This week’s chart tests Obama’s claim by looking at the number of major
regulations imposed by each administration. Major regulations, as
defined by the government, are regulations that cost up to $100 million
or more each year.
In his first three years of presidency, President George W. Bush
imposed 28 major regulations at a cost of $8.1 billion. Obama imposed
106 major regulations at a cost of $46 billion.
Real life has trumped blog life again...well, at least since school started three weeks ago. My site stats are in the tank, negative numbers, almost, but between school and taking care of my mom, by the time I get to my computer I'm brain dead. I pretty much quit checking my sitemeter ages ago when I realized that I'm not making any money blogging and that I'll probably die of old age before I join the "million hits" club. It used to bug me but it doesn't anymore.
Anyway, there have been some stories that I've been following. This Gibson guitar thing is just bizarre. Powerline has a great encapsulation of the whole thing if you're behind the curve like I've been. And the Michelle Obama twist makes even more crazy. Gotta love it. Doesn't the DoJ have anything else to do besides harass one of the few companies that still produces an American product? Major fail.
Elsewhere, this post by Doug Powers is enough to make one's skin crawl. "Federal family"? Really? Doug:
If my “family” was $14 trillion in debt I’d put myself up for adoption. Oh, and the “federal family” member who would have normally caught the spelling error in “preperations” was out tending to family, so we can forgive that oversight.
This has helped soften the image of the federal government to such a degree that the IRS is now considering referring to themselves as America’s “little audit buddies.”
Seriously. Skin creepy crawlies.
And then we have Darryl Hannah getting arrested at the White House for a another Hannah-esque liberal unicorns and rainbows sit-in:
"Sometimes it's necessary to sacrifice your freedom for a greater freedom," Hannah said in Lafayette Park before her arrest. "And we want to be free from the horrible death and destruction that fossil fuels cause, and have a clean energy future."
The video at the link is just bizarre; Hannah is arrested and frisked to a round of thunderous applause and chants of "Darryl, Darryl, Darryl!" She beams and basks in the moment like a red carpet event. Irrelevant celebrities I can do without.
All I have to say about this one is that streaks were made to be broken.
And finally, the tale of Obama's Uncle Omar gets weirder and weirder. The Boston Herald reports today that Uncle Omar had a valid Social Security number even though he's an illegal alien ordered to be deported. How'd that happen? Mark Krikorian explains how it could have happened.
Oh and one last thing: I watched the George Bush interview about 9/11 on Nat Geo last night. Powerful stuff. Powerful. Catch it if you get a chance; it was well done.
That, and yesterday's stock market meltdown. And today's downgrade of the United States credit rating
Pundette did a great job this morning covering the birthday bash so please be sure to read her post. Favorite quote? This one:
"That's when everyone's shoes came off, and things kicked into high gear with barefoot jammin.' Among other dances, guests did the Electric Slide, which impressed Chris Rock so much he tweeted about it..."
The Electric Slide -- isn't that the dance Wall Street did yesterday?
Oh, painful!
You know, all I want to add to the debate is to give Obama's handlers a little (a little) credit for realizing how bad the godforsaken run-over-dog-crazy optics a photo of Obama doing the Electric Slide barefoot in the Rose Garden while the stock market crashes and the credit rating goes down would be.
Are you kidding me?!
The press is bad enough. The visuals would be devastating.
Of course, the Obama media minions are all ablast calling the Fox Nation headline "race baiting!" Gasp! They used the word Hip Hop! Racists! They used a photo of Obama with his black guests! Racists! Horrors!
Here is your dumb racist Fox Nation headline screengrab accusing Obama of some kind of secret anti-employment Black Panther birthday celebration, because “hip-hop” is the acceptable derogatory term for “black people things” if you are an old white racist who reads Fox Nation.
U.S. job growth accelerated more than expected in July, but the top story at Fox News' Fox Nation blog Friday seemed to imply that the economy would have created even more jobs if President Barack Obama didn't have so many black friends.
