Over the course our nation’s political history, a total of 44 presidents have taken on the responsibility of being Commander in Chief. Though some have done a really good job, others not so much, yet the notorious honor for being labeled the worst president in history goes to George W. Bush. His eight-year term (2001-2009) has been noted by a majority of historians as the worst presidency ever, and for more than a few good reasons. While personal and public opinions on this matter may vary from region to region, affiliated historians are the ones who delve into the bowels of past presidencies and rank them based on achievements as well as complacency and the inability to do what’s best for the country. Out of 109 professional historians, a whopping 98.2 percent concurred that good ole’ Dubya ranks dead last amongst his predecessors.
The following information highlights the lowlights of Bush’s penchant for not only ruining the country, but starting unnecessary wars and sending the world into a financial tailspin as well. The country and the world at large are still being affected by Bush’s dreadful blunders, as the latent functions of his hubris and ignorance have proven to be more than costly for millions of people.
- Breached the US Constitution by implementing illegal wiretaps on American citizens, aka the Patriot Act
- Made a $1 trillion deficit out of a $200 million budgetary surplus
- Lowest rate of employment creation since Herbert Hoover (1929-1933)
- Went on more vacations than any other US president
- Ignored and defunded environmental protection programs, including the Clean Air Act
- Gravely mishandled disaster relief reparations for Hurricanes Katrina/Rita
- 2001: Bush turned a blind eye and a deaf ear to the clear and present warnings regarding terrorist attacks, even though these threats came three months before the 9/11 World Trade Center atrocities.
- 2003: the Bush Administration used unreliable/false intelligence to start an unnecessary war in Iraq and wreak havoc on various sectors of the Middle East, thus destabilizing the region and opening the door for utter chaos.
- 2008: Bush ignored the subprime housing bubble thru deregulation and created the worst financial crisis since The Great Depression.
Even worse, he spent $1 trillion bailing out the institutions responsible for the housing meltdown. As a result, the ripple-effect of economic implosion occurred throughout the modernized world. One of the worst exchanges of the administration took place in 2002 when Bush ignored repeated warnings from his National Security Adviser, Randy Beers, who became infuriated when Bush refused to pursue Al Qaeda. Instead, Bush decided to settle an old score after Saddam Hussein allegedly attempted to kill daddy Bush. According to Time Magazine in 2002, Bush said, “Fuck Saddam. We’re taking him out.” And the rest is history. As a result of Bush’s ignorance, Beers quit his job out of sheer frustration.
From all of the above-mentioned faux pas committed by The Bush 43 Administration, the proof is in the presidential pudding. The latent functions of a war-torn Iraq have managed to destabilize the region and allow other radical Jihadist groups to form, such as ISIS and Boko Haram, whose extremist terrorist organizations are responsible for beheadings, mass murders, and the killing of innocent civilians. Is George W. Bush responsible for all of this? Some say yes, while others say absolutely. Even after seven years of Dubya being out of the Oval Office, his misdeeds are continuing to create disastrous consequences for those who are still trying to pick up the pieces of their tattered lives.