Free Republic

A former White House speechwriter, Mark Thiessen, has jumped to the defense of his former boss, writing for the Washington Post that George W. Bush “established a conservative record without parallel.” Even by the loose standards of Washington, that is a jaw-dropping assertion. I’ve been explaining for years that Bush was a big-government advocate, even writing a column back in 2007 for the Washington Examiner pointing out that Clinton had a much better economic record from a free-market perspective. I also groused to the Wall Street Journal the following year about Bush’s dismal performance. “Bush doesn’t have a conservative legacy”...

An energized George W. Bush laid out plans for his public policy institute – and appointed its first fellows -at SMU today. My colleagues Devin Dwyer and Evan Harris report on a man who didn’t seem to miss flying to the APEC Conference today: “I Went Against My Free-Market Instincts” That’s what former President Bush said today in explaining why he signed off on the bailout for Wall Street…calling the decision “one of the most difficult of his presidency.” The former President made the remarks at the unveiling of the George W. Bush Presidential Center at Southern Methodist University. “I...

Yesterday I happened upon a post by a fellow FReeper. In retrospect, I am sorry for responding rudely to their post - and I hope they happen upon this apology. The post was presenting their heartfelt opinion that American industry and our system itself must be allowed to come apart so that something better can replace it. It was a Rand-ian position. The system is becoming oppressive, therefore we must weaken it.

Anyone worried that, once in charge, Democrats wouldn’t be vigilant in protecting our southern border can relax. The grave threat of Mexican long-haul truckers has been shut down. With any luck, Mexicans will never have the temerity to attempt to deliver commercial goods into the United States again. At least such is the fervid hope of the Teamsters, the fiercest adversary the Mexicans have faced since Pres. James Polk sent Winfield Scott south in the Mexican-American War. The union can’t abide Mexican trucks because they represent competition, and so they must be blocked — legal obligations, economic rationality, and diplomatic...

Bush: Obama Is Doing Just Fine You probably wouldn’t expect former President George W. Bush, in his first speech since leaving office, to praise his successor. But that’s exactly what he did Tuesday. In a folksy address to 1,400 people in Canada, he expressed confidence in President Obama’s ability to mend the economy and financial system, Jason Enns, a financial advisor who attended the speech, told Bloomberg. Media weren’t allowed at the event. “He told us: ‘Wall Street had a big party and now we’re dealing with their hangover,’” Enns says. Enns said Bush told the audience that he expects...

.S. Hiking Fines For Illegal Immigrant Hiring by 25 Percent Friday , February 22, 2008 WASHINGTON — The government says it will raise by 25 percent the fines it will levy against employers who knowingly hire illegal immigrants. Attorney General Michael Mukasey and Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff announced the increase, which is the first boost in fines in nearly a decade. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the federal agency responsible for investigating illegal hirings