Nobody begrudges Obama a birthday party. Grow up, people. All anybody can hope to expect is that he exercise a little taste. Apparently that's too much to expect.
Give me a ****** break! I'm so over it. Why do these people, the media, always want to make this about race? I don't care if Obama turns 50. I don't even care if he throws a party at The White House; he wouldn't be the only one.
Why does he have to be so ostentatious about it? Why, on a day when the stock market plummets and in a time when unemployment hovers at 9.1% (or 9.2%) and people are dependent on welfare, food stamps, two years of unemployment checks, when Americans are in three wars; when our credit rating is downgraded for the first time in history and everyday Americans are scared to death their maxed out credit cards and mortgages are going under water, why does this president feel that it's in good taste to do the Electric Slide across the Rose Garden?
Let me remind you one.more.time. what George W. Bush said about why he quit playing golf:
President Bush said yesterday that he gave up golfing in 2003 "in solidarity" with the families of soldiers who were dying in Iraq, concluding that it was "just not worth it anymore" to play the sport in a time of war.
"I don't want some mom whose son may have recently died to see the commander in chief playing golf," Bush said in a White House interview with the Politico. "I feel I owe it to the families to be as -- to be in solidarity as best as I can with them. And I think playing golf during a war just sends the wrong signal."
Optics matter. Elections have consequences.
One more time, Mr. Obama: people are hurting and it's going to get worse. Put up the party hats. Put away your golf clubs. Cancel the Martha's Vineyard vacations and the Hawaiian trips. Rethink this liberal path of destruction and get the hell out of the way of good government.
Former U.S. President George W Bush's memoir has sold an astonishing two million copies since it was released in early November - and it's not even in paperback yet. 'Decision Points', published both in hardcover and e-book form, is flying off the shelves, the Crown Publishing Group says. By contrast, former president Bill Clinton's memoir, 'My Life', has logged sales of 2.2million copies since it was first published in 2004.
Now let's see....
What could be the reason for this?
Could it be that there are Bush supporters out there who are interested in his time in The White House? Nah!
Could it be that there are political junkies who are interested in reading about Bush's policy decisons? Nah!
According to MSNBC, people are buying Decision Points as a joke, a gag gift. Or maybe because they hate Bush so much they want to know just "What was he thinking?!"
Norah O'Donnell interviewed Alex Pareene of Salon who suggested:
It may be the fact that he was hated by so many people actually helped fuel his book sales because people wanted to hear him actually justify himself and explain some of his decisions that he made. And, you know, there are, I mean, you can imagine that some people bought it as a gag or some people got it, received it as a gift and didn’t really want it.
By Alex Pareene's logic, that's a lot of liberals buying gag gifts. Or a lot of liberals filled with a lot of hate who want to line the pockets of politicians they despise.
What about Ann Coulter's best selling books? Or Michelle Malkin's?
Pareene's explanation of Bush's memoir as the literary equivalent of a Chia Pet is lame by any standards and further embarrasses MSNBC, if that were possible.
Yesterday I went to Barnes and Noble and bought these:
Do you think they can tell I'm conservative?
While I was in there I was looking again at the Laura Hillenbrand book, Unbroken, about Louis Zamperini. I've been reading Zamperini'sown account of his lifeand have NOT been able to put it down. As I was looking at the Hillenbrand book, there was an older gentleman looking at it too and he asked me if I knew anything about it. He'd enjoyed Seabiscuit and thought he might like to read another book by Hillenbrand. I told him I was reading Zamerini's own account first and then might come back to Hillenbrand's.
He was unfamiliar with Zamperini and so I told him about Louis getting shot down over the Pacific in 1943, drifting over 40 days in a raft over a distance of 2,000 miles until he and his comrade were captured, then spending two years in a Japanese POW camp, tortured, starved and humiliated. The book goes on to describe his life after he returns, but I'm not that far yet.
