We's Supposed To Rescue Mr. Bush's "Legacy"?

[Ed. note: Cross-posted you know where. Also, I really tire of always hearing Mr. Bush portrayed as a victim of circumstances, when he's almost invariably the perpetrator. It's never a piece that talks about how Americans or others have been harmed by Bush but of how poor Mr. Bush is being abashed and abused. Please!]


(Who says we want him rescued?)

The excellent Steve at The Carpetbagger Report summarizes Nick Kristof's column beautifully (so I don't need to do so):

If you missed the NYT’s Nick Kristof’s year-end piece yesterday, it was a sight to behold.

Kristof noted that the president’s legacy “doesn’t look good right now,” and imagined a future obituary that described Bush leaving office “vilified and disgraced.” Kristof proceeded to offer 10 suggestions for the president to pursue in 2007 that might help him “rescue” his legacy. It’s quite a list.

* Negotiate with Iran and Syria, and “renounce permanent military bases in Iraq.”
* Start working on an Israeli-Palestinian peace plan.
* Confront the genocide in Darfur.
* Dump Dick Cheney and get a new VP.
* Expand the government’s efforts to combat AIDS.
* Address climate change.
* Give up on the idea of attacking Iran.
* Give up on privatization and embrace a Clinton-like approach to Social Security reform.
* Address our disgraceful inequities in health care and pursue Carter’s idea of comprehensive coverage for children up to age 5.
* “Steal [policy ideas] from your critics and rivals.”

It’s enough to make me wonder if Kristof has been watching the same president as the rest of us the last six years.

Me, too, Steve. Me too! Yet, as I wrote above, I have no desire to rescue him.

Evict, yes.
Impeach? Fine and dandy.
Put on trial for war crimes and treason, absolutely! It's our moral and global responsibility.

But rescue? Not one of my top 3,917 priorities for this year (I'd paint my toe nails pink first and I abhor the color pink - I'm not crazy about toe nail polish either).

You can also find a piece about this at Raw Story.