perhaps even the highest) office. If he wins another term as Land Commissioner in 2018, then he will no doubt consider the Texas governorship in 2022, and if he wins that, then he'll certainly be in the conversation for the White House afterwards.
Perhaps Jeb's problem was not that he had the wrong last name, but rather that he had the wrong first name.
You're right Mike. George Prescott Bush, Jeb's son, a nephew of 43 and a grandson of 41, was elected Texas Land Commissioner in 2014 and is already being touted as a candidate for higher (perhaps even the highest) office. If he wins another term as Land Commissioner in 2018, then he will no doubt consider the Texas governorship in 2022, and if he wins that, then he'll certainly be in the conversation for the White House afterwards.
Perhaps Jeb's problem was not that he had the wrong last name, but rather that he had the wrong first name.
1
Was this meant to balance the way you trashed the Clintons last week, and before? And now the Bushes? When will you use such gusto to criticize Trump, Rubio, and Cruz? Then maybe I can be more objective about the substance of what you write, not withstanding your inference in the last paragraph of dismay at what has been wrought.
68
You can't expect her to focus on Clinton slime every week, Thack. No?
Yes. The trashing of Hillary Clinton was horrible. And blaming her for the demise of feminism, even worse.
1
Maureen still has the Clintons to pick on. If Bernie wins, she'll have to retire :).
If only Trump had run for the Republican nomination in 2000...perhaps he'd have taken out W. or seriously weakened him as a candidate and we wouldn't have had the Florida fiasco, Gore would have been president...if only.
50
As long as we're doing "If onlies..." try this one. If only the Supreme Court and Antonin Scalia had stayed out of the Presidential race in 2000, maybe the middle east and the world would not be imploding. If only.....
Not only would be not have had the Florida fiasco, we wouldn't have had the Iraq War.
An interesting thought but I suspect a Trump run would have gone nowhere in 2000. He needed the toxic stew of today's issues - immigration, gridlock in Washington, the Trumped up birther craziness and an out of control celebrity culture - to get where he is today.
Wow. taking a break from Hillary bashing, Dowd remembers that
GW Bush was President on 9-11, was appointed President
by the Court and that Jeb helped his brother steal the election.
Remember no one worked harder to put Bush in White House
than one Maureen Dowd. The dead no long find Gore's suits
or bald spot amusing.
GW Bush was President on 9-11, was appointed President
by the Court and that Jeb helped his brother steal the election.
Remember no one worked harder to put Bush in White House
than one Maureen Dowd. The dead no long find Gore's suits
or bald spot amusing.
145
You might also note that Precott Bush (W's grandpa) was one of Hitler's personal bankers (having his bank closed by the fed under the "Trading with the Enemy" law, and that Neal (W's brother) got caught with his hand in the cookie jar during the 80's in the Savings and Loan scandal (which cost the taxpayers millions). Oh, and did I mention that 41 was head of the CIA when it was engaged in terrorism in Central America? Let's not even mention the Carlyle Group (in which papa bush and papa Bin Laden were business partners investing in armament companies). These guys make the Sopranos look like choirboys.
3
It is my view that what you said is total nonsense. Saying flat out that Jeb Bush helped GW Bush steal the election is slander, because you have no proof nor offered any proof or even said it was your belief.
Just because you are commenting on NY Times doesn't mean you say anything you want about someone and get away with it.
Confronting Trump, Bush may have learned a thing or two and sue those that lie and slander his family.
Just because you are commenting on NY Times doesn't mean you say anything you want about someone and get away with it.
Confronting Trump, Bush may have learned a thing or two and sue those that lie and slander his family.
1
I just don't believe we are done with the Bushes, they are like a bad disease that keeps cropping up!
25
Kind of like the Clintons: Chelsea's next you know.
Like slippery Hillary... She back with more backing from Wall Street that any candidate from the Democrat or Republican Party.
1
Just one familial dynasty left to get rid of then.
26
@ Liberty Lover
You obviously refer to the C-dynasty here.
How often does it have to be repeated that the word 'dynasty' refers to blood lines? Hillary married a Clinton. Ergo she is not part of a dynasty. Big, big difference.
Only if Chelsea would run, that label would apply.
You obviously refer to the C-dynasty here.
How often does it have to be repeated that the word 'dynasty' refers to blood lines? Hillary married a Clinton. Ergo she is not part of a dynasty. Big, big difference.
Only if Chelsea would run, that label would apply.
4
Escape, at last, from Bushworld . . .
(Sigh)
Wait a minute, the new world is garish, psychedelic, topsy turvy. Nothing turns out to be what it originally seems to be. And you thought no new world could possibly be more inauthentic than Bushworld.
Stop it, I want to get off.
(Sigh)
Wait a minute, the new world is garish, psychedelic, topsy turvy. Nothing turns out to be what it originally seems to be. And you thought no new world could possibly be more inauthentic than Bushworld.
Stop it, I want to get off.
15
Seems Jeb was reading the Huffington Post-u know, that news outlet that refuses to mention the Trump name. I can appreciate liberals not liking Trump but Americans, like me, despise them for not understanding why some folks would vote for him. The media has made me want Trunp to win.
9
Um, with due respect everyone can decide for oneself but based on this logic behind wanting Trump to win because one hates the media sounds awfully like cut-the-nose-to-spite-the-face though
66
I am a media thrill seeker. With all due respect-U missed the point my friend. I was very specific who I referenced. The folks that didn't take the time to understand the will of the American people. If u are still confused read it again.
The media has made you want Trump to win? So, in order to spite the media, you're casting a vote for a man who has alienated the entire world....etc. Need I elucidate the damage Mr. Trump has done? And that you - for spite - have helped to egg on? Great way to make a decision about who to vote for. No wonder the media, yes the media, have described Trump voters as "low information" voters.
3
Our long national nightmare has finally ended. The same advisors who advocated for the iraq invasion in 2003 and were resurrected by Jeb as his foreign policy advisors are now gone.
42
What makes you so sure about that?
1
Maureen nailed this one. Goodbye and good riddance to the Bush clan. And, by the way, you were never a dynasty.
35
The concept of a "dynasty" strikes me as very un-American, I don't see this Bush family as particularly representing the best of All-American values.
Finally JEB!'s exclamation point dribbled into a campaign ending "period", or "full stop" as they say in Britain. And about time too. Hope his departure brings more closure to Terry Schiavo's husband, for whom the idea of a Jeb Bush presidency must have been a looming nightmare.
62
I thought I would feel some kind of smarmy justification at the demise of the Bush family. A little Schadenfreude, maybe some pride.
Nothing.
For years, I have been inspired to resent their dark financial deals, their covert activities, their wars, their lies, their abuses of wealth and power. Then, along came Jeb. I thought I would feel renewed anger at his election fixing that gave us W. But I was deprived of that joy. Jeb failed so miserably that I almost felt sorry for him. Almost.
The best I can say for Jeb is that he managed to throw a hundred million dollars back into the economy, all money held by his billionaire friends, all money that doesn't improve the lives of anyone when held and not spent. At least the people of Iowa, New Hampshire, and South Carolina got to see some of that money come into their municipalities, even if the rest of us didn't.
Goodbye Jeb. I know we aren't rid of the Bushes. They have a new generation preparing to take up their mantle of greed. But it's hard to feel any relief at the demise of the Bushes when the void left in their wake is filled by the likes of Trump, Cruz, and Rubio.
Nothing.
For years, I have been inspired to resent their dark financial deals, their covert activities, their wars, their lies, their abuses of wealth and power. Then, along came Jeb. I thought I would feel renewed anger at his election fixing that gave us W. But I was deprived of that joy. Jeb failed so miserably that I almost felt sorry for him. Almost.
The best I can say for Jeb is that he managed to throw a hundred million dollars back into the economy, all money held by his billionaire friends, all money that doesn't improve the lives of anyone when held and not spent. At least the people of Iowa, New Hampshire, and South Carolina got to see some of that money come into their municipalities, even if the rest of us didn't.
Goodbye Jeb. I know we aren't rid of the Bushes. They have a new generation preparing to take up their mantle of greed. But it's hard to feel any relief at the demise of the Bushes when the void left in their wake is filled by the likes of Trump, Cruz, and Rubio.
110
I have enjoyed watching Jeb concession speech. A low energy loser until the end. I have been waiting for this since 2000.
The void is also filled with dead Iraqi civilians and the dead and wounded soldiers of many nations, all victims of George W’s trumped up war. Bush dynasty? Dynasty of death.
W. did not prove to be the exclamation point's Cialis. True. He even told Mark McKinnon that he was 'doing his duty' to go to South Carolina to stump for his brother Jeb. Barbara was of course right all along. Bye Bushes!
But, now the NeoCons are circling Rubio. He seems as malleable as Jeb would have been. A younger version of W. who can be led into new Global Nation Building and never-ending wars.
But, now the NeoCons are circling Rubio. He seems as malleable as Jeb would have been. A younger version of W. who can be led into new Global Nation Building and never-ending wars.
116
You nailed it. Rubio, if elected, will walk around with an earphone plugged in, getting his words from command central. His candidacy frightens me the most. Kudos to Trump for winnowing the field. Next stop Rubio. Get him out of the picture.
1
Excellent column, Ms. Dowd!
12
Sure wish you had written this kind of column in 2000, Ms. Dowd, instead of spending your time smirking about Al Gore being wooden and wonky. Doesn't help us much to have you pile on the Bush family now.
333
Yeah, talk about late to the game. Maureen and her fellow Versailles pundits bear a huge responsibility for wasting ink snarking on Gore--and not revealing Dubya's weaknesses early on.
129
You needed Dowd to point out W's weaknesses?
Hmm. In that light, maybe we should also be considering the NYT's constant dissing of Bernie Sanders this year.
2
By temperament and experience, Jeb Bush is infinitely more qualified to be President than Donald Trump.
Still, does anyone else see the poetic justice of a Bush denied higher office by a yahoo flame-thrower appealing to the worse fears in people. Maybe Al Gore should offer Jeb some tips on coping.
Still, does anyone else see the poetic justice of a Bush denied higher office by a yahoo flame-thrower appealing to the worse fears in people. Maybe Al Gore should offer Jeb some tips on coping.
28
That is really funny. I need to start with a quote: "By temperament and experience, Jeb Bush is infinitely more qualified to be President than Donald Trump." Okay, the snarky front I don't think Jeb is qualified to be Trump. But, putting that aside, were you speaking in droll jest? The only universe in which Jeb would be qualified to be President is if the proper qualifications include being a worthy toady of the 1% willing to turn his head to inequality supported by our government and also willing to make a family a victim because they wanted a dignified end of life instead of a circus performance by people waving the bible. I hope that a wildly improbable candidate becomes the next President. After all, the not a one of the probable candidates seems likely to make the changes we need for a peaceful resetting or our country.
3
"By temperament and experience, Jeb Bush is infinitely more qualified to be President than Donald Trump"
Even if you believe this to be true, it isn't saying much.
Even if you believe this to be true, it isn't saying much.
incorrect he did not have the temperament and his experience was questionable. Except when making bad decisions. H
If Donald Trump does nothing else , we must be grateful to him for finally destroying the myth that W kept us safe . Every time , Hillary is accused of being responsible for the deaths of 4 Americans in Benghazi , hopefully somebody will play Condi's testimony before the 911 commission.
274
Hillary has to refute the claim she voted for the Iraq War by stating her vote was based on lies and misinformation. Nationalism was at an all-time high. We were all feverish to strike out at the perpetrators of this murderous event. We were lied to, plain and simple. We trusted our government and were duped. Why has the media not played up this fact? All we hear is how the liberal media demonizes the right. Not so with the Iraq War. They gave up much too soon.
1
It's worth saying again...and again...and again; the Bush con job about Sadam never should have been swallowed by the public, if not for the cowardly corporate media echo chamber of "America's scared", and letting Condi and Colin et al get away with bogus scenarios and hype. It's all too disgusting to go over, if only it was a less catastrophic legacy. You are one of the few media figures, Maureen, who never gave up calling these liars and cowards out for what they are. Thank you. "Never Forget" indeed! Why wait for "history to be the judge" when we knew the score as it was happening. Forever shame on American mainstream media: When good people do nothing...evil flourishes. A pox on the Bushes and their minion. This country's screwed.