Anyway, I showed the man the book I'm reading and he thanked me and said he was going to do the same thing.
The book, Devil on My Heels, reminds me a lot of the two books by Eugene Sledge, except Sledge was not a POW. What I mean is that their writing style is similar: conversational, easy, not filled with technical jargon or acronyms that a non-military person would have trouble deciphering. If you haven't read these, run post haste to Amazon or your local book store and pick them up:
I'm also just over halfway through with Decision Points. It's also been very interesting reading. Right now I'm beginning the chapter on Afghanistan. I've just finished the chapter where Bush defends his choice of enhanced interrogation. I've always been on his side on that one. I was really interested in the chapter entitled Stem Cells because that's not an issue I followed very closely and didn't know a whole lot about. I'd recommend this one to both sides of the aisle, just as a matter of policy. I'd also recommend Laura's book, which I'd just finished when I started his. Read together, they give you a pretty full picture of the Bush presidency:
Seriously. If Barnes and Noble ever cared to track the politics of their customers, I'd be pretty easy to peg.
I've been quiet the past couple of days because I'm busy reading. I'm trying to finish Laura Bush's book before George's book hits my mailbox this week.
There's something about the onset of cooler weather that makes me long to just curl up on the couch with a dog next to me and read a book. I always have a stack of books waiting to be read and always feel "behind." I think I have an unhealthy compulsion when it comes to buying books. I pass as many along to others as I can, although there are some that I just want to keep and re-read.
As far as Laura's book, I'm really enjoying it. She has a lovely, easy style in her prose and I've been sort of surprised at the very personal, and not always flattering, things she reveals.
She writes of her ailing father and how it just never crossed their minds to have him brought to the inauguration when George was sworn in as the governor of Texas. Her mother was there, but they thought it would be too difficult to bring her father, who by then needed an aide and a wheelchair. Mrs. Bush writes that at one point during the ceremony she looked into the crowd and saw an elderly gentleman in a wheelchair sitting there and you can feel the pain and remorse at her neglect to make the extra effort to have her father there.
It's been an absorbing read so far and if you haven't read it, I'd recommend it.
Otherwise, it's been a quiet weekend. We went to The Vintage last night for our steak dinner and felt like total rubes when we opened the heavy menus to discover they light up. Steve was looking around the dark room trying to figure out how he was going to read the menu, I was fishing in my purse for my little flashlight and voila! He opened his menu and it lit up. Country comes to town.
I heard from a couple of my Bama friends over the weekend; our friend Ray called me from Massachusetts with a hearty "Roooollllll Tide!" before the game. I got back to him after the game, "Heh, heh, heh!" Good times.
All in all, a nice weekend and a busy week to come. Don't forget Veteran's Day this week. Did you read today's Beetle Baily comic strip?
Smitty at The Other McCain has done a "smashing" job on the Politico hit piece on Sarah Palin this morning; I'll point you on over there to take a look because his analysis is spot on. You've got to love that Politico headline: "Next For GOP Leaders: Stopping Sarah Palin" and the accompanying photograph is, of course, Palin with her mouth agape.
Also of interest today is David Freddoso's guide to tomorrow night's election returns. I printed it out so I could read it in closer detail later today - 13 pages. Very detailed!
And at Hot Air, here's your handy dandy printable checklist.
It was fun to see this last night:
Steve and I gave out candy to trick or treaters until we decided that if you're above the age of 18 and can't bother to dress up, we probably shouldn't be giving you candy. We went inside to watch the World Series. Depressing. C'mon Rangers!
There's a new argument emerging among supporters of the Ground Zero mosque. Distressed by President Obama's waffling on the issue, they're calling on former President George W. Bush to announce his support for the project, because in this case Bush understands better than Obama the connection between the war on terror and the larger question of America's relationship with Islam. It's an extraordinary change of position for commentators who long argued that Bush had done grievous harm to America's image in the Muslim world and that Obama represented a fresh start for the United States.
