[hinterlander]

From the last paragraph:

"The President may yet enact wise policies, but he sure didn’t try to sell them last Thursday. Leadership is not saying one thing and then sneaking in the right thing when no one’s looking. Leadership is explaining what really needs to be done to solve problems --and changing people’s minds. But leadership is politically expensive. . ."

[EagleUSA]

Excellent -- wow, would that have been a moving speech!!!

[Redbob]

"... if someone discovers the budgetary difference between a compassionate conservative and a bleeding heart liberal, please, let me know."

LOL!

Exactly.

[jveritas]

Whining and non realistic solutions. That is what we get form the "purist" conservatives.

The federal government is going to spend the money no matter who is President, so it is better to spend our "free market" way i.e. benefiting businesses, and individuals, rather than the liberals "socialist" way i.e. massive welfare program that keep the poor as they are now, "poor".

[jimfrommaine]

I know it's easy to be pessimistic about things especially since spending was already out of control before Katrina. But how many trillions of dollars have great society programs cost us? If the opportunity zones take hold in the gulf region, people all across the nation will want them. And this could lead to the dismantling of the federal bureaucracy. We've got to try to stay optimistic.

[alloysteel]

Shoulda, coulda, woulda. One speech, not given, does not make or break a legacy. Actions do. The vast majority of people are not sufficiently stirred by a speech, but a lot more are motivated by looking at the pictures of the devastation left in the wake of this disaster. At any given time, there is rarely a majority that DO something, but by that minority who feel compelled to alleviate the burden of their fellow man, great things are accomplished.

President Bush is being modest in extolling his own efforts toward the relief of the hurricane victims, and there are those who mistake this reticence to toot his own horn as being somehow "uncaring". They should do so much for the constituency they claim to represent.

[cubreporter]

Oh puleeeezee....Leadership opportunity lost? Is this guy a dim bulb or what?

President Bush has been a leader from day one. He has not lost anything. Stop the whining and stopy the cry baby business. If this person did their job half as good as the President then he would be meaningful. But....

[ConservativeDude]

"My concern here is not just financial or economic, although only a fool would ignore all such concerns. My concern is Freedom."

That view, alas, is not the majority opinion even here at FR, let alone the GOP, let alone the USA.

[roses of sharon]

Dear Mac,

Why not run for office?

Sincerely,

Sick of listening to Whining about Bush, instead of getting out there and attacking the left, their MSM, and being an activist for your cause.

[CyberAnt]

This must be in response to the ABC interviews - where all those black people said they believed the President.

ROTFLOL!! These liberals are so funny.

[hflynn]

I listened to Howard Fineman on IMUS in the morning today. It was a 10 minute Bush bashing of a proportion I have never witnessed before. Probably because I would normally switch channels after 1 or 2 minutes of this sort of thing but for whatever reason I watched the whole unbelievable tirade.

Fineman and IMUS kept referring to Maureen Dowd who rebuked Bush for the disaster in NO with her "brilliant" column "Bush Should Stop Looking For That Bullhorn Moment".

Well IMHO "Dowd Should Stop Looking For That Bull$hit Moment" that every member of the MSM has been looking for since Bush was elected in 2000.

[Mark Felton]

In 1794, when Congress appropriated $15,000 for relief of French refugees who fled from insurrection in San Domingo to Baltimore and Philadelphia, James Madison stood on the floor of the House to object saying, "I cannot undertake to lay my finger on that article of the Constitution which granted a right to Congress of expending, on objects of benevolence, the money of their constituents." -- James Madison, 4 Annals of congress 179 (1794)

"Congress has not unlimited powers to provide for the general welfare, but only those specifically enumerated." --Thomas Jefferson, Letter to Albert Gallatin, 1817

[MNJohnnie]

Overburdened with impassioned rhetoric, very, very very short on any ideas. Have any of these psuedo "Conservatives" bothered to think even for a second about how much this is cost the Feds in direct aid to evacuees and lost Fed Tax Revenues? So what is the SOLUTION? Don't like the Bush plan, what should the GOP Congress be doing? Real plans please, not the absurd "do nothingism" that has been spewed all Free Republic by the Country Club Republicans since Thursday.

How many votes do you think a "Do nothing" plan will get in Congress?

What do you think a "Do nothing" plan will do to Republican electoral chances in 2008? Keep in mind what supposedly happened to Bush's approval numbers during all the "too little too late" media generated hysteria the 1st Week of Sept. Classic Country Club Republicanism posturing as "conservatism". We got ours, as long as we don't need anything Govt should do NOTHING. Funny how quick their "limited Govt" rhetoric gets jettisoned once the topic changes to Gas Prices, Immigration or trade. Then these same "Small Govt Conservatives" start screaming for the most massive, federal Govt imposed Big Govt solution they can think of.

[jmaroneps37]

" I was not very pleased with President Bush’s address to the Nation regarding the coming long-term response to Hurricane Katrina’s aftermath."

You know what? Go suck a lemon you jackass.

[hinckley buzzard]

Nice try. Didn't care much for W's speech myself. Next time though, maybe this buffoon will actually give us "the speech" he implies he woulda/coulda/shoulda given, instead of a handful of kvetches and a few vague banalities.

[deport]

Question; Not that it appears you'll answer or respond.

What is your relationship to Human Events Online?. It seems to be the only source you post from and you very seldom choose to reply within the threads....