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Is Bush a hapless Carter?
According to political adviser Richard Perle, President Bush and former President Jimmy Carter have a lot in common lately. Discussing the current situation in Georgia, Perle told the L.A. Times:
Now President Bush will understand the Hapless Jimmy Carter when the Soviets invaded Afghanistan at Christmas, 1979 and the scales (remember the ‘inordinate fear of communism?’) fell from his eyes. Bush and his expert Condi Rice have misunderstood Putin from the beginning and built an American policy towards Russia on a ludicrous look into Putin’s soul.
Is it an accurate comparison?
Topic: Politics, WorldMagBlog
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back to top24 Comments to “Is Bush a hapless Carter?”
Bush is a bully.
He will go after third rate powers like Iraq and Iran but he won’t lift a finger toward Russia.
What was Bush doing when Russia invaded Georgia, a democracy that send troops to Iraq?
He was posing with the bikin-clad U.S. womens’ volleyball team in China
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At least he is getting to paw six feet of sunshine instead of manning the helm.
Not that he ever did. But the veil is lifted and his lame duckness (always present) is now evident.
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As I said yesterday, “Look at the map”. Carter couldn’t do anything, and I never blamed him for it. Yet Carter was “hapless”.
Bush will only be like Carter if he pulls our contestants out of the olympics.
We’ll show them commies that we mean business, we’ll pull our contestant out of the Miss World contest too. That’ll show them.
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The mistake is trying to get Georgia into NATO. Who’s going to come to their aid? Turkey? Turkey didn’t even cooperate with us in Iraq.
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Yes it is accurate. But I’d bet Bush curses Perle under his breath. Perle has turned into quite the Bush-basher these days, after being such a trusted advisor during Bush’s first term, helping formulate such a great Iraq policy. A policy that was flawed from the get-go and took almost four years to rectify.
Now, Perle sits in France and criticizes.
Of course, Perle has started investing in Iraq oil, now that U.S. soldiers and the President that he criticizes has made it safe for him to do so.
Perle is a pathetic excuse for a man. He must be right at home in France.
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Looking at the responders and their comments, I suspect a regular comes to this thread and knows what the comment will be before he reads it. Including mine.
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What a bunch of nitwits. Claiming Bush is anything like Carter is like saying Putin is Obama only more black and Muslim.
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If anyone cares, I consulted with my resident military advisor last night on the Georgia situation and he had several comments.
1. Georgia brought it on themselves by attacking Russia. The president of Georgia was very foolish.
2. You should never underestimate Russian strategy. They are the masters.
3. The US will be wise and sit this one out.
4. The Soviets often moved native Russians into conquered land to live. Ossentia has a large contingent of native Russians living there–whom the Russians obviously feel they need to protect.
Hapless as Carter? There aren’t many good choices and the UN’s atrocious and weak behavior over the years also plays a negative part in this situation.
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Michelle
1. correct
2. correct
3. maybe — the US should use this as an excuse to kick them out of the G8 and further isolate them diplomatically. Not because the Russians deserve to be morally punished but to build up a position of strength for the next inevitable round of poker.
4. correct yet for anyone to accept this rationale puts the rest of what the Russians call the “near abroad” in jeopardy. The Baltic states have large Russian minorities and are very nervous that the Russians are acting on this principle.
As for the Bush Carter comparison, please don’t insult Carter. He was a good man, a man of integrity, a man you could trust.
In terms of presidential haplessness, the return to the great power game, after the ideological interlude of the mid 20th century, should make it easier for Bush to act. He’s not nearly as stuck as Carter although Pearle may be acting as an apologist before the Bush administration screws up.
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Bush badly read Putin and is paying for it.
Obama is, just now naively reading the situation. George Will in a column today, Russia’s Attack Marks Revival Of Soviet Bear, writes:
Obama’s second statement about the crisis, in which he tardily acknowledged Russia’s invasion, underscored the folly of his first, which echoed the Bush administration’s initial evenhandedness.
“Now,” said Obama, “is the time for Georgia and Russia to show restraint.”