Oh you are just kidding me! Seriously? We've got the likes of Maureen Dowd pining for Dubya?
The war against the terrorists is not a war against Islam. In fact, you can’t have an effective war against the terrorists if it is a war on Islam. George W. Bush understood this. And it is odd to see Barack Obama less clear about this matter than his predecessor. It’s time for W. to weigh in.
That, of course, is one of the delicious ironies of this situation. Obama has done nothing but attack and demonize Bush for the last nineteen months, mainly to distract attention from Obama’s own failures on the economy. In fact, while Dowd et al demand a response from Bush, Obama is busy on the campaign trail (an activity that Obama chided the GOP for doing while Obama attended big fundraisers) attempting to continue blaming Bush for the economic slide Obama promised to prevent with his massive spending.
Are they asking the same George W. Bush who started an illegal and immoral war, lied about WMDs so his buddies could profit from the invasion and tortured exclusively Muslim detainees to come to the rescue of a president who was supposed to save America from all the horror Bush hath wrought? That’s fine, I just wanted to make sure we were on the same page.
Yes, I appears most of us are on the same page.
And let me reiterate what most poeple already recognize; this isn't about building a mosque. It's about building a mosque right there. That point is even more evident when you know that Gov. David Paterson offered to meet with developers in order to help them find a new site and they refused. In fact, developer Sharif El-Gamal said the planned mosque is "nowhere near the World Trade Center site." Yeah, well, we know that's not true. We know, too, that wreckage from the attack crashed through the Burlington Coat Factory building which is to be the site of this mosque. Pretty near, if you ask me.
And now the liberal left who support the building of this mosque on the ashes of the World Trade Center want George W. Bush to weigh in. They assume he will support the plan; he might and he might not.
Any esteem or regard I might have had for Paul McCartney has pretty much evaporated now.
What a cheap shot he took at Bush at a nonpartisan event meant to honor him. What a jerk:
It's a fantastic honor for the Gershwin family to give me this incredible award and for me to be awarded it by the Library of Congres,s and in fact, after the last eight years its nice to have a president who knows what a library is."
Apparently Paul McCartney has no idea howmuch George W. Bush reads.
In a refreshingly honest speech yesterday, sure to drive liberals over the edge, George W. Bush forthrightly declares "YES!" we waterboarded KSM, "YES!" it was the right thing to do, and "YES" he'd do it again.
"Yeah, we water-boarded Khalid Sheikh Mohammed," Bush said of the terrorist who master-minded the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks on New York and Washington. He said that event shaped his presidency and convinced him the nation was in a war against terror. "I'd do it again to save lives."
Emotional. Direct. Morally unambiguous. Deeply loyal to allies. A true friend of Israel. A clear-eyed understanding of the enemy we face. Yes, Obama is the un-Bush, and the U.S., the West, and Israel are the worse for it.
And note Bush's restraint in criticizing the man who criticizes him at every single opportunity:
But he also made it clear he would leave political potshots at President Barack Obama to others, saying: "You are not going to see me in the public square criticizing the president."
Update: Hmm. When I clicked "like" on Facebook at 11:30 today, I was #698. As of right now, 3:30 p.m., there are 29,318 people who "like" W. That's a lotta liking going on!
Update 2: As of 10:00 a.m., almost 24 hours later, 75,352 people like W.
Many signs indicate that while President Obama is enjoying the sun and the tennis courts, he’s still hard at work in Hawaii. After Obama spoke about the terror attempt on Christmas and violence in Iran, the White House sent a news release saying that he had signed three bills into law, including H.R. 4314, which raises the debt ceiling from $12.104 trillion to $12.394 trillion.
I would go out on a limb here and say that's not really the impression that the American public has of Obama's vacation. "Hard at work"? I don't think so. He's hard at work on his golf game and little else.