81
The con job went like this: Put Saddam Hussein and 9/11 in the same sentence as often as possible without ever claiming that Saddam was responsible for 9/11. It worked and the public bought it with a majority thinking that Saddam had something to do with 9/11. I never did but it gives me no pleasure to know I saw through their game.
Maureen,
I cannot thank you enough for writing this most appropriate epitaph to the Bush dynasty. We all hoped and prayed another nasty, underhanded, dirty, low energy and low intelligence Bush would not again besmirch the White House. We all prayed we would be delivered from another sleeping Bush.
Your last line: priceless. And....utterly true.
Thank you again for your bravery, honesty, and sincerity in writing this piece.
I cannot thank you enough for writing this most appropriate epitaph to the Bush dynasty. We all hoped and prayed another nasty, underhanded, dirty, low energy and low intelligence Bush would not again besmirch the White House. We all prayed we would be delivered from another sleeping Bush.
Your last line: priceless. And....utterly true.
Thank you again for your bravery, honesty, and sincerity in writing this piece.
15
Yes, put the blame of the Iraq war on Bush and his team. But there is another people to share the blame, the American public. Americans were just itching for Arab/Islamic blood after 9/11. Hundreds of thousand died in the Iraq war. Americans don't care.
65
How can you blame us? Did we have CIA reports? Did we have operatives in the field? We depend on our government to give us information. We were told and believed the lies the Bush/Cheney administration told. Please, cut us some slack. Three thousand innocent Americans were murdered on 9/11. We were shaken to our core. 'Americans don't care'. Humbug!
And now all the American voters are supposed to turn their attentions to that other guy from Florida, the fresh-faced youngster who has adopted all of the Bush plans but does not share the family's last name, but a Cuban-American one... Marco Rubio. But his young family can keep him...
"We Won't Get Fooled Again."
"We Won't Get Fooled Again."
78
I never thought it would be possible, but the Clintons and George W. actually made me miss Poppy Bush. Unlike his sons, he was an intelligent and honorable person who surrounded himself with intelligent and honorable advisers. But Barbara Bush was right: “We’ve had enough Bushes.”
Now, if only the Clintons would get the message…
Now, if only the Clintons would get the message…
26
Willie Horton, not so honorable.
All the trouble we're having in the world from terror organizations like "ISIS" is blowback from the regrettable and stupid "Let's invade Iraq" decision by Bush 43 and his puppet master Dick Cheney. The Middle East is in flames, and we have the Bush Family to thank for it.
316
You left out W forcing Iran and North Korea to obtain nuclear weapons after W labelled them part of the "Axis of Evil" with invasion of Iraq the first step in wiping out this nonexistent Axis.
And the "de Bathification" of Iraq instituted by the Bush administration. Guess where all those Bathists who lost their jobs during the American occupation of Iraq, are now?
1
In celebrating the end of the Bush dynasty and reminding everyone that thinking Americans realized the invasion of Iraq was insane, let us not forget that HRC voted in favor of it.
Say what you want about "Poppy"", but wimp does not come to mind when you see him being pulled out of the ocean during WW II
29
A truly decent man would never had proposed Clarence Thomas for the Supreme Court.
2
We have Donald Trump in response to the eight years of Obama pushing against the Constitution, leaving Iraq to ISIS and his building up racism throughout the United States.
6
Maureen I don't think Jeb ever really wanted to run. I think it was the old man who pressed his buttons, greased the wheels, and decided Jeb was the one to to erase the stigma of W. And his dismal presidency.
Jeb was painful to watch during debates and on the campaign trail. You could feel his discomfort, you could feel his fear, and it was very sad to watch a man who proclaimed to be running a joyful campaign end up so joyless.
Thus despite the wishes of Poppy and maybe George W, instead of rounding out a Bush Legacy, Jeb's campaign ends not with a bang but with a whimper. I am not surprised, I am NOT unhappy, and I have no doubt that Jeb will land a cushy job in some area of pundit land that well keep his family fed and his name somewhat in public view.
Sic Gloria Bush Mundi.
Jeb was painful to watch during debates and on the campaign trail. You could feel his discomfort, you could feel his fear, and it was very sad to watch a man who proclaimed to be running a joyful campaign end up so joyless.
Thus despite the wishes of Poppy and maybe George W, instead of rounding out a Bush Legacy, Jeb's campaign ends not with a bang but with a whimper. I am not surprised, I am NOT unhappy, and I have no doubt that Jeb will land a cushy job in some area of pundit land that well keep his family fed and his name somewhat in public view.
Sic Gloria Bush Mundi.
37
I was disconcerted by his performance on the campaign trail and agree that he appeared not that interested in running. I am upset about the amount of money spent on such a reluctant candidate. Enjoy private life Bushes!
4
Exactly my take on Jeb Bush. He is probably a very nice guy who got caught up in the family pressure - mercifully he bowed out - it was painful to watch him - every time I watched him it seemed like he would rather be any place else....
FINALLY! Someone, someone had the courage to speak the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth!!
I salute you Maureen.
I salute you Maureen.
13
Her piece is called an OpEd for a reason....it's an opinion, not necessarily the truth.
5
Her opinion, shared by millions around the world, is the truth, backed up by FACTS.
This column is a surrealistic smear painting of moments, memories and thrusts at the Bushes, who deserve some raking over. Could we perhaps delineate some facts revealed by recent events in S.C. and elsewhere?
First, the evangelical voters aren't. They were presumed to be voters who would hold their well worn Bibles in front of them and vote the scripture and the secretly heard commandments from god that, they say, guide their lives. Instead, they are voting anger and tribal loyalties. Time was a single divorce (Rockefeller) could be seen as discrediting someone from presidential consideration. Now Trump, who dumped two wives and is on to his third, along with engaging in numerous unwed liaisons of which he is boastfully proud, is somehow their man.
Part of this is that people around the country are voting unfocused anger at the threats of shutdowns and debt defaults that have been the continuing entertainments since Republicans took over the House in 2010. Since the evangelical and social right hate Obama, and they can't bring themselves to blame the Republicans, there is a "throw the bums out" mood sweeping the nation. (They don't care that they were the ones who voted the bums in; being a voter means never having to say your are sorry.)
Jeb's heart never seemed to be in it and, face it, he, like his father and brother, never had that much to offer the nation anyway. The Bushes were likely the very last old school Republicans to occupy the White House. It's over.
First, the evangelical voters aren't. They were presumed to be voters who would hold their well worn Bibles in front of them and vote the scripture and the secretly heard commandments from god that, they say, guide their lives. Instead, they are voting anger and tribal loyalties. Time was a single divorce (Rockefeller) could be seen as discrediting someone from presidential consideration. Now Trump, who dumped two wives and is on to his third, along with engaging in numerous unwed liaisons of which he is boastfully proud, is somehow their man.
Part of this is that people around the country are voting unfocused anger at the threats of shutdowns and debt defaults that have been the continuing entertainments since Republicans took over the House in 2010. Since the evangelical and social right hate Obama, and they can't bring themselves to blame the Republicans, there is a "throw the bums out" mood sweeping the nation. (They don't care that they were the ones who voted the bums in; being a voter means never having to say your are sorry.)
Jeb's heart never seemed to be in it and, face it, he, like his father and brother, never had that much to offer the nation anyway. The Bushes were likely the very last old school Republicans to occupy the White House. It's over.
50
Well said; the inchoate anger felt by a rear guard minority is simply landing on a hornet's nest of candidates, each of which is stinging the other.
Let's see who Jeb Bush goes on to endorse; Marco Rubio, who stabbed him in the back or Donald Trump, who stabbed him in the front.
Although, maybe that's not true, as a man who was polling 3% in December and who later asked his audience to "please clap" simply was not there for a knife to be welded at.
Although, maybe that's not true, as a man who was polling 3% in December and who later asked his audience to "please clap" simply was not there for a knife to be welded at.
9
Mike Edwards: Maybe, hopefully, Jeb will endorse the person who never stabbed him and who has the best chance of beating Hillary, according to many presidential election projection polls: Governor John Kasich.
I cannot express my gratitude for how well you write - or rather weave a tale. You are my nominee for the "Molly Ivins Award for Political Humor"!
7
Molly Ivens would have buried Trump by now instead of promoting him!!
2
Right. But she skewered Gore, for no good reason that I could see. And she's going after Hillary, too.
1
Good article but no mention of the relationship with the Saudis???
Your escape is illusory, we will never get out of it - the Bush have put us in jail, and they have passed the key to someone else, and we are still in jail. A you mention it, they made our present nightmares, so the future looks like its still shaped by their disastrous influence. But Obama, Clinton also helped a lot by refusing to act against WS and those responsible for Irak.
Your escape is illusory, we will never get out of it - the Bush have put us in jail, and they have passed the key to someone else, and we are still in jail. A you mention it, they made our present nightmares, so the future looks like its still shaped by their disastrous influence. But Obama, Clinton also helped a lot by refusing to act against WS and those responsible for Irak.
14
With Bush gone, so is Hillary's chances of winning the presidency.
Bush was the only Republican who had as much negative baggage -- thanks to brother George -- as Hillary has. Any of the other Republican candidates will look like stellar statesmen once the Republicans start unpacking Hillary's baggage.
How the Democratic establishment could be foolish enough to back Hillary at the exclusion of Sanders or anybody else is beyond me.
Bush was the only Republican who had as much negative baggage -- thanks to brother George -- as Hillary has. Any of the other Republican candidates will look like stellar statesmen once the Republicans start unpacking Hillary's baggage.
How the Democratic establishment could be foolish enough to back Hillary at the exclusion of Sanders or anybody else is beyond me.
18
Hillary may have negative baggage, but she's not calling herself a "Socialist," and Bernie is unelectable in this country. I'm sorry that people have decided to "hate" Hillary. I don't love her, but I do see her intelligence and experience as positive--and Bernie has no experience. It would be a Rube-Goldberg government. He'd be eaten alive by the very very nasty sharks in the Republican party. The Democratic establishment is reality-based. I hope the rest of you join us after you have your Kumbaya time.
2
If only this was the death of compassionate conservatism, perhaps the ultimate nonsensical concept. Another piece of nonsense that riled me about the Bushes was the fair and balanced story they cooked up about being from Texas. But it worked.
26
With all the damage that the Bush family has caused to this country, we sure don't want another one in the White House. Did they think that we had forgotten the disaster and destruction that GWB left in his wake? Or that Jeb has presided over hanging chads and stopping the Florida vote count in order to steal the Presidency from Gore for his brother? No, we have long memories and a foul taste left in our mouths from the Bush family.
87
This GOP circus has the fascination of a train wreck now, but eventually one of the clowns is going to be the actual Republican candidate, with a fair chance of winning...
20
Ms. Dowd, it won't be that many more years before the next generation of Bush Entitled will be campaigning for president. Jeb's son, George P. Bush, currently holds the coveted and oh so critical position of Commissioner of the Texas General Land Office. Being half-Latino, bi-lingual, telegenic and, of course, a Bush, he will no doubt rise quickly in the sewer that is Texas politics. Governor or senate, than you'll be seeing him up in those New Hampshire diners. I hope you'll still be there to lampoon it.
42
Thanks, Ms. Dowd.
It's nice to be reminded what W. cost the country, and we need to remember:
1. He inherited a balanced budget and gave it all away, mostly to the rich.
2. He started not one, but two, wars, and kept both of them off-budget, piling up a horrible debt.
3. Ignoring both George Washington and Dwight Eisenhower, he got us entangled in foreign nations and fed the military-industrial complex.
4. He started a new government entitlement program, Medicare part D, without paying for it, a violation of sound fiscal policy.
and, 5. He presided over a market collapse brought on by his massive borrowing to support the wars.
If JEB! could not see that, then he should not have any party's nomination.
It's nice to be reminded what W. cost the country, and we need to remember:
1. He inherited a balanced budget and gave it all away, mostly to the rich.
2. He started not one, but two, wars, and kept both of them off-budget, piling up a horrible debt.
3. Ignoring both George Washington and Dwight Eisenhower, he got us entangled in foreign nations and fed the military-industrial complex.
4. He started a new government entitlement program, Medicare part D, without paying for it, a violation of sound fiscal policy.
and, 5. He presided over a market collapse brought on by his massive borrowing to support the wars.
If JEB! could not see that, then he should not have any party's nomination.
126
[[W.’s arrogant and delusional administration pulled the wool over Americans’ eyes about the Iraq invasion.]]
