Friday, April 29, 2005

Bush's 2nd=FDR's 2nd

I have been watching in my spare time a History Channel documentary on FDR (this is how I was raised, it is engrained) and right now the story is set at FDR's second term 1936-40. It is his darkest hour; dispite winning big majorities in the House and Senate, all of his key legislation is being overturned by the activist and reactionary Supreme Court.

Like Bush, he storms the country trying to convince the people that his bad idea is a good one. For FDR it was his court packing plan (having a new justice for every justice over 70), for Bush it is ironically trying to overturn FDR's greatest domestic legacy: Social Security. Both we in denial even while poll after poll showed that the public and the Congress thought it was a bad idea. FDR even tried to campaign in primaries against those in his party who voted against him: he went 1-20 and nearly lost his reelection, going from 60% in 1936 (or there abouts) to 52% in 1940. The only way Franklin won was by basically lying and appealing to the isolationists of America and looking the other way on Southern Racism while his wife campaigned against lynching.

Laura Bush hasn't done anything as noble, but people approve of her by about 80% while her husband is only around 48%. The only thing keeping him afloat is the war on terrorism, which in reality is going very poorly. The one legal success was because they wore down a man who had nothing to do with 9/11 so he confessed to committing something he wished he had done. The rest of the legal cases have been unmitagated disasters. Terrorist attacks have trippled since last year, which was a previous record high. Iraq is still a big giant mess.

FDR inherited a depression and tried stuff but his plans didn't work. Bush enhirited a bubble and proceeded to ride it all the way into the ground, like that guy on Dr. Strangelove. Thank goodness for Bush he cannot to run for a 3rd term like FDR could; watching Bush try for a 3rd term would be like watching a train wreck.

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