Yes, he interrupted his vacation schedule to speak on a terror attack on our country and he briefly addressed the Iranian protests. He couldn't be bothered to put on a tie or look presidential for the occasion, but that's all part of his uber-cool, low-key style, right? I know it's Hawaii, and I know he's on vacation, but is it too much to ask that he at least look the part when he stands before the American people, and the world, to make such an anticipated and important statement? Make an effort?
To be fair, there were press conferences from Crawford where Bush didn't wear a tie. The argument isn't whether or not Obama wears a tie to a press conference, really, but appearing presidential at a time of such national importance. And I'd have said the same thing about Bush if he'd done it. Bush was accused of being "a cowboy" whenever he went to Crawford. But the press doesn't have the same criticism for Obama in Hawaii because he's cool. Hip.
As far as signing three bills into law, how hard can that be? He's probably pretty adept at signing his name.
Jim Hoft nailed it for me this morning when he recalled Obama's January statement that "everybody's gonna have to have some skin in the game." Everyone will have to sacrifice for the greater good. Everyone but Obama, that is.
I don't begrudge the man a vacation. Really, I don't. I always thought it was silly when people criticized George Bush for going to Crawford, Texas. But as nice as Bush's Crawford ranch might have been, it's not the luxurious rented pad that the Obamas are occupying in Hawaii. It's not even the cost of the vacation that bothers me. I don't care if Michelle wears $635 shoes to dinner or $540 tennis shoes to a food bank. She and her tacky plastic belts interest me less than none at all.
What is disconcerting is the images of Iranians protesting for freedom against an illegitimate government, dying in the streets for their freedom, while Obama searches for his golf ball amongst the palm trees. A Nigerian man with terrorist ties to al-Qaeda tries to blow up a plane in Detroit, kill Americans and announces there are more like him coming, and Obama goes out to dinner with friends.
It took him two days to make a statement on either.
Some skin in the game? Sacrifice? I don't think Obama has a clue what that even means. Working hard on vacation? Nah. I don't think so.
Is the White House going to spend the next 3.5 years blaming everything on George W. Bush? Here's Gibbs at yesterday's briefing responding to a question about Bush's comments the night before:
The bottom line, Gibbs concluded, is "I think we've had a debate about individual policies. We had that debate in particular -- we kept score last November and we won."
"President Obama inherited an economic catastrophe: massive unemployment, a huge deficit, insolvent banks, car companies that were being handed billions of dollars," Gibbs said.
"President Obama believes that the free market is what governs our economic principles and looks forward to getting out of the business of being involved in banks or in auto companies," he said.
We won! Good grief.
"President Obama inherited...." For crying out loud, every administration inherits problems. It's not a perfect world Put on your big boy pants and quit whining. Quit nationalizing banks, health care and car companies. If Obama really believes "the free market is what governs our economic principles" then get out of it! Let the market do what the market DOES.
Enough with the whining already. Enough with the blame. It's childish. It's not leadership.
Drudge's current headline is "It's On! W Slams O!" It links to this Washington Times story. Bush is quoted as defending interrogations, saying they were within the law. He says the private sector, not government, will fix the economy. He rejects nationalized heath care.
I guess if you were really looking for drama this would be the most controversial thing he said: "I told you I'm not going to criticize my successor," he said. "I'll just tell you that there are people at Gitmo that will kill American people at a drop of a hat and I don't believe that -- persuasion isn't going to work. Therapy isn't going to cause terrorists to change their mind."
Obama's Cairo speech has been received with mixed results, but the overall consensus seems to be that it wasn't as bad as feared. It seemed to me to be adequate yet uninspiring and filled with platitudes. One thing that interested me was how he would deal with the issue of women's rights.
His main focus with regard to women seemed to be the right to wear the hijab. WTF? Here's the excerpt dealing with women's rights:
"The U.S. government has gone to court to protect the right of women and girls to wear the hijab, and to punish those who would deny it."