No, they didn't. There were protests around the world against starting that war. The only people who were fooled were those sitting in Congress and the United Nations.
[[Trump held the Bushes accountable for the trumped-up war.]]
I am very grateful to him for that. He's a loose cannon, but he was dead right in his critique. And the stunned look on Bush's face as Trumped slammed the family was a delight.
No, they didn't. There were protests around the world against starting that war. The only people who were fooled were those sitting in Congress and the United Nations.
[[Trump held the Bushes accountable for the trumped-up war.]]
I am very grateful to him for that. He's a loose cannon, but he was dead right in his critique. And the stunned look on Bush's face as Trumped slammed the family was a delight.
67
"The only people who were fooled were those sitting in Congress....including Hillary Clinton, of course.
I think it's marvelous that the dynasty has finally petered out. What a bunch of knuckle-heads they all are. Imagine Jeb currently associating with Wolfy. (eeek!) That takes the cake Jeb. So on to the big T, hoping he'll finally fizzles out like a comet hitting the Pacific Ocean. (a small comet). This is all so amazingly fun to watch -- adults having past mistakes come back to bite them in their behinds. Maureen really has a way with words too. My favorite take-home from this one is, "No one could bear one more day of watching Jeb get the flesh flayed off him by Trump." Lovely. Keep on keepin' on Maureen.
16
Unless Jeb fessed up - which may require serious psychoanalysis - no one would know for sure why he did want to run.
Even if W has poisoned the family tree, his brother could have been a force had he wanted to be a king-maker. Instead, his "Gov Jeb Bush" engraved gun tweet is the equivalence of Gov Dukakis's riding the tank photo. And the parallel (theory) doesn't stop there. Really, while Pop Bush's Lee Atwater's Willie Horton did serious damage to Dukakis's campaign, he didn't seem to have his heart in it. The same with Jeb! So call it a Dukakis's Revenge! Karma is a beach.
So what now? The GOP might have to embrace the Trump candidacy. When he doesn't bother the truth - except for maybe Jeb had the low energy observation bit - and his followers' obnoxiousness is validated, there isn't much rational debate can fix.
So this is the age of extremism. I still hope for a pragmatist in the White House, but when it comes down to Bernie versus Trump - and since moving to Canada is not a good option - I may have to go for a President Bloomberg!
Even if W has poisoned the family tree, his brother could have been a force had he wanted to be a king-maker. Instead, his "Gov Jeb Bush" engraved gun tweet is the equivalence of Gov Dukakis's riding the tank photo. And the parallel (theory) doesn't stop there. Really, while Pop Bush's Lee Atwater's Willie Horton did serious damage to Dukakis's campaign, he didn't seem to have his heart in it. The same with Jeb! So call it a Dukakis's Revenge! Karma is a beach.
So what now? The GOP might have to embrace the Trump candidacy. When he doesn't bother the truth - except for maybe Jeb had the low energy observation bit - and his followers' obnoxiousness is validated, there isn't much rational debate can fix.
So this is the age of extremism. I still hope for a pragmatist in the White House, but when it comes down to Bernie versus Trump - and since moving to Canada is not a good option - I may have to go for a President Bloomberg!
15
By the way, Roy Cohn would have been proud
7
Jeb Bush's public demise has been a tragedy of Shakespearean proportions. It has been difficult to have seen him continually demean himself in public to try to ingratiate himself with GOP primary voters. Even bringing in his nitwit brother and his mama didn't lead to any enthusiastic response.
Now, he must go home and ponder a life where he could not rise to the level achieved by either his father or his older brother. I hope that some day, a biographer as skilled as Robert Caro can write a biography equal to the collapse of his public life.
After his role in the Terry Schiavo matter, and his role in throwing the 2000 election in favor of his brother George, I have little sympathy for his political demise. But, I do have empathy for how he goes forward from here.
Jeb: Don't let the screen door hit you in the backside on your way out of public life. I hope you will reflect deeply on what has happened here, if only to find meaning and purpose in your life beyond the destructive course your family has followed lo these many years.
Now, he must go home and ponder a life where he could not rise to the level achieved by either his father or his older brother. I hope that some day, a biographer as skilled as Robert Caro can write a biography equal to the collapse of his public life.
After his role in the Terry Schiavo matter, and his role in throwing the 2000 election in favor of his brother George, I have little sympathy for his political demise. But, I do have empathy for how he goes forward from here.
Jeb: Don't let the screen door hit you in the backside on your way out of public life. I hope you will reflect deeply on what has happened here, if only to find meaning and purpose in your life beyond the destructive course your family has followed lo these many years.
272
Agree wholeheartedly. If JEB! Hadn't stole FL in 2000 for his numbskull brother, the world would be a better place. He is paying a small price for the World-wide pain and suffering wrought by W.
33
Tragedy? More like "Much ado about nothing".
Saluti
Saluti
3
And he won't have to worry where his next paycheck will come from!
Re: "even as he feared using his surname on his campaign posters"
Not any more than he appeared to fear using his Christian name John. The guy's full name is John Ellis Bush. "Jeb" is an ACRONYM, a pronounceable abbreviation formed from initials. I haven't seen any posters that read "Je!". Calling him "Jeb Bush" is like calling Bobby and Ted's brother "JFK Kennedy".
Not any more than he appeared to fear using his Christian name John. The guy's full name is John Ellis Bush. "Jeb" is an ACRONYM, a pronounceable abbreviation formed from initials. I haven't seen any posters that read "Je!". Calling him "Jeb Bush" is like calling Bobby and Ted's brother "JFK Kennedy".
23
Finally, someone is calling out the JEB thing. I've never understood how his initials became his full name. He didn't have a last name much less a middle or first. It never made sense but no one ever questioned it especially the media. He was just Jeb. Does anyone out there know of a John Ellis Bush who was running for president?
2
It was over for Jeb when it took him five days to answer for his brother for the Iraq war. The fact that he didn't see this coming showed him to be completely out of touch with the American people who now know the whole thing was a big lie. No, Jeb was not the "smart one", just another W but without the charm.
224
What charm? unless you refer to dim-wittiness as charm.
It is amazing and pathetic that it took a pseudo republican like Trump to point out to the ignorant republican voters who rewarded W with a second term that Iraq was a horrific mistake, the price of which all of the US and others will continue to pay for many years to com...
It is amazing and pathetic that it took a pseudo republican like Trump to point out to the ignorant republican voters who rewarded W with a second term that Iraq was a horrific mistake, the price of which all of the US and others will continue to pay for many years to com...
21
Show me the W "charm", please. W was around for eight years and I never noticed it. There was a blundering idiot and I guess there was a certain charm to that. Like the time in China when he tried to open a locked door.
2
Great. Europe isn't laughing anymore.
19
Are you serious? Not laughing with Trump leading the pack?
11
They are now shaking their heads about Obama. There's a reason he has to go to Cuba. He no longer charms Europe.
1
These uppity snobs were completely clueless about the depth and breadth of hatred for W and what he wrought on the nation and the world. The last wannabe Bush never stood a chance. Thank goodness they're done.
328
Don't relax yet. George P is busy in Texas. There's a whole 4th generation waiting on the wings for our memories to fade.
114
There's still George P. in Texas.
2
New York Times columnists are privileged too. At least the Bushes can face the heat and be held accountable, unlike reporters. Poppy didn't unleash Willie Horton, Al Gore did in the primaries--Bush just had the wit (and Atwater) to use that good idea against Dukakis. Jeb ran a poor campaign by starting late, and following a bad strategy. To be sure, the ads run against Rubio were wasted money. But Trump isn't the Bush Frankenstein, he's Obama's. Trump is a limousine liberal from NY used to getting his way for free or for bucks. And now he can be the celebrity president because the current celebrity actually believes his own propaganda and loves the limelight. Trump loves it more, but give him this, too: Trump loves America in such a visceral fashion it plays like authenticity, the very trait Ms. Clinton and Mr. Obama clearly lack, and Americans love. The Bush family is old news now. So is Clinton. Get ready for the Trump Tower Trash coming to the White House. He's your baby, New York. He's a man of the Times. Pun intended.
14
Al Gore did NOT mention Willie Horton. He referred to the furlough program in general as it existed in Massachusetts, which, by the way, was started by a Republican governor in 1972, Francis W. Sargent. It was the Republicans who pounced on the program and started digging up dirt on Dukakis, i.e. the Willie Horton furlough, and used it to assassinate Dukakis' character.
5
Try saying what you mean in English we are all tired of Bush speak.
1
The Bush family is responsible for the rise of Donald Trump? Kazinga! What a great last line and thought. Except that it's ridiculous, not true, and not supported by much else factual in this OP-ED. Come on Dowd.
16
The Jeb Bush take down was mostly an expression of latent Trump-love. Maureen, did you really mean to write that last paragraph?
1
Ms. Dowd's intellect has been dulled by a monomaniacal focus on the Clintons.
Donald Trump's rise is due entirely to television and a television-watching public too lazy to read books or engage in articulate, measured conversation, or to listen to anything longer than an inflammatory soundbite.
A very large portion of our population is ready for the ultimate soundbite President. He'll make America great! He'll bring back the jobs! The Mexicans will build a wall!
The ironic thing is, much of what he says has merit. And God knows I don't want Rubio or Cruz to win the Republican primary. Then we'd be in real trouble if the Republicans won.
As for poor Jeb ("Terry Schiavo") Bush, well, he was the one Republican during the last debate who granted President Obama the right and duty to nominate a Supreme Court justice. And he didn't treat us to any number of grimaces and gestures to make his points.
Donald Trump's rise is due entirely to television and a television-watching public too lazy to read books or engage in articulate, measured conversation, or to listen to anything longer than an inflammatory soundbite.
A very large portion of our population is ready for the ultimate soundbite President. He'll make America great! He'll bring back the jobs! The Mexicans will build a wall!
The ironic thing is, much of what he says has merit. And God knows I don't want Rubio or Cruz to win the Republican primary. Then we'd be in real trouble if the Republicans won.
As for poor Jeb ("Terry Schiavo") Bush, well, he was the one Republican during the last debate who granted President Obama the right and duty to nominate a Supreme Court justice. And he didn't treat us to any number of grimaces and gestures to make his points.
3
can't disagree with much in this column, but you certainly give the American 'folks' a pass for the Iraq invasion. bush2 didn't pull the wool over their eyes at all. all he did was say Hussein 9/11 for a while and 70% of the sheep disguising themselves as rugged individualists fell in line like they were north Koreans being brainwashed by the dear leader.
164
It really wasn't hard to see the Bush Iraq conspiracy. Paul Snow's book. Colin Powell's soldierly attempt to sell the UN. Reports from inspectors saying " no WMD here".
You just had to robotically repeat, "my President, right or wrong". Heard that a lot from Republicans. And others.
You just had to robotically repeat, "my President, right or wrong". Heard that a lot from Republicans. And others.
1
Trump dumping 1) 911 and 2) lying about WMD... on the Bushes was justice for many -- at last.
The media's collective jaw hit the floor. They were stunned. "Not even Michael Moore says that!" bellowed the corporate media. Trump's proclamation was a breach of corporate lapdog media and two party protocol.
Meanwhile, in the hinterlands of America, from Brooklyn to Oakland, most people agree that Bush "lied" (word used with emphasis).... us into war and slept through the threats that led to 911. Bush and his opportunist PNAC cronies definitely knew that Saddam wasn't in cahoots with bin Laden, yet they deliberately led Americans to believe that too. It wasn't just one or two things, it was a broad conspiracy to lie to Americans.
This has mostly been swept under the rug.
Yes, Bush and his administration lied us into a war --- a war they wanted to have for different reasons that the reasons given to the American people (See Alan Greenspan's confession).
Trump is right.
The media was noticeably discombobulated by Trump's broadsides. They didn't discuss the substance of the accusation, rather only, "how it would play". The media didn't remind us about the "Bin Laden determined to attack" memos. They didn't remind us about the Downing Street memos. They were lost -- demonstrating why Americans hold the media in the same esteem as bankers and politicians.
It's no wonder so many Americans like Trump and Sanders too. Americans are thirsty for the truth - delivered bluntly.
The media's collective jaw hit the floor. They were stunned. "Not even Michael Moore says that!" bellowed the corporate media. Trump's proclamation was a breach of corporate lapdog media and two party protocol.
