With just a couple weeks left to the Bush regime, largely seen as the worst in American history, the supposedly liberal New York Times ran this story today: “Expansion of Clinics Shapes Bush Legacy.” The author, Kevin Sack, makes it seem as though Bush’s legacy can be summed up by his doubling of federal funding for health centers that serve medically underserved areas.
Sack writes:
In Mr. Bush’s first year in office, he proposed to open or expand 1,200 clinics over five years (mission accomplished) and to double the number of patients served (the increase has ended up closer to 60 percent). With the health centers now serving more than 16 million patients at 7,354 sites, the expansion has been the largest since the program’s origins in President Lyndon B. Johnson’s war on poverty, federal officials said.
Besides being appalled by Sack’s use of “mission accomplished,” readers should notice that the article talks very little about Bush, despite its glowing title. There’s not much to say. The funding is largely made possible by Democrats in Congress, who also see the need to expand such funding well beyond what Bush has approved. The article spends most of its time discussing the effectiveness of the centers which benefit from the funding.
Most importantly, the Times fails to mention the destructive policies and actions of the Bush administration which appropriate define his legacy: two unprovoked invasions and occupations, torture, the wholesale slaughter of the Constitution, and more appropriate to this article, the assaults on health care including Medicare Part D, the deterioration of veteran care and benefits, the ballooning cost of prescription drugs, and the specific increase of uninsured Americans since Bush took office, now nearing 50 million. The expansion of funding to these clinics could be called a self-fulfilling policy – create more underserved people, fund more clinics for the underserved. If you believe the Times, everyone wins.
The Bush administration has helped open a gaping wound in the chest of America’s health. It should not be lauded for applying a band-aid.
I’ve already discussed my opinion on this topic with Kevin, but I thought I would post here to get other opinions – or rants.
I’m not entirely sure that Bush’s presidency will go down as (one of) the worst in history. Sure, the guys an idiot and can be blamed for dozens of acts of crime on this country and the world but the guy can dodge a shoe (kidding). There are plenty of names on the list of 43 white men that have committed various offenses and crimes of serious nature and their names hardly cause a gasp to the average American. Yes, even George Washington was known to not be such a nice guy . Now, I would argue that the people who read this blog are not (in my view) the average American.
Three generations from now, when US history is eliminated from the public school curriculum and most of the museums are closed because of lack of funding and visitation, I’m not so sure people will understand the severity of his actions over the past eight years.
The President of the United States( yes, including Barack Obama)has to be a gangster in order to function in the position. When I think of George W. Bush, I think of the president who did everything he could during his eight years in office to roll back Human Rights gains that blacks fought for over many decades.
Kevin pointed out Bush’s legacy of undermining the Constitution, being a war criminal & an enemy of the poor. What I believe has gone overlooked is how he manipulated race in order to further the conservative agenda. Bush appointed two blacks, Colin Powell & Condoleezza Rice, to the position of Secretary of State and a Latino, Alberto Gonzales, as Attorney General. Of course,these individuals were complete sellouts who did not represent the interests of people of color.
Anyone who called Bush a racist promptly had the names of Powell, Rice or Gonzalez thrown in their faces. Powell received his Negro wake up call when he started to question his masters, but overall Bush’s subterfuge worked seamlessly throughout his two terms as president. Bush has provided a blueprint of tokenism for future presidents to follow. If he isn’t the worst president in the history of this country, I don’t know who is.