George W. Bush "Miss Me Yet?" Billboard; Who Are They Kidding?

When the story first appeared on the Internet that there was a billboard featuring the unlamented former president George W. Bush and the caption "Miss Me Yet?" it was believed by some to be a Photoshop image. But, as Fox News reported, Bob Collins of National Public Radio wrote that he saw the "Miss Me Yet?" billboard on I-35 in Wyoming, Minn., last week. Some have wondered who might have paid for the billboard. But with the authenticity of its existence established, the debate turned to whether or not it was a subtle pro-Obama billboard or a not-so-subtle swipe at the current Obama administration.

There doesn't seem to be anything to debate here, especially if one considers that the George W. Bush "Miss Me Yet?" billboard is anti-Obama. Anyone who thinks that a president who has barely been in office 12 months is a worse administrator than Bush should go out and get an MRI. You might not like Obama and you may not agree with some (or all) of his policies, but he didn't inherit a budget surplus, a somewhat stable economy, and a nation at peace. George W. Bush did, but due to several incidents beyond his control (and several that were well within his control), he led us down a path of devastating wars, economic ruin, constitutional abrogation, diminished effectiveness as a world power, and increasing political polarization.

Besides, President Barack Obama still needs time to screw up as badly as "The Decider."

What's to miss? During the presidency of George W. Bush, his administration attempted to rewrite the Constitution several times; used fear tactics to get the Patriot Act, which limits individual freedoms, passed into law (and it still remains in place); fostered the omnipotent vice presidency; allowed the single-most devastating terrorist attack ever to take place on American soil (then used the FBI and CIA as scapegoats); invaded a sovereign nation (Iraq) without international approval and against international law (and used the CIA as a scapegoat in this affair as well, when the plans for an invasion of Iraq had been drawn up by the members of the Project for the New American Century in the 1990s); abrogated the Geneva Conventions with enhanced interrogations and extraordinary renditioning, Guantanamo and Abu Ghraib; rewriting various acts and laws that deregulated, continuing a legislative tradition going back at least three presidencies, which precipitated the housing market and economic downturns; appointing political cronies to head government agencies instead of qualified personnel (EPA, FEMA, etc.); instituting faith-based initiatives; implementing the laughable and worthless fear-based color-code terror alert system; the insistence for years of his administration on calling everyone who shot at an American soldier in Afghanistan or Iraq a "terrorist"; the shameful response to Hurricane Katrina; having no exit strategy in Iraq and allowing the disgrace that was the ineffectual provisional government under H. Paul Bremer; the non-strategy of occupying Afghanistan; the Bankers Stimulus Bill (TARP); decreased American diplomatic power and standing among the world's nations, and on and on...

"Miss Me Yet?" the billboard asks. Hardly. Sadly, the aforementioned list of grievances against the Bush administration is only the official aspects of the administration that were put in place and/or enhanced that bled into the current administration. There were also the more mundane aspects of the Bush administration, such as his constant and consistent abuse of the English language, making him the laughing stock of nations; his over two years of accumulated vacation time, more than any president in history; the constant use of fear to incite his political base and gain support for his ideas; and his overall ignorance of the world (he had to be tutored when becoming president that there were actual sects within Islam).

To be fair, president George W. Bush was roundly criticized for many things that bled over from previous administrations into his own. However, there may be no other presidency in history that has so polarized the American people (except perhaps Abraham Lincoln, and for far different reasons).

On the flip side of that unpopularity coin, President Barack Obama still has three years to go in his first term, so his disapproval ratings may even soar past that of his predecessor. George W. Bush had eight years to accumulate such a heavy-coated smear upon his administration and although President Obama has met with some stiff resistance early, it is doubtful that his administration could produce anything to the level of national detriment that the Bush administration managed in such a short time.

But there is still time...

But the George W. Bush "Miss Me Yet?" billboard could very well have been an image of Bill Clinton back in 2001, or George H. W. Bush in 1993. There were certainly misgivings over the new president in 1981 and no doubt there were quite a few who missed Jimmy Carter. In 1977, it would not have been too difficult to find someone willing to erect a billboard that said "Miss Me Yet?" with Gerald Ford's image on it. It could go on and on.

But the debate here with the George W. Bush "Miss Me Yet?" billboard is a one-sided affair. Even most Republicans, Independents, and conservative Democrats that voted for Bush do not or cannot seriously miss the man who oversaw an administration whose foreign and domestic policies were misguided, spurious, fear-based, and, ultimately, for the most part, counterproductive on so many levels. When so much of what is occurring in America and around the world are reactions to the reactions of peoples and systems to measures and policies of the Bush administration, no rational person would ever miss the 43rd president.

Miss him? Even as dire as some things might appear to be, not one American who seriously considers George W. Bush and the scope of his administration would ever think fondly of it.

Ever.

But there are probably millions who, because of some type of diminished capacity or hopeless state of denial, think fondly of "The Decider."

And there are the delusional as well.

But in the real world where most people live, the only people who truly miss George W. Bush are those that used him as a political whipping boy and, of course, comedians.

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Source:

FoxNews.com