Meanwhile, in the hinterlands of America, from Brooklyn to Oakland, most people agree that Bush "lied" (word used with emphasis).... us into war and slept through the threats that led to 911. Bush and his opportunist PNAC cronies definitely knew that Saddam wasn't in cahoots with bin Laden, yet they deliberately led Americans to believe that too. It wasn't just one or two things, it was a broad conspiracy to lie to Americans.
This has mostly been swept under the rug.
Yes, Bush and his administration lied us into a war --- a war they wanted to have for different reasons that the reasons given to the American people (See Alan Greenspan's confession).
Trump is right.
The media was noticeably discombobulated by Trump's broadsides. They didn't discuss the substance of the accusation, rather only, "how it would play". The media didn't remind us about the "Bin Laden determined to attack" memos. They didn't remind us about the Downing Street memos. They were lost -- demonstrating why Americans hold the media in the same esteem as bankers and politicians.
It's no wonder so many Americans like Trump and Sanders too. Americans are thirsty for the truth - delivered bluntly.
395
No, I would argue Obama is more responsible for the rise of Trump than the Bush family is.
Either way, should Trump win America will be guaranteed to never be great again.
Either way, should Trump win America will be guaranteed to never be great again.
11
Trump is a reaction to the the anger over establishment politics (big money influence, etc.) but also a reaction to Obama. Trump could be considered the un-Obama.
While Obama sought to stop enforcement of immigration laws, Trump not only promises to enforce them but also hold Mexico responsible for its share of the problem. While Obama refuses to use certain words, like "Islamic terrorists", Trump exposes the Syrian refugee vetting process for being insufficient. While Obama runs to Cuba, Trump takes on China.
And every time the left tries to censor Americans with political correctness, telling them what to feel, think or say, another Trump voter is created.
While Obama sought to stop enforcement of immigration laws, Trump not only promises to enforce them but also hold Mexico responsible for its share of the problem. While Obama refuses to use certain words, like "Islamic terrorists", Trump exposes the Syrian refugee vetting process for being insufficient. While Obama runs to Cuba, Trump takes on China.
And every time the left tries to censor Americans with political correctness, telling them what to feel, think or say, another Trump voter is created.
2
Lee Atwater is the least of it - let's not forget Poppy Bush's dirty deal with Iran to extend the hostage crisis in order to derail Carter & elect Reagan, not to mention Poppy's CIA leadership when the CIA outright lied and stonewalled the Congressional investigation of the assassinations of President Kennedy and Martin Luther King, Jr.
80
In 1999, I read the Texas Monthly long-form biography of George W. Bush and couldn't believe the American people were going to elect this pusillanimous National Guard shirker and ne'er-do-well president. The result was of course worse than anyone imagined. To have failed so completely in both foreign and domestic affairs is still hard to comprehend because the magnitudes were so far outside normal experience.
Dynasty? A not-so-secret society of empty suits might be a better description.
Dynasty? A not-so-secret society of empty suits might be a better description.
335
True. But where was the media during the W. years? Remember the fiasco in the Times about a reporter (can't remember her name) having a direct fax connection to the White House? This was not meant figuratively, it was meant literally. Am I correct in this memory?
I am relieved that the Bush family is finally in the rear view mirror. This country could have done very well without either of the Bush presidencies, and I doubt Jeb would have done any better. I, for one, am sick and tired of the wealthy passing around the presidency like it's their birthright.
Now if they could just take Dick Cheney permanently with them so the country doesn't have to hear anymore of his sociopathic soap box commentaries.
Now if they could just take Dick Cheney permanently with them so the country doesn't have to hear anymore of his sociopathic soap box commentaries.
354
Rather like the Graeae, the Bushes and Cheney share one heart and one brain among them.
3
Fact is, we survived them - all of them - and the useless and greedy Party they represent so vividly. We're still on our feet. If Mrs. Clinton wins and tries to pull a little Clintonesque wool over our collective eyes she'll be dealing with the hungry denizens of the Sanders camp. If Trump wins he'll be dealing with the un-gerrymandered dregs of we voters who won't consider the election a done deal. We take our direction from the Bushie actions across two decades to measure him against and even there he'll be found wanting.
Would not mind hearing more of the lot from a room somewhere in The Hague.
3
High tine Nemesis caught up with this family. Good riddance.
24
I voted for Obama in 2008 just to find, to my dismay (I am a scientist) that he fell for a scam on climate and that that's the only thing he really cares about.
Trump appeared at first to be a loud fellow with a wig. But then it turned out that it's his own hair, and that his position on all major issues is uncannily right, as Maureen Dowd points out.
I have now a lot of fun watching how Trump, who is essentially apolitical and quite moderate behind his bluster, gives a fit to all the extremists on both sides of the political divide.
Trump appeared at first to be a loud fellow with a wig. But then it turned out that it's his own hair, and that his position on all major issues is uncannily right, as Maureen Dowd points out.
I have now a lot of fun watching how Trump, who is essentially apolitical and quite moderate behind his bluster, gives a fit to all the extremists on both sides of the political divide.
17
A scam on climate? And you're a "scientist"? Full disclosure please.
30
A scientist (of what? Ostrich behavior?) who thinks issues with the climate change are a scam. Perhaps you should have taken a few Liberal Arts courses. Those extremists on the right have a seat all ready for you at the head of the table.
2
Jeb looked pathetic and bewildered. While Trump had his youthful looking third wife and beautiful children, in their youth, standing next to him on the campaign stage, Jeb brings in W to throw out a few peanut jokes to the crowd and 91 year old Barbara still in her pearls, steadying herself.
He just could not make it work. And the more he tried, the more pathetic he looked.
Maybe Mother knows best, after all, millions of dollars too late.
She tried telling him and the world: already enough Bushes, something like that.
Sometimes a son just needs to appreciate a mother's wisdom.
He just could not make it work. And the more he tried, the more pathetic he looked.
Maybe Mother knows best, after all, millions of dollars too late.
She tried telling him and the world: already enough Bushes, something like that.
Sometimes a son just needs to appreciate a mother's wisdom.
40
What a week: the most pathetic candidate off all time gets buried along with the archangel of supremely flawed judgement. Good riddance to them both. This wonderful country can hopefully begin to look forward to a new era free of this awful family (save for one of their litter popping up on the Today show as a "correspondent") and the petulant old man of the Supreme Court stuck in his backwards zeitgeist. We deserve better.
32
The old rule, once trademarked and applicable to celebrities and politicians, is “Never let them see you sweat.”
Jeb Bush, badgered by Donald Trump, broke that rule and also violated what ought to be a rule for politicians, “Never let them hear you whine.”
On the subject of rules, it certainly must require more than two people to constitute a dynasty. If that’s true, the Bush Dynasty never existed. Let's just say there won't another Bush in national politics soon. And, that is a good thing. considering the messes the two brothers left behind.
George W. Bush, by his foolish Iraq invasion on false pretenses, created ISIS. Jeb Bush, by allowing himself early in his presidential campaign to become a mere foil, created Donald Trump.
Jeb Bush, badgered by Donald Trump, broke that rule and also violated what ought to be a rule for politicians, “Never let them hear you whine.”
On the subject of rules, it certainly must require more than two people to constitute a dynasty. If that’s true, the Bush Dynasty never existed. Let's just say there won't another Bush in national politics soon. And, that is a good thing. considering the messes the two brothers left behind.
George W. Bush, by his foolish Iraq invasion on false pretenses, created ISIS. Jeb Bush, by allowing himself early in his presidential campaign to become a mere foil, created Donald Trump.
16
Maureen, actually it was when Jeb said "my mom is the strongest person I know", Trump said "SHE should be running". Trump eviscerating the brother of a war criminal is the only positive for the Trumpster.
37
Ms. Dowd should be congratulated for an article even more lucid than is her wont. There is only one statement that I would challenge. Bush "W" did not pull the wool over American eyes with the invasion of Iraq. His actions were transparent from the very start. To the extent that any wool was pulled, it was the media that deluded itself, and deluded the man in the street, and that includes (inexcusably) the New York Times.
So we should be glad that a loudmouth billionaire has finally spoken the truth loud enough so that it can no longer be denied, and sad that it has taken fifteen years in cowed and browbeaten America to get to this point.
If you have ever wondered what it is like to live under communism, well, the current state of the American media, polarized, dogmatic, and uninquisitive, is very much like life under Pravda and Izvestia in the '70s and '80s.
So we should be glad that a loudmouth billionaire has finally spoken the truth loud enough so that it can no longer be denied, and sad that it has taken fifteen years in cowed and browbeaten America to get to this point.
If you have ever wondered what it is like to live under communism, well, the current state of the American media, polarized, dogmatic, and uninquisitive, is very much like life under Pravda and Izvestia in the '70s and '80s.
213
Jeb! has finally relieved himself of being his brother's keeper.
1
It was time for Jeb! to stop beating around the Bush and quit.
7
Ms. Dowd, you're much too kind to Mr. Trump. I cannot think of anyone I've ever seen in the political arena during my lifetime (I'm 74) who is more unqualified for a national office than Mr. Trump. And this is something that is obvious to everyone in your business. So may I please ask, why is it that you and your colleagues who are opinion molders aren't coming right out and saying so? Instead of wasting our time gossiping about the Bushes. After all, were only talking about an individual who aspires to put his finger on the nuclear button (remember that?)
53
Come on. Do you really think Maureen supports someone like Trump. She's merely written a satirical article on the mess the whole Republican Party has made for our country that began with the Republican's acting president Ronald Reagan.
Your time is maybe better spent reflecting upon why the typical American voter believes anything the Republican Party throws at them and then votes these guys into office.
Your time is maybe better spent reflecting upon why the typical American voter believes anything the Republican Party throws at them and then votes these guys into office.
1
Trump spins the news but it's usually just to shine his own ego. We all do that. No, telling the bold face truth about George W. Bush, and his lying us into two wars, was a profile in courage for Trump, a Republican. I wouldn't vote for the guy, but he made me proud to be a fellow New Yorker who speaks the truth and doesn't spin the party line.
Everyone complains about politicians never telling the truth, well we finally got one, and kudos to Donald Trump for doing it. It took guts, and the fact that Jeb! needed a knock out punch to clear the field. Perfect.
Everyone complains about politicians never telling the truth, well we finally got one, and kudos to Donald Trump for doing it. It took guts, and the fact that Jeb! needed a knock out punch to clear the field. Perfect.
The best laid schemes o’ Mice an’ Men
Gang aft agley .... Robbie Burns
The Bush's are a strange family indeed. Patriarch Prescott Bush, Bush41's father, seemed cozy with the Third Reich. Bush41, with a platinum resume, was thwarted from a second term by some family feud with Ross Perot. Jeb, the crown prince, was blindsided by losing a senate race in Florida. Bush43 was "selected" for the Oval Office by the machinations of Governor Jeb aided by a devious Supreme Court. We will paying for the ineptness of Dubya seems like forever.
Barbara Bush had it right. We all need a sabbatical from the Bush League. Where have all of our Statesmen gone?
Gang aft agley .... Robbie Burns
The Bush's are a strange family indeed. Patriarch Prescott Bush, Bush41's father, seemed cozy with the Third Reich. Bush41, with a platinum resume, was thwarted from a second term by some family feud with Ross Perot. Jeb, the crown prince, was blindsided by losing a senate race in Florida. Bush43 was "selected" for the Oval Office by the machinations of Governor Jeb aided by a devious Supreme Court. We will paying for the ineptness of Dubya seems like forever.
Barbara Bush had it right. We all need a sabbatical from the Bush League. Where have all of our Statesmen gone?
28
Not, apparently, to Texas.
2
Donald is not a Republican. He is happy to wreck the Republican Party, and his followers seem to be enjoying the destruction. If he wasn't a totally inadequate contender for the office of President of the United States, and if he didn't show fascistic tendencies, I would kinda like him.
11
It was infuriating to hear Jeb! disparage President Obama, who has honorably led the country, when he could not even campaign credibly.
Jeb! had early advantages with the SuperPAC money thrown at him and his political connections. And yet...
Jeb! dispatched his wife to take on Trump's negative description of Mexican immigrants, rather than address the issue himself. Why must a person of Mexican origin be the one to dignify the group? Why couldn't he?
Jeb! sulked that he could be doing a lot "of really cool things" instead of the primary. We would all have been more "joyful" if he stopped then.
Jeb! could not even succeed at pinning Rubio for his poor Senate attendance record. He needed someone to tell him, at the debate, how to follow through.