John McCain, the “life is real, life is earnest” candidate, says he has looked into Putin’s eyes and seen “a K, a G and a B.” But McCain owes the thug thanks, as does America’s electorate. Putin has abruptly pulled the presidential campaign up from preoccupation with plumbing the shallows of John Edwards and wondering what “catharsis” is “owed” to disappointed Clintonites.
McCain, who has called upon Russia “to immediately and unconditionally . . . withdraw all forces from sovereign Georgian territory,” favors expelling Russia from the G-8, and organizing a league of democracies to act where the U.N. is impotent, which is whenever the subject is important.
Obama is uttering platitudes, while McCain, who has been to Georgia and and S. Ossetia, is offering a determined and measured response.
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Nonsense. Only 12% if the people in the world, all Russians no doubt, think that Georgia attacked Russia – according to the last poll I saw.
This was Georgian territory to begin wit and they cannot attack themselves – they are not French
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I love what NcCain said, now so long ago, when asked about Bush seeing the real Putin that he could understand and deal with when he looked deeply into his eyes.
McCain said I do not agree with Bush, when I look in Putin’s eyes I see the KGB. McCain is light years ahead of the naive Bush and the clueless Obama when it comes to Putin and the Russians. But at least all three know who attacked first in this war that Russia started.
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Thanks to the witless and clueless Bush the Russian fear of the U.S. Military (except WMDs’) is non-existent.
After seeing the problems the U.S. is having fighting an unnecessary war against a backward country like Iraq why would Russia be afraid of us?
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Carter was terrible. Bush is worse — and he isn’t done trying to ruin the country.
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I saw a comparison of military infrastructure between Russia and Georgia and saw that Russia is much fitter for survival than Georgia. Georgia is vastly outnumbered in manpower and equipment and also tactically inferior. There’s a dispute as to who fired the first shot. Either way, the president of Georgia should have known not to take on the communists.
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Carter has gone down in history as one of the worst Presidents ever. Bush may have lots of people (like Nick and Roaring Lamb/Godlumps) who don’t like him now, but my prediction is that in the future Bush will be regarded as a decent president (especially when considering everything that has faced him, such as 9/11).
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Llama, can you collaborate with yourself?
Chas — #4. 100% accurate.
Outkast at #16, too.
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To OutKast and NJ Lawyer
So Bush will go down as a “decent” (high praise indeed) President?
After Bush thankfully leaves office he has already admitted he will try to make millions going around the country giving (presumably) “tough on terrorism” speeches.
Meanwhile the 30,000 wounded soldiers that Bush insanely sent to Iraq face a lifetime of medical issues while Bush rakes in the dough.
And either Obama or McCain will be left to clean up Bush’s mess and get us out of Iraq with a trace of dignity.
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PETER LEAVITT: McCain, who has been to Georgia and and S. Ossetia, is offering a determined and measured response.
McCain tried to push the US into some kind of a conflict with Russia last week by talking as bellicose as anyone in the world outside Georgia. He blamed the crisis entirely on Russia. He demanded the involvement of NATO. He tried to use the crisis to score points against Obama for being too restrained.
McCain did everything Cheney would do, and more, except Cheney didn’t have his back, and McCain found himself out on a limb. Cheney advised “restraint.”
On Monday, McCain was grinning and showing his hands and saying, “See my friends — no stick — all talk, talk, talk”
Obama was determined, measured, and in sync with our allies, just what we want in a president.
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Who would be a better poker player — Obama, McCain, Bush or Putin.
Bush went all in to early and now can’t bluff properly when its needed.
McCain is all talk and easy to read and prone to errors due to rash and off the cuff decisions. His bluff would easily be seen — since he would probably bluff each round.
Obama is stuck right now with a bad hand but he is playing it well
Putin is a master of bluff, force and stacking his chips before the big play. He called Bush’s bluff when Bush least expected.
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#6
Yes. No. Maybe.
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“hapless Carter”
Do you really need to type “hapless?” I thought that was understood.
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Outkast – 16
I agree, but many people can’t see it yet, or they don’t want to see it might be more accurate, or charitable.
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“Do you really need to type “hapless?” I thought that was understood.”
It’s akin to using confused or deranged in a statement about John McCain. Or failure and Bush.
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