Enlisting Economists, Bush Adds Book to Fiscal Debaterticle title

[choie]

Source: NY Times

WASHINGTON — His entire involvement in the presidential campaign has consisted of four words uttered to a reporter as elevator doors were closing: “I’m for Mitt Romney.” But former President George W. Bush gingerly enters the fray a little more this week with a new book outlining ways to rebuild the economy.

For the first time since leaving office three and a half years ago, Mr. Bush is advancing a variety of ideas about how to jump-start economic growth by restructuring taxes, expanding trade, encouraging innovation, fixing immigration and overhauling Social Security. He wrote the foreword for the book, a collection of essays from an array of economists, including five Nobel Prize winners, and he proposes a national goal of expanding the economy by 4 percent a year on a sustained basis.

To the extent that Mr. Bush has been part of the dialogue this year, it has been as a whipping boy for Mr. Obama and other Democrats. They have warned voters not to support Mr. Romney because he would revive Bush policies that they say led to the 2008 financial crisis and the problems that linger today.

The former president, who was confronted with a recession early in his first term and then presided over a long period of sustained though not particularly robust growth before 2008, does not use the book to defend his record, but instead tries to move forward.

Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/15/us/bush-presenting-book-of-economic-proposals.html?hp

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I just cannot believe the hubris of this man - and how the NY Times rewrites history: "The former president, who was confronted with a recession early in his first term and then presided over a long period of sustained though not particularly robust growth before 2008, does not use the book to defend his record, but instead tries to move forward." Oh, NY Times, so he was just an innocent bystander, huh?

[orpupilofnature57]

1. Mianthrope reasoning got us here ' Shrubs Legacy '

Prison should be his retirement home.

[snot]

2. Rec'ing partly for the comment on the "liberal" NYT.

I see the only part W wrote was the foreward, which is just a little over 2 pp. long. Guess he's had a lot of brush to clear.

And I don't see any way to comment on the NYT article . . . .

[blm]

3. Jeb2016 is following the same tactic as Hillary2008. Bill Clinton's 2004 summer book tour was used

to vigorously defend Bush's military leadership and his Iraq decisions, knowing that the Dem nominee was attacking Bush on that issue.

TeamBush will be as sincere about their efforts for Romney's 2012 campaign as TeamClinton was in 2004.

This book tour is all about rehabbing Bush name for Jeb2016.

[struggle4progress]

4. From the introduction

Let me start off by saying I think we agree, the past is over. This book, itself, I've characterized as mainly history. But I can press when there needs to be pressed. This economic policy stuff is a little frustrating. One of the very difficult parts of the decision I made on the financial crisis was we had plenty of money in Washington but what we needed was more priority. People are sometimes confused because there's a lot of propaganda in the mix. But there are instruments, that are devised or available, for younger workers when they get ready to retire: that means instead of using a hoe, you use a backhoe. In other words, you go ahead and do this, and if you don't, we'll punish you economically ...

[kentauros]

5. Wow.

Is he perpetually drunk?

Also, could someone please educate me on what the hell "Debaterticle" means, much less how it's even pronounced?

[Enrique]

10. lol

debaterticle is so appropriate for a story about Bush.

[NYC Liberal]

6. Wow.

[xtraxritical]

8. He goes to Yale and this is the best prose he can come up with? My kids going to Harvard!

[Skittles]

13. the past is NOT OVER

we will be paying for that bastard bush's mistakes for DECADES

[snot]

14. Intro, or foreward? The article said the intro was written by someone else.

[struggle4progress]

15. I lied. What I posted is just my remix of some of W's greatest hits. It's not in the book.

[Bossy Monkey]

7. Makes sense. I ALWAYS ask arsonists to help me rebuild burned-down buildings.

(Sarcasm tag isn't really necessary, is it?)

[benld74]

9. The 1st sentence in the 2nd paragraph is SAME OLD GOP talking points

Mr. Bush is advancing a variety of ideas about how to jump-start economic growth by
1)restructuring taxes,
2)expanding trade,
3)encouraging innovation,
4)fixing immigration and
5) overhauling Social Security

SOS. Cant ANYBODY in the US CREATE jobs anymore?

[tclambert]

11. I just wrote a book: "The Wisdom of George W. Bush." Here (for free) is the text:

[Angry Dragon]

12. George 'I am an Idiot' Bush

[tanyev]

16. How to Take a Prosperous Country to the Brink of Financial Disaster for Dummies.

[IDemo]

17. I'm undecided on the most appropriate cover image:

[sofa king]

18. Why, I'll just put that on the shelf with:

Essays on Establishing Honest Diplomatic Dialogue, with Forward by Joachim von Ribbentrop

Excellence in Professional Football Coaching, with Forward by Cam Cameron

Estimating the Age of the Universe Using the Lambda-CDM Model, with Introduction by Pat Robertson

Mellifluous Nuance in Stagecraft, with Forward by GG Allin

Popular Speeches Delivered to the NAACP by Republican Candidates, with Forward by W. M. Romney

How to Eat a Pretzel, with Forward by George W. Bush