Jeb! could not stick with an answer about the predictable question of going to war in Iraq, although the correct response is glaringly obvious.
Jeb! could not even show self-respect against Trump's adolescent taunting. He acted like the caricature.
Jeb! kept going with the patently false line that his "brother kept us safe." The thousands of lives lost in New York, Washington, Pennsylvania, Iraq and Afghanistan tell the horrific truth. And Jeb! dared to blame the carnage on President Obama, a man that John Ellis Bush had no business trying to succeed, let alone slam.
Jeb! had early advantages with the SuperPAC money thrown at him and his political connections. And yet...
Jeb! dispatched his wife to take on Trump's negative description of Mexican immigrants, rather than address the issue himself. Why must a person of Mexican origin be the one to dignify the group? Why couldn't he?
Jeb! sulked that he could be doing a lot "of really cool things" instead of the primary. We would all have been more "joyful" if he stopped then.
Jeb! could not even succeed at pinning Rubio for his poor Senate attendance record. He needed someone to tell him, at the debate, how to follow through.
Jeb! could not stick with an answer about the predictable question of going to war in Iraq, although the correct response is glaringly obvious.
Jeb! could not even show self-respect against Trump's adolescent taunting. He acted like the caricature.
Jeb! kept going with the patently false line that his "brother kept us safe." The thousands of lives lost in New York, Washington, Pennsylvania, Iraq and Afghanistan tell the horrific truth. And Jeb! dared to blame the carnage on President Obama, a man that John Ellis Bush had no business trying to succeed, let alone slam.
95
Jeb didn't have effective campaign advisors. There was plenty of trash to throw at Trump -- his long-held liberal Democratic values until it became necessary to ditch those and go with conservative Republican values, parading his third wife (Slovenian, not Muslim) and an assortment of offspring from serial marriages. Then there were all the subsidies and other goodies Trump got from assorted governments from New York to Nevada that enabled him to build his empire on a foundation of other people's money, while shrugging off a handful of bankruptcy cases in which, although Trump lost nothing, his backers lost plenty.
The fact is that Trump didn't seem like a real threat to Jeb and his advisors.
Jeb also failed to confront first-term Senators Cruz and Rubio on their dubious qualifications and apparent inexperience. The one threat they couldn't counter was Trump's decision to seek no major donors so that he could claim he was self-funding his campaign unlike the other candidates who were beholden to the superrich funding theirs. Rest assured, after another South Carolina result or two, the big bucks will be flowing to Trump as well.
The fact is that Trump didn't seem like a real threat to Jeb and his advisors.
Jeb also failed to confront first-term Senators Cruz and Rubio on their dubious qualifications and apparent inexperience. The one threat they couldn't counter was Trump's decision to seek no major donors so that he could claim he was self-funding his campaign unlike the other candidates who were beholden to the superrich funding theirs. Rest assured, after another South Carolina result or two, the big bucks will be flowing to Trump as well.
8
You make it seem that the Bush family got whacked out of the blue by Donald Trump. In reality, Trump's rise was made possible by the Tea Party as they also made Rubio and Cruz darlings in their own right.
The Tea Party took over the GOP as the Bush family slept for nearly four years confident that Jeb would win the nomination. They failed to see how the ascendancy of the Tea Party with their victories in 2010 and 2014 during off year elections and control of so many state houses could translate into any of three candidates knocking off Jeb this early in the race.
You did a great job describing Jeb as both a wimp and a wonk; a really bad candidate and losing the glasses was the least of his problems during an elections cycle rooted in anger and fear, at least on the republican side.
The Tea Party took over the GOP as the Bush family slept for nearly four years confident that Jeb would win the nomination. They failed to see how the ascendancy of the Tea Party with their victories in 2010 and 2014 during off year elections and control of so many state houses could translate into any of three candidates knocking off Jeb this early in the race.
You did a great job describing Jeb as both a wimp and a wonk; a really bad candidate and losing the glasses was the least of his problems during an elections cycle rooted in anger and fear, at least on the republican side.
8
According to Nate Silver's FiveThirtyEight.com, Bush lost when he failed to get establishment backing one year ago. When it comes to running without it, let's just say he's no Donald Trump.
1
Agree ! Another Texan here, who knows you cannot ignore the ideology of the ignorant.
The dynasty has perished? Hardly... there are Bushes waiting in the wings! Next up probably is Jeb!'s son, handsome (& brown, as Poppy called him) George Prescott Bush. He won the statewide office of Land Commissioner in Texas a couple of years ago, never having run for office before & with no particular qualifications, save 1. George P's website talks about his job as Land Commissioner and lauds attempts at defunding Planned Parenthood. I'm afraid a stake has not been driven through this d-word yet...
151
I first saw that strikingly handsome George P. 16 years ago during W's campaign. I said that he would be President one day.
Hopefully not, as I'm a Democrat.
But don't count out those Bushes.
Hopefully not, as I'm a Democrat.
But don't count out those Bushes.
4
Sorry I replied to wrong comment, the one above, instead of here. As another Texan, I believe one can never rule out the ideology of the ignorant Therefore relying on this fact, I do expect to see our Land Commissioner running for higher office in the near future.
1
Ms Dowd, you're rough. Well-deserved as much of the criticism is, 41 was not nearly the phony implicated by you.
3
41 was instrumental in making sure that Iran kept our embassy staff captive a while longer so that they would not be freed while Jimmy Carter was still president. That was the deliberate pandering of American lives for the political gain of the GOP and Ronald Reagan.
9
now,,
if we could just escape from Clintonville
we`d have all the past behind us
if we could just escape from Clintonville
we`d have all the past behind us
43
Don't worry, MD is trying hard to help you with reach that goal.
Maureen's column is disingenuous. She did everything she could to disparage Gore and Kerrey and get Shrub into office and keep him there and now she is doing the same (again inexplicably) to trash Clinton and help Trump. And I don't recall her calling out her employer for its support of going into Iraq (remember Judith Miller?) when it was apparent to anyone with half a brain that the bush/Cheney regime was lying us into an unnecessary war.
2
Dad Bush was right: the president of the United States should be a figure of dignity. Guess he didn't pass that lesson on to Sonny, who was little more than a hung over frat boy trying to look serious for his house picture. It took po boy Barack Hussein Obama to bring some dignity back to the presidency.
410
Bush '43 respected the office, and showed it. I wasn't a fan of his, but, he did nothing to diminish the office of the President of the U.S.. Obama has done nothing to show respect for the office, but rather exhibits his narcissistic personality at all times. (Bill Clinton, too, brought disrespect to the office).
At what point was '43 " little more than a hung over frat boy trying to look serious for his house picture"? Are you sure that you are not thinking of our present coke head president?
At what point was '43 " little more than a hung over frat boy trying to look serious for his house picture"? Are you sure that you are not thinking of our present coke head president?
Trump is an awful human being and I would never vote for him. However, it is worthwhile giving credit where credit is due. Republican power brokersshould, if for nothing else, thank the Donald for giving them a glimmer into reality. For the DOnald to trample on the revisionist history that Rumsfeld, Condi, Dick Cheney, W. and the rest of the leading conservatives have worked so hard to manufacture does take some courage. Keep in mind that when the Donald gives a speech, he is talking to low inormation voters who get their "facts" from Fox News andan assortment of professional liars (or entertainers as they refer to themselves) on talk radio. So these low information voters are just now learning that that everything they were told about the invasion of Iraq was a fiction.
Granted this is sort of a drop in the bucket. These people are so collectively misinformed they don't really seem to recognize the country they live in (the one with 5% unemployment and so forth. Still it is a start and we might hope that these folks begin to question other things they have been told.
Make no mistake, the Donald, with his Birther silliness is not a serious person and doesn't have the slightest grasp of the detials on the important public policy issues that will affect millions of Americans.
Granted this is sort of a drop in the bucket. These people are so collectively misinformed they don't really seem to recognize the country they live in (the one with 5% unemployment and so forth. Still it is a start and we might hope that these folks begin to question other things they have been told.
Make no mistake, the Donald, with his Birther silliness is not a serious person and doesn't have the slightest grasp of the detials on the important public policy issues that will affect millions of Americans.
211
I agree that Trump is an awful human being; but he's a great deal less awful than the rest of the Republican field (with the possible exception of Kasich).
2
In an election season more bizarre (especially on the Republican side) than any I can remember in six decades, perhaps the only inarguable positive is the overwhelming rejection of the Bush brand and the Bush legacy. Like many others, I thought Jeb! was a shoo-in in light of the weak competition. As disheartening (and deserved) as the rise of Trump has been, it's nice to see bipartisan consensus that W was a complete disaster.
94
If people had actually listened to what Obama said while campaigning before his first presidential election, they would have known that he would be a disaster, but, people wanted to vote for a black guy and look what we got--a total disaster.
I am happy that Jeb dropped out. Now let's concentrate on the Clintons--Hillary is most undesirable--liar, unethical, immoral. I don't like Sanders, but, I would vote for him before I would vote for Hillary. The Clintons should just ride off into the sunset.
I am happy that Jeb dropped out. Now let's concentrate on the Clintons--Hillary is most undesirable--liar, unethical, immoral. I don't like Sanders, but, I would vote for him before I would vote for Hillary. The Clintons should just ride off into the sunset.
The Bushes are not responsible for Trump. His traction comes more from decades of politicians in both parties who think they can bleed the working class while mouthing vacuous liberal platitudes whose cost is paid by the same working class. In this election too, there are contenders whose falsity is so complete that everyone laughs except their clueless donors. Then we got the O Bro who can only talk with a teleprompter and then what comes out is rote text from a Harvard manual of How to Succeed in Modern American Academics.
Speaking of dynasties, lets talk about
Speaking of dynasties, lets talk about
4
Jeb suspending his campaign ( is suspend a fancy word for down and out? ) is payback for his part in stealing the 2000 election from Gore; paving the way for his brother to start failed wars. Tragic.
107
I understand that they 'suspend' their campaigns so that they are still allowed to spend money raised for it. There are probably a lot of costs winding down a campaign, and they don't want to cut off the cash flow too early.
2
Sure hope we never have to endure another Bush again.
Now if we could get Hillary to fade into the sunset...
Now if we could get Hillary to fade into the sunset...
16
I hope we have seen the end of an era. No more seersucker, penny loafers without socks, navy jackets with nautical with buttons, wrinkled khakis while throwing the pigskin on the lawn near a perfect seaside mansion, messy Ivy League hair, DUIs buried because of connections, cushy National Guard deployments, fake Texas twang, chainsaws in the brush, Cowboy hats on top loafers below, steaks and Tom Collins's on the croquet lawn celebrating No New Taxes, mission accomplished, fool me once, quit making fun of my family Mr. Trump!, smoke em out, Camp David for club sandwiches, swagger to the podium, weird bin Laden connections, weird Saudi Arabia connections, big oil connections, trillions in debt, many killed in war, one-percent relaxed and compounding, Kennebunkport, all of it now a chapter in American history...
Unless one of those W. daughters start to get interested in reclaiming the glory?
Unless one of those W. daughters start to get interested in reclaiming the glory?
87
You forgot Katrina, which arguably exposed for all time just how venal and hateful the Bushes are.
7
Jeb (without the exclamation point) is more the architect of his poor showing than is Trump's blunt aggression. Jeb's run was one gaffe after another. He spent more time walking backwards from ill-spoken comments than moving forward on anything that made sense. With cargo-holds full of cash,Jeb spent poorly and ineffectively.
Even absent the terrifying orange toupée, Jeb would have found himself exactly where he is today: flat on his face. But let's not be too harsh. None of the other tough-talking GOP candidates have dared to confront The Donald, either. They attack one another, leaving their lunch money for Trump.
www.endthemadnessnow.org
Even absent the terrifying orange toupée, Jeb would have found himself exactly where he is today: flat on his face. But let's not be too harsh. None of the other tough-talking GOP candidates have dared to confront The Donald, either. They attack one another, leaving their lunch money for Trump.
www.endthemadnessnow.org
25
An accurate, if scathing appraisal of the Bush legacy.
I would, however, disagree with the conclusion that they are responsible for the rise of Donald Trump. They are partly to blame; but the real culprits are the vast numbers of Americans who do not find the time to vote.
If Trump becomes president, it will be because sane people were too lazy to vote.