"I reject the view of some in the West that a woman who chooses to cover her hair is somehow less equal, but I do believe that a woman who is denied an education is denied equality. And it is no coincidence that countries where women are well-educated are far more likely to be prosperous."
"Now let me be clear: issues of women's equality are by no means simply an issue for Islam. In Turkey, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Indonesia, we have seen Muslim-majority countries elect a woman to lead. Meanwhile, the struggle for women's equality continues in many aspects of American life, and in countries around the world."
"Our daughters can contribute just as much to society as our sons, and our common prosperity will be advanced by allowing all humanity - men and women - to reach their full potential. I do not believe that women must make the same choices as men in order to be equal, and I respect those women who choose to live their lives in traditional roles. But it should be their choice. That is why the United States will partner with any Muslim-majority country to support expanded literacy for girls, and to help young women pursue employment through micro-financing that helps people live their dreams."
Compare this to the speech George W. Bush gave in Egypt in May 2008 (emphasis mine):
"Building powerful economies also requires expanding the role of women in society. This is a matter of morality and of basic math. No nation that cuts off half its population from opportunities will be as productive or prosperous as it could be. Women are a formidable force, as I have seen in my own family -- (laughter and applause) -- and my own administration. (Applause.) As the nations of the Middle East open up their laws and their societies to women, they are learning the same thing.
I applaud Egypt. Egypt is a model for the development of professional women. In Afghanistan, girls who were once denied even a basic education are now going to school, and a whole generation of Afghans will grow up with the intellectual tools to lead their nation toward prosperity. In Iraq and Kuwait, women are joining political parties and running campaigns and serving in public office. In some Gulf States, women entrepreneurs are making a living and a name for themselves in the business world.
Recently, I learned of a woman in Bahrain who owns her own shipping company. She started with a small office and two employees. When she first tried to register her business in her own name, she was turned down. She attended a business training class and was the only woman to participate. And when she applied for a customs license, officials expressed surprise because no woman had ever asked for one before.
And yet with hard work and determination, she turned her small company into a $2 million enterprise. And this year, Huda Janahi was named one of the 50 most powerful businesswomen in the Arab world. (Applause.) Huda is an inspiring example for the whole region. And America's message to other women in the Middle East is this: You have a great deal to contribute, you should have a strong voice in leading your countries, and my nation looks to the day when you have the rights and privileges you deserve.
The difference, it seems to me, is that Obama ignores the fact that women are routinely stoned, raped, abused and attacked in Muslim countries; instead he applauds their advances in women's rights. He criticizes the "view in the West" but offers no criticism of the Muslim view of the rights of women. Understandably, Obama doesn't want to offend his audience, but both East and West can see through this pablum.
George W. Bush, on the other hand, while also mindful of his audience, was a bit more forceful in suggesting that women have an equal place at the table and linking it to a morality issue.
"He tries to equate our culture with Islamic culture, reminding us that Western women are also struggling for equal rights. Because no matter what, Obama is compelled to point out that America is no better than any other country. In the case of women's rights this is not only absurd; it's reprehensible."
"With women being stoned, raped, abused, battered, mutilated, and slaughtered on a daily basis across the globe, violence that is so often perpetrated in the name of religion, the most our president can speak about is protecting their right to wear the hijab? I would have been much more heartened if the preponderance of the speech had been about how in the 21st century, we CANNOT tolerate the pervasive abuse of our mothers and sisters and daughters."
If you need a refresher on the abuses against women in Muslim countries, check out The Confluence.
In the end, it seems to me that Obama has no clue with regard to women's rights in Muslim countries; I'm sure he knows, but it's incomprehensible to me how he can not mention the abuses. The worst thing he can come up with is the hijab? What Bush did in his speech that Obama failed to do was to point out that there's a morality issue involved while pointing out that women have "rights and privileges" that presumably go beyond head coverings.