I would, however, disagree with the conclusion that they are responsible for the rise of Donald Trump. They are partly to blame; but the real culprits are the vast numbers of Americans who do not find the time to vote.
If Trump becomes president, it will be because sane people were too lazy to vote.
51
''The Single Most Clueless Political Operation'' in recent history has to be awarded to the Jebboushh crew.
Just as the Dems started early and have always excelled in gerrymandering, trading votes, and buying off unnecessary candidates to go away, the Democrats own the field when it comes to organizing a political campaign.
The D's don't even really ave to have a telegenic candidate. They could take any old plow horse and beat the somnolent GOP to the finish, and with 4/5 of the media rooting for them as always, it could happen this year.
Just as the Dems started early and have always excelled in gerrymandering, trading votes, and buying off unnecessary candidates to go away, the Democrats own the field when it comes to organizing a political campaign.
The D's don't even really ave to have a telegenic candidate. They could take any old plow horse and beat the somnolent GOP to the finish, and with 4/5 of the media rooting for them as always, it could happen this year.
3
The Bush family is the most destructive bunch in American history. Even Republicans in South Carolina agree! Even if the wouldn't dare say it out loud. Until now.
Good riddance to this generation of Bush sociopaths. But Americans don't have long memories. The next generation of this dreadful family is already preparing the next con act.
Pork rinds, anyone?
Good riddance to this generation of Bush sociopaths. But Americans don't have long memories. The next generation of this dreadful family is already preparing the next con act.
Pork rinds, anyone?
45
Love it. Just sorry I wont be able to enjoy your Bush bashing any more. Guess Hillary will have to do. Have fun.
1
That's one loathsome dynasty out of the picture. Can't wait until you write a similar piece about the other.
12
Thank you, good column, Maureen Dowd. But there actually is no escape from Bushworld, just the long, hard, slow, expensive slog along the path out ~ with Republicans throwing every obstacle and dirty trick possible in the way simply because a black man is the one leading us.
43
Thanks Maureen for displaying your anger and frustration at the current political system. I'm so frustrated at the current system, that I could kick over the kitchen table. The rest of the country feels the same way. This means the Jeb! is now gone, and who knows who will win the primaries.
4
Jebby asked the audience to "please clap" to save the Tinker Bush campaign. Since this ain't a Di$ney movie, well, Tink got all of 8%. Exit, stage right...
4
"The blustery billionaire painted Jeb as a “low energy” candidate with a wilting exclamation point who was desperately in need of an infusion of testosterone; a soft child of privilege who had to depend on Daddy’s friends for money and Mommy’s presence on the trail to bail him out, even as he feared using his surname on his campaign posters; an entitled wonk who pathetically tried to get more popular by taking off his rimless glasses."
Wow! You got all of that merely from Trump using the term "low energy"?
Project much?
It was the fact that Bush was a lousy campaigner, as evidenced by the fact that he could not counterpunch against even that modest quip by Trump, that doomed his campaign.
Wow! You got all of that merely from Trump using the term "low energy"?
Project much?
It was the fact that Bush was a lousy campaigner, as evidenced by the fact that he could not counterpunch against even that modest quip by Trump, that doomed his campaign.
3
As much as Maureen Dowd despises the Clintons, she always has seemed to loath the Bushes as much or more. Brilliant farewell to this nasty family and their psychodrama that unfortunately cost the nation dearly.
28
Wow Maureen. You said it all. Thank you.
17
Thank you, thank you, thank you Donald Trump.
You have done the nation a great favor taking the BUSH! family off the national stage at long last.
Now maybe little Jeb can make decisions about the lives of his own family and leave the rest of us to take care of our own. And George Jr. can go back to his easel and leave the rest of us to try to clean up the mess he made.
You have done the nation a great favor taking the BUSH! family off the national stage at long last.
Now maybe little Jeb can make decisions about the lives of his own family and leave the rest of us to take care of our own. And George Jr. can go back to his easel and leave the rest of us to try to clean up the mess he made.
30
I wonder if "W" had actually joined the fighting side of the US military during Vietnam, and gone and seen combat instead of hiding out in Alabama at an airbase - - he would have:
(a) been wiser on war;
(b) seen through the Cheney-Rummy-Wolfowitz cabal pushing for war; and
(c) never blundered us into dismembering Iraq and upsetting all the MIdeast.
We shall never know. SF
(a) been wiser on war;
(b) seen through the Cheney-Rummy-Wolfowitz cabal pushing for war; and
(c) never blundered us into dismembering Iraq and upsetting all the MIdeast.
We shall never know. SF
32
I doubt it.
3
So, no "Jenna Bush for Senate"? No?
2
Ms Dowd, now that Jeb! is gone, perhaps you should reset your radar screen:
"...same families should not be allowed to pass the White House back and forth" — isn't that going to be proven true for the Clintons also?
What is your reading of the Tarot cards or the overwhelming preponderance of most recommended comments in the NY Times?
"...same families should not be allowed to pass the White House back and forth" — isn't that going to be proven true for the Clintons also?
What is your reading of the Tarot cards or the overwhelming preponderance of most recommended comments in the NY Times?
2
Jeb looked like man at the mall stuck holding his wife's purse.
43
The Republican party has two components: big money and authoritarian followers. It is the followers that provide the votes. What they seek is a strong authority figure. Trump projects that image, with only Cruz giving him any competition.
Thanks for your columns Ms Dowd. The rest of NYTimes' opinion writers seem set on spin cycle.
Thanks for your columns Ms Dowd. The rest of NYTimes' opinion writers seem set on spin cycle.
7
Thanks Ms. Dowd for the reality check. After I saw Jeb! choking I actually thought that the only reasonable candidate on the republican side had left the race.
Thanks for reminding us all that the Bush family has done in order to win. America may not deserve Trump, but the Bush family deserve to lose.
Thanks for reminding us all that the Bush family has done in order to win. America may not deserve Trump, but the Bush family deserve to lose.
12
Word. Every last word of it. Good riddance to the Bushes and their acolytes. I count it a blessing that I've lived to see the last of them in politics. They deserve each other in perpetuity.
15
Best keep a sharp eye out though...
2
The Donald's one comment we can all agree upon: W shoulders the blame for the Middle East's current trajectory.
Lies and more lies.
We need a truthful president.
Period.
.
Lies and more lies.
We need a truthful president.
Period.
.
8
There are many things that can be said about trump which are not positive, but we must recognize that it is trump that removed the bush dynasty's clutch on america, and for that we owe him a YUGE thank you!!!
40
Took the words out of my mouth...the one saving grace during this otherwise most wretched loony-tunes election is that we will - once and for all - never again see another Bush extricate the silver spoon (and foot) from his mouth long enough to claim he's really a Duck Dynasty kind of guy in drag. Thank God for small favors.
26
The Bushes don't feel responsible for 9/11 or the horror of the Iraq war and its aftermath or plunging the country into the greatest financial crisis since the Great Depression. So I can't believe they feel any responsibility for the rise of Donald Trump but only anger at someone snatching away what they believe Jeb is entitled to - his turn in the White House.
54
Now poor Jeb is simmering in the rise of Rubio, whom he mentored but the young thing turned around and stabbed him. It's punishment enough for the Bush family to see the Republican establishment pouring millions and millions into Rubio's run, the same guy who is always MIA at work.
5
I'm no fan of the Bush presidents, but Donald Trump isn't fit to shine their shoes.
3
Excellent summary of what the Republican Party has done to us and to itself, in large part thanks to the so-called blue bloods who have no compunction about fear-mongering, racial hatred, nasty tricks, and lies leading to an unnecessary war that metastacized terrorism. We can't roll back the clock, but we can reject the ugly tactics that got us into this sad state of affairs.
13
Amazing! Maureen managed to roast the Bushes without attacking the Clintons or Obama. Will wonders never cease!
46
Well, for once, she's got it right.
10
Ms. Dowd is quite correct in her assessment that the fall of Bush is responsible for the rise of Donald. Some pundits are lamenting the defeat of Jeb! as the defeat of "moderation" in the Republican Party. Why lament? Through surrogates, Jeb Bush purged thousands of African-American voters registration lists and fought to avoid a statewide recount in the 2000 election. His policies left Florida in near financial ruin shortly after his departure from office. "Moderate" is the wrong word to describe a failed politician who rightly belongs in jail.
87
You are absolutely correct Maureen! So done with politicians sent to represent us only taking care of themselves and big money...it is time for change...We deserve better. Hard working families deserve better...The Bushes were all part of the Karl Rove manipulation and I am sure there are more lies, tries and humiliations up their sleeve to make sure one of their party boys probably rubio gets elected. I am thankful each party has had to some to terms with the fact we want change Trump and Bernie both have been brave enough and smart enough to say that.
11
Thank you Maureen for hammering in the last nail round the coffin. Now on to the election. Cheaters, liars and socialists. Hope you saw Danny Glover's introduction at the Sanders Rally tonight in S.Carolina. It might give you some hope.
6
I wasn't stunned by Trump's win in South Carolina or New Hampshire. I've been writing for months and months that this is what would happen and that the establishment is out, on both ends of the spectrum. Indeed, that is what's been happening, even though many here in the Times and the rest of the corporate media continue to insist that Rubio will prevail and that Hillary is inevitable. But, if one cares to look at the numbers, they don't support the narrative we are being sold. Those of us who dare contest it are called cranks. Oh, well...
Meanwhile, for the first time, I watched Trump's victory speech and, what can I say... It was unbelievable and amazing. I mean, the whole 16 minutes were peppered with amazing and unbelievable, in between bursts of vengeful promises and self-congratulations. If the Bushes are arrogant and Jeb! particularly deficient in core areas, then there are no words that describe Trump.
In my estimation, once the primaries are over, we will either have a two-way race to the presidency or, sometime in March, Mike Bloomberg will throw a grenade and join the fray, proving Bernie Sanders' point, every day of the presidential race. Either way, it won't be Trump or Bloomberg we see at the inaugural next year.
---
Trump, Clinton, and Sanders: http://www.rimaregas.com/2016/02/its-down-to-trump-clinton-and-sanders-p...
Meanwhile, for the first time, I watched Trump's victory speech and, what can I say... It was unbelievable and amazing. I mean, the whole 16 minutes were peppered with amazing and unbelievable, in between bursts of vengeful promises and self-congratulations. If the Bushes are arrogant and Jeb! particularly deficient in core areas, then there are no words that describe Trump.
In my estimation, once the primaries are over, we will either have a two-way race to the presidency or, sometime in March, Mike Bloomberg will throw a grenade and join the fray, proving Bernie Sanders' point, every day of the presidential race. Either way, it won't be Trump or Bloomberg we see at the inaugural next year.
---
Trump, Clinton, and Sanders: http://www.rimaregas.com/2016/02/its-down-to-trump-clinton-and-sanders-p...
11
Rima-- I don't think we're going to see Bernie at the inaugural next year either. Democratic voters want someone who can take on Donald Trump and win in November and so far it looks like that someone is going to be Hillary Clinton. My Magic 8 Ball still answers 'Future uncertain' when I ask it about Mike Bloomberg's presidential aspirations.
"Wildly improbable" Bern
As 538 can discern
Head to head does better
Than Hill', his pacesetter,
As pundits do not seem to learn.
As 538 can discern
Head to head does better
Than Hill', his pacesetter,
As pundits do not seem to learn.
28
You know the arrogance of the Bushes is rather breathtaking. The idea that we didn't run them out of town after the Iraq disaster and the devastation of our economy in 2008 is just remarkable.
And then the "shock and awe" strategy (such a clever name) of just bombing all potential Republican presidential candidates with grotesque gobs of campaign money from their wealthy friends is sickening.
But, the best thing ever is that somehow Donald Trump didn't get the Republican talking-points-memo that W kept us safe. Trump had the gall to point out that the only way that would be true would be if W's term began on 9/12/01. The beauty of the Republicans falling over themselves to declare that that was it, now Trump had gone too far. The voters wouldn't put up with this in South Carolina (the truth?)!
On 9/11 I was devastated by what happened. I didn't vote for Bush, but I prayed he would rise to the occasion and I felt we were all in this together and needed to band together, as Americans.
What a terrible thing Bush did. George Bush can blame it on Cheney, but W was President.
I will never forgive him. I will never forget. Barbara was right that we've had enough Bushes.
And then the "shock and awe" strategy (such a clever name) of just bombing all potential Republican presidential candidates with grotesque gobs of campaign money from their wealthy friends is sickening.
But, the best thing ever is that somehow Donald Trump didn't get the Republican talking-points-memo that W kept us safe. Trump had the gall to point out that the only way that would be true would be if W's term began on 9/12/01. The beauty of the Republicans falling over themselves to declare that that was it, now Trump had gone too far. The voters wouldn't put up with this in South Carolina (the truth?)!
On 9/11 I was devastated by what happened. I didn't vote for Bush, but I prayed he would rise to the occasion and I felt we were all in this together and needed to band together, as Americans.
What a terrible thing Bush did. George Bush can blame it on Cheney, but W was President.
I will never forgive him. I will never forget. Barbara was right that we've had enough Bushes.
680
Barbara was wrong...we've had one too many Bushes. Name one President who sowed as much devastation & tragedy as "George the Lesser" ? And to this day he remains blithely ignorant. He peaked as president of his fraternity.
29
Quote
And indeed, the 90-year-old exemplar of Greenwich granite wrote the epitaph of Jeb’s campaign before it even began, noting correctly that, “We’ve had enough Bushes,” and that the same families should not be allowed to pass the White House back and forth.
Unquote
You're a very skilled pathological liar, Ms Dowd. Barbara Bush did say “We’ve had enough Bushes” but she did not say, nor imply, "the same families should not be allowed to pass the White House back and forth."
I knew you wouldn't pass up the chance to attack Hillary even in a piece on Jeb Bush but I didn't think you would lie so blatantly to do it.
And indeed, the 90-year-old exemplar of Greenwich granite wrote the epitaph of Jeb’s campaign before it even began, noting correctly that, “We’ve had enough Bushes,” and that the same families should not be allowed to pass the White House back and forth.
Unquote
You're a very skilled pathological liar, Ms Dowd. Barbara Bush did say “We’ve had enough Bushes” but she did not say, nor imply, "the same families should not be allowed to pass the White House back and forth."
I knew you wouldn't pass up the chance to attack Hillary even in a piece on Jeb Bush but I didn't think you would lie so blatantly to do it.
89
Actually Barbara Bush was quoting saying that on the Today show. Here's the quote:http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/04/25/barbara-bush-on-son-jeb-in...
2
Thanks RSS for pointing out the fresh lie from an esteemed and syndicated NYT columnist. She seems to be deep in Trump's pocket. After reading your clarifying comment, I'll carefully read every word of Dowd's future columns for more horrible fibs. As another comment mentioned, where was Dowd in 2000? It took her 16 years to see the truth behind the Bush show.
1
Okay, Maureen; now that you've gotten this off your chest (a day late and a dollar short), can we assume that you will finally start writing about The Donald- or will you wait even longer than Jeb! did to tackle this human exclamation point? For starters, you don't even have to come up with criticisms beyond the ones you've already used on John Ellis. You're opposed to bluebloods trying to look red-blooded? What is The Donald if not a patrician phony trying to convince Americans that that he's a self-made man (as opposed to the heir to a successful business started by the father he no longer appears even to acknowledge)? And if the underlying message of Jeb! and his kin has always been "trust us," where are the specifics behind The Donald's proposals to make America great again? Obviously, there's a good deal more that one can say with respect to Mr. Trump's complete lack of qualifications to be elected to the highest office in the land. Should we really entrust the Oval Office to a man whose major accomplishments are the building of casinos and the launching of invectives? It's clearly the case that Jeb!s departure from the race most likely means that 50% of Maureen's projected material for 2016 has followed him out the door. Should we now anticipate that Hillary will inherit that share of Ms. Dowd's spleen in addition to that which had already been reserved for her, or will we finally see the wealth spread around to some of those other candidates, as well?
430
Trump has blown the Republican primary process way off course and left it a wreck. The Republican establishment sees with absolute horror that their party might well run a candidate who is not under their control and who pushes back hard and successfully if leaned on. To steal a political party from its owners and funders is quite an accomplishment. This major accomplishment is his chief qualification for being President.
Not only is he not under the control of the Establishment, they do not know what sorts of policies and deals he is liable to come up with; it is fairly obvious that he does not know what he will come up with either. He has no problem throwing orthodoxy out the window and saying the forbidden. He says out loud that dubya was warned about Osama and ignored the warnings. He says that we cannot let people die in the streets, and that Planned Parenthood does much good stuff that he supports, just not abortions. Many Republicans believe these heresies but are reluctant to say them. Trump says them, but buried among things that are untrue, absurd, implausible, or self-contradictory.
As a performance artist, he is incredible. But no one, including the Donald, knows what he will do or how he will operate, and that is dangerous.
Not only is he not under the control of the Establishment, they do not know what sorts of policies and deals he is liable to come up with; it is fairly obvious that he does not know what he will come up with either. He has no problem throwing orthodoxy out the window and saying the forbidden. He says out loud that dubya was warned about Osama and ignored the warnings. He says that we cannot let people die in the streets, and that Planned Parenthood does much good stuff that he supports, just not abortions. Many Republicans believe these heresies but are reluctant to say them. Trump says them, but buried among things that are untrue, absurd, implausible, or self-contradictory.
As a performance artist, he is incredible. But no one, including the Donald, knows what he will do or how he will operate, and that is dangerous.
18
Stu--in the Constitution there are only two qualifications someone has to meet in order to be considered for the presidency. A potential presidential candidate only has to be an American citizen and be at least 35 years old. That's it!! Donald Trump meets those qualifications.
Stu, I am putting my money on Maureen going after Hillary the most. She has devoted many tiresome columns to Clinton bashing over the years. I am pretty sure she is sharpening the knife as we speak I have always assumed that Maureen didn't get invited to some dinner party the Clintons were giving and she's been holding a grudge for the last 15 years.
6
Dont forget the campaign poster that showed Jeb fading into the background. Now that summed him up!!!!!!!!
15
So the rich have problems too. I have to feel kind of sorry for Jebby, whose mother is so destructive that she undercut him before he announced. W rebelled against his parents which gave him a winning personality, though as a President he was a loser.
1
Our long national Bushwhacking nightmare is over....except for the near-fatal after-effects we've been feeling and will be feeling for many more decades to come.
No single family has done such a fine multi-generational job of wrecking the country.
From Prescott Bush's glory days at the Union Banking Corp financing WWII-era German industrial magnates to George Sr's missing 1960's resume as a CIA covert superstar to the worst generation of Bushes - Neil, George Jr. and Jeb - they all left a dark American legacy.
Prescott Bush and his Wall St friends were major financiers for Richard Nixon's rise from anonymity to political power.
Richard Nixon repaid the debt by mysteriously promoted George Sr. to positions of seniority over more qualified candidates.
Nixon never wanted "the whole Bay of Pigs thing" to get to much oxygen or sunshine, especially the fact that the code name for the Bay of Pigs was Operation Zapata...an unusual name.....the same name as Zapata Oil...a company found by George Bush Sr. in 1953...just a funny coincidence, I guess.
George Sr was an angel of CIA darkness in America's 1960's
And the rotten apples didn't fall far from the tree:
Neil - the Silverado Savings & Loan Bailout Welfare Queen
George Jr - a nation destroyer at home and abroad
Jeb - a proven record of Presidential Election vote rigging
And as painful parting gifts, the Bush family left us decades of judicial hijacking by Justices Thomas, Alito and Roberts.
What a nightmare of a family.
No single family has done such a fine multi-generational job of wrecking the country.
From Prescott Bush's glory days at the Union Banking Corp financing WWII-era German industrial magnates to George Sr's missing 1960's resume as a CIA covert superstar to the worst generation of Bushes - Neil, George Jr. and Jeb - they all left a dark American legacy.
Prescott Bush and his Wall St friends were major financiers for Richard Nixon's rise from anonymity to political power.
Richard Nixon repaid the debt by mysteriously promoted George Sr. to positions of seniority over more qualified candidates.
Nixon never wanted "the whole Bay of Pigs thing" to get to much oxygen or sunshine, especially the fact that the code name for the Bay of Pigs was Operation Zapata...an unusual name.....the same name as Zapata Oil...a company found by George Bush Sr. in 1953...just a funny coincidence, I guess.
George Sr was an angel of CIA darkness in America's 1960's
And the rotten apples didn't fall far from the tree:
Neil - the Silverado Savings & Loan Bailout Welfare Queen
George Jr - a nation destroyer at home and abroad
Jeb - a proven record of Presidential Election vote rigging
And as painful parting gifts, the Bush family left us decades of judicial hijacking by Justices Thomas, Alito and Roberts.
What a nightmare of a family.
1422
And on this, "Socrates", we agree. Step out of the Bernie Bubble and make America GREATER Again, with one of the smartest, and perhaps the best qualified presidential candidate in almost a century - Hillary Clinton. And we will thereby save the Supreme Court and toss Citizens United into the dustbin of sordid Republican history. It's 90% of what you want. If you insist on 100%, you will get Donald Trump. Or Rafael "Ted" Cruz. Or the man child Rubio.
No more McGoverns, no matter how wonderful their humanity may be.
Thank you.
No more McGoverns, no matter how wonderful their humanity may be.
Thank you.
32
It turns out that Marvin is the smart Bush brother.
2
They think they are good businessmen but they need the American military to make the foreign markets vulnerable and ripe for business takeovers.
We shouldn't use American soldiers -- the leaders out of Anapolis and Colorado Springs and West Point, and the volunteer enlisted men and women -- to help American corporate interests, when they are so quick to relocate to foreign countries when it is more cost effective.
The American economy and American lives are not so easily expendable, so the corporate "leaders" can collect tens of millions annually as earnings. That's not doing business, that's stealing really.
We shouldn't use American soldiers -- the leaders out of Anapolis and Colorado Springs and West Point, and the volunteer enlisted men and women -- to help American corporate interests, when they are so quick to relocate to foreign countries when it is more cost effective.
The American economy and American lives are not so easily expendable, so the corporate "leaders" can collect tens of millions annually as earnings. That's not doing business, that's stealing really.
7
Seeing W's face in the paper the other day reminded me of how wonderful it has been not to see him for the last 8 years, minus a few blips having mostly to do with him as an "artist." That even South Carolina didn't fall for W's recommendation of Jeb is reassuring. I think we're safe from Bushes for a little while -- until the next generation ripens, anyway.
493
I'm pretty sure those two can't stand each other. I bet Jeb! thinks he's the smarter one and W. thinks his little brother is soft.
2
Festers more like...
6
No, nothing matches the elation I felt when his brother, then ex-President, George W. took off in that helicopter after Obama was sworn in. I felt like I had been involved in a mine cave in, and suddenly a light from above broke through and I was saved.
14
Mo, we'll get a chance to see how ' horrified ' GOPers are if they get to their convention and refuse to give El Donaldo the nomination; if they just hold their noses and decide they can make him a useful idiot, they're not all that horrified.
What actually horrified GOPers was a continuation of the national dialogue on income/wealth inequality that Romney's 2012 campaign served as a focal point for. GOPers didn't want a repeat of that conversation in 2016, and DT's " self-financing " accomplished that task, from the moment he descended his golden escalator from on high, a ' winner ' deigning to dabble in politics and show us hoi polloi how it's done.
Anyway, the Jeb! super PAC donors will be getting their unspent funds, to deploy elsewhere.
What actually horrified GOPers was a continuation of the national dialogue on income/wealth inequality that Romney's 2012 campaign served as a focal point for. GOPers didn't want a repeat of that conversation in 2016, and DT's " self-financing " accomplished that task, from the moment he descended his golden escalator from on high, a ' winner ' deigning to dabble in politics and show us hoi polloi how it's done.
Anyway, the Jeb! super PAC donors will be getting their unspent funds, to deploy elsewhere.
61
Don't knock Trump.
Behind him stand the people who have paid for the Bush's sins in terms of dead dreams, dead financial plans, failed famlies and relationships that follow in the wake. Not everyone walked away from the Bush/Cheney mistakes. The country will be paying for those mistakes for decades to come, never mind all the foreign families who lost their homelands and their lives. How could Trump be worse???
It's time for the rebuiding years, and that means everyone. Time to set aside the identity politics, and get practical. Time to start being honest about our failures, and how we can change course. (Pres. Obama talked utnil he got elected, then fell in line.) Time to put America first. Time to use our collective energies, as we have so many times in the past, to address our national needs and plan our way to a smarter tomorrow. We're not socialists, we're not into castes, we are Americans. Equal opportunity, smart investment, and growth. Use the tax code to punish those who would destroy our way of life by grabbing too much and geting too fat.
Behind him stand the people who have paid for the Bush's sins in terms of dead dreams, dead financial plans, failed famlies and relationships that follow in the wake. Not everyone walked away from the Bush/Cheney mistakes. The country will be paying for those mistakes for decades to come, never mind all the foreign families who lost their homelands and their lives. How could Trump be worse???
It's time for the rebuiding years, and that means everyone. Time to set aside the identity politics, and get practical. Time to start being honest about our failures, and how we can change course. (Pres. Obama talked utnil he got elected, then fell in line.) Time to put America first. Time to use our collective energies, as we have so many times in the past, to address our national needs and plan our way to a smarter tomorrow. We're not socialists, we're not into castes, we are Americans. Equal opportunity, smart investment, and growth. Use the tax code to punish those who would destroy our way of life by grabbing too much and geting too fat.
1
I must say I’m less supportive of Maureen when she goes after Jeb! than when she goes after Democratic luminaries, such as the president and Hillary. But the notion that the Bush family was responsible for the rise of Donald Trump is patently absurd.
If Democrats, with two years of undivided government, hadn’t abused that rare gift so outrageously, seeking to transform us without a mandate to do so and even ramming ObamaCare on a pedestal of HHS lies told the American people and Congress without which they would have failed for lack of DEMOCRATIC votes, as they failed with cap-and-trade, then the Tea Party likely would have died stillborn and we wouldn’t have had so many years of frozen politics. Without the basis for the protest that has seen Donald Trump and Ted Cruz rise to the top, the coming contest likely would have been between Hillary and Jeb Bush, and that would have been a good contest to have.
As it is, it may well be Hillary against Trump; and if you folks think Trump is less capable of skewering a candidate like Hillary, who is as wooden on the hustings as Jeb, then the first debate will be a real eye-opener; and the final result less than welcome.
We lost a lot with the loss of Jeb Bush.
If Democrats, with two years of undivided government, hadn’t abused that rare gift so outrageously, seeking to transform us without a mandate to do so and even ramming ObamaCare on a pedestal of HHS lies told the American people and Congress without which they would have failed for lack of DEMOCRATIC votes, as they failed with cap-and-trade, then the Tea Party likely would have died stillborn and we wouldn’t have had so many years of frozen politics. Without the basis for the protest that has seen Donald Trump and Ted Cruz rise to the top, the coming contest likely would have been between Hillary and Jeb Bush, and that would have been a good contest to have.
As it is, it may well be Hillary against Trump; and if you folks think Trump is less capable of skewering a candidate like Hillary, who is as wooden on the hustings as Jeb, then the first debate will be a real eye-opener; and the final result less than welcome.
We lost a lot with the loss of Jeb Bush.
13
Richard, the only thing we lost with Jeb Bush was America's functioning democracy in 2000.
You can read all about it in excruciating voter-suppression detail in the formal government report issued by the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights in June 2001.
http://www.usccr.gov/pubs/vote2000/report/exesum.htm
"Statewide, based upon county-level statistical estimates, Florida's black voters were nearly 10 times more likely than nonblack voters to have their ballots rejected.
Estimates indicate that approximately 14.4% of Florida’s black voters cast ballots that were rejected --- compared with just 1.6% of nonblack Florida voters who did not have their presidential votes counted.
Approximately 11% of Florida voters were African American; however, African Americans cast about 54% of the 180,000 spoiled ballots in Florida during the November 2000 election based on estimates derived from county-level data.
Florida’s overzealous efforts to purge voters from the rolls, conducted under the guise of an anti-fraud campaign, resulted in the inexcusable and patently unjust removal of disproportionate numbers of African American voters from Florida’s voter registration rolls for the November 2000 election."
---------
The only thing you gain with a Jeb Bush is a complete national nightmare.
You can read all about it in excruciating voter-suppression detail in the formal government report issued by the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights in June 2001.
http://www.usccr.gov/pubs/vote2000/report/exesum.htm
"Statewide, based upon county-level statistical estimates, Florida's black voters were nearly 10 times more likely than nonblack voters to have their ballots rejected.
Estimates indicate that approximately 14.4% of Florida’s black voters cast ballots that were rejected --- compared with just 1.6% of nonblack Florida voters who did not have their presidential votes counted.
Approximately 11% of Florida voters were African American; however, African Americans cast about 54% of the 180,000 spoiled ballots in Florida during the November 2000 election based on estimates derived from county-level data.
Florida’s overzealous efforts to purge voters from the rolls, conducted under the guise of an anti-fraud campaign, resulted in the inexcusable and patently unjust removal of disproportionate numbers of African American voters from Florida’s voter registration rolls for the November 2000 election."
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The only thing you gain with a Jeb Bush is a complete national nightmare.
769
The problem afflicting America most acutely isn't a desire on the left for greater equality or on the right for a safe place for individualism; but extremism. Trump and Cruz are using extremism as a wedge for no other reason than a nomination and a shot at bragging rights as president -- it really doesn't matter how high the cost turns out to be to our ability to cohere as a people. Bernie uses extremism to pursue a lifelong socialist dream that is very far outside the mainstream -- and what's even sadder than Trump or Cruz, who know very well what choices they're making, he seeks a pyrrhic presidency without the slightest idea of how he would secure that lifelong dream as president.
Extremism. And a lot of wasted effort, because the inertia of our system, in an unwillingness to sacrifice enough to change fundamentally, the inertia present in our law and the survival of honest conviction that resists it, will make the kind of transformation that Bernie OR Cruz preaches simply will not happen. And Trump will make cheese.
With the loss of Jeb Bush, there really are only two candidates left who might eschew extremism, Hillary and Kasich. Kasich won't be in the fight much longer, but Hillary still has a shot. Unless Rubio lays off the sacramental wine and starts talking the kind of moderation in social views of which he's probably capable, it'll probably be Hillary ... unless Trump steamrolls her.
We lost a lot with the loss of Jeb Bush.
Extremism. And a lot of wasted effort, because the inertia of our system, in an unwillingness to sacrifice enough to change fundamentally, the inertia present in our law and the survival of honest conviction that resists it, will make the kind of transformation that Bernie OR Cruz preaches simply will not happen. And Trump will make cheese.
With the loss of Jeb Bush, there really are only two candidates left who might eschew extremism, Hillary and Kasich. Kasich won't be in the fight much longer, but Hillary still has a shot. Unless Rubio lays off the sacramental wine and starts talking the kind of moderation in social views of which he's probably capable, it'll probably be Hillary ... unless Trump steamrolls her.
We lost a lot with the loss of Jeb Bush.
8
@Richard: So it was Obama and the Democrats who were responsible for The Donald. It follows, then, that everything that happened to this country between the years 2001 and 2008 was the fault of Bill and Hillary. And that Bush I should be given the credit for everything that was accomplished between 1992 and 2000. Seriously, do Republicans ever take responsibility for anything? Even one of their own?
558
There were plenty of reasons not to like Jeb that went beyond the dynastic pretensions and his miserable brother’s Reign of Error. Jeb helped put W. behind the tiller of our country’s ship of state, and he ran it into the rocks. We’ll never stop paying for that fiasco, neither in money nor in ruined lives.
I was alarmed when the Jeb candidacy was announced. The universe enjoys the perverse, and the unthinkable idea of Jeb becoming president was the sort of thing that could well happen, just because it was almost too terrible to contemplate. Who knew that Jeb would not only fail to be the worst candidate, but wouldn’t even crack the top three?
His schlubby hunched posture, the gangly dangling arms and the utter lack of rhetorical eloquence sealed the deal. Trump had flair and hair. Jeb had a blank stare.
So Jeb tried to be Jeb! but wound up as Jeb:-(. My advice to him would be to watch that screen door on the way out.
But the Bush dynasty had little to do with the rise of Donald Trump. That honor goes to Barack Obama. When an educated, poised and well-spoken black man was elected president, Republicans went into anaphylactic shock. They were eager to embrace any conspiracy theory that could undermine the president. Trump obliged by being midwife at the birth of the birther movement. So in a way, Trump gave birth to himself.
Talk about a self-made man.
I was alarmed when the Jeb candidacy was announced. The universe enjoys the perverse, and the unthinkable idea of Jeb becoming president was the sort of thing that could well happen, just because it was almost too terrible to contemplate. Who knew that Jeb would not only fail to be the worst candidate, but wouldn’t even crack the top three?
His schlubby hunched posture, the gangly dangling arms and the utter lack of rhetorical eloquence sealed the deal. Trump had flair and hair. Jeb had a blank stare.
So Jeb tried to be Jeb! but wound up as Jeb:-(. My advice to him would be to watch that screen door on the way out.
But the Bush dynasty had little to do with the rise of Donald Trump. That honor goes to Barack Obama. When an educated, poised and well-spoken black man was elected president, Republicans went into anaphylactic shock. They were eager to embrace any conspiracy theory that could undermine the president. Trump obliged by being midwife at the birth of the birther movement. So in a way, Trump gave birth to himself.
Talk about a self-made man.
1081
Indeed Trump is a self-made man. That says nothing about the kind of man he has made himself. But God forbid that he should be allowed to become a self-made President. I'm not so opposed to his winning the Republican nomination though. I think the Republicans, as you point out so well, deserve that result. But we need to Hillary him in the general election.
18
Based upon your outstanding analysis of our state of affairs, one could argue that Barack Obama gave birth to Donald Trump.
It is yet another thing for which we can say: "Thanks a lot, Obama."
It is yet another thing for which we can say: "Thanks a lot, Obama."
1
"We’ll never stop paying..." is the feeling shared by too many of us as we're told the economy is better, we've come back from the brink, etc. Many of us just aren't feeling the love. As W. was running the ship into the rocks, his all star cast of incompetents and nincompoops were eating through it's hull like a hoard of bark beetles hosting a gala for their termite friends. In a comment on a Bruni column yesterday, Jesse Lima quoted a Trump supporter funneling the anger by saying "I'm voting with my middle finger". I think it's akin to road rage, when you lose perspective and through that tunnel vision, can't see anything but red. Education, health care, infrastructure and everything else has been compromised, standards lowered, costs increased and end-products watered down. When we ask for explanations we get excuses. It's no surprise that a watered down, ineffectual candidate had to terminate his quest, with prejudice.
Trump jumped on the birther train early but by no means was the engineer. Now he's dangling it in front of Ted Cruz the way one holds a toy mouse up for a playful kitten, hoping the littler of voters will scratch the bejeezus out of him.
The question is whether enough folks are disenfranchised enough to pull the lever with that middle finger without first thinking through the consequences. Even in the best of times we don't do that often. The result may be enough of us feeling the squeeze to elect Capt. Crunch. Prepare to be keelhauled.
Trump jumped on the birther train early but by no means was the engineer. Now he's dangling it in front of Ted Cruz the way one holds a toy mouse up for a playful kitten, hoping the littler of voters will scratch the bejeezus out of him.
The question is whether enough folks are disenfranchised enough to pull the lever with that middle finger without first thinking through the consequences. Even in the best of times we don't do that often. The result may be enough of us feeling the squeeze to elect Capt. Crunch. Prepare to be keelhauled.
10
The billionaires poured their money into the Jeb! super PACs just as they did for his brother, W. But the GOP voters were having none of it. Quoting W,
"Fool me once, shame on you..............
Fool me twice......Won't get fooled again!!!"
One dynasty down, one to go.
"Fool me once, shame on you..............
Fool me twice......Won't get fooled again!!!"
One dynasty down, one to go.
263
rm - Jeb! was the only one running whose father and brother were POTUS with a grandfather who was U.S. Senator; no one else running comes from a dynasty.
167
Mr Law, do not be oblivious to the obvious preparation in the works of the next generation, Chelsea.
39
@RM—Surely you don't mean the Clinton's when you say "one down, one to go." The Clinton's are not the Bush's. The Clinton's have no intention of being beaten. Hilary Clinton is certainly not wimpy or low energy. So keep dreaming my friend, because Bernie Sander's is no Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton is no Jeb Bush.
13
I forgot a third and the most important: the candidate himself.
As Rachel Maddow put it, his campaign was guilty of political malpractice. It was guilty of hubris, too, not to mention a overweening prep school sense of entitlement.
' Hasty la vista, baby. '