Remember this discussion in December which stemmed from Karl Rove's column about his reading contest with Bush? And Salon suggested that Obama would be "one of the most literary presidents in recent memory." Not unless he picks up on his summer reading!
Obama reported in April that he was reading "Netherland". So far, he still is.
CNN figures this puts the "most literary president" ever on a 10 book a year pace.
"In trying to prove that he is not George Bush, Barack Obama has committed big mistakes on key issues of foreign policy. His Cairo address, and his “one-size-fits-all” Islam policy, is just the latest. It encourages Islamists and ruling despots, discourages the forces of reform and change and, ultimately, could produce greater resentment of the United States among peoples thirsting for freedom, human rights and decent governance."
I am stealing this video from Gateway Pundit. It's of Cuba in the 1930s before the Castro regime destroyed it. It's eight minutes well spent! What a lovely place it was!
Reuters is reporting this morning, "The United States and Cuba have agreed to resume direct talks on migration, last held in 2003, and open discussions on establishing direct mail service between the two countries, a U.S. official said on Sunday.Cuba presented a diplomatic note to U.S. officials on Saturday agreeing to a U.S. request made last week to resume the migration talks, which President George W. Bush suspended."
George W. Bush defended his position on Cuba when he was in Canada at an appearance with Bill Clinton on Friday. Asked about Obama's Cuban policy changes, Bush said, "Holding that embargo in place is important," he said. By easing it, "you're propping up a regime who puts people in prison based upon their political views. So my view is, if they empty out the prisons and give people a voice, then we change our strategy with Cuba — but not until then."
I'm not sure what Obama thinks he's going to gain by his recent moves on Cuban policy. Everything he's done so far will only serve to help the Castro regime. It's hard to argue with Bush's point on leverage, and the Castro regime has made no moves to release any political prisoners. In fact, in April Fidel Castro said that Obama misinterpreted any signs that Raul may have given as to releasing prisoners or cutting taxes on dollars that people send to Cuban relatives.
It seems that Obama is making all the concessions here and it's the people of Cuba who get to suffer. It's time to ask for something in return from the Castro regime before giving in to their tyranny any further.
Update: The NYT adds this: "Cuba also agreed to cooperate with the United States on counterterrorism, drug interdiction and disaster relief efforts" but no word on the political prisoners who continue to be held or the continual squeezing of the Cuban people.
And Bablu Blog is not impressed: "Who knows -maybe this new round of talks will magically turn all refugees trying to escape the totalitarian regime into migrants and will have the US Coast Guard patrolling the Cuban coastline to prevent any would-be escapes from the island concentration camp?"
Ah, I miss you Dubya. You were not always perfect and we had our differences but by gosh you didn't ever go over to Europe and talk about what an arrogant and awful country we are. History will treat you a lot better than many folks right now might believe. Just wait and see.
George W. Bush is aclass act. "Former President George W. Bush says he won't criticize President Barack Obama because Obama 'deserves my silence,' and says he plans to write a book about the 12 toughest decisions he made in office. Bush's speech Tuesday at a luncheon in Calgary, Alberta was his first since leaving office."
Meanwhile, Obama is still in campaign mode, blaming George Bush for everything.
? Do you own a copy? As you may have read a few days ago, George Bush's memoir is 
, dubbed "a flop" by the media, is currently ranked #6 and #7 on 
and Glenn Beck's 
It's currently #8 on the 
was at the top of the NYT Best Seller list for six weeks and sold over one million copies.
, about Louis Zamperini. I've been reading Zamperini's 
and have NOT been able to put it down. As I was looking at the Hillenbrand book, there was an older gentleman looking at it too and he asked me if I knew anything about it. He'd enjoyed 
and thought he might like to read another book by Hillenbrand. I told him I was reading Zamerini's own account first and then might come back to Hillenbrand's. 
, which I'd just finished when I started his. Read together, they give you a pretty full picture of the Bush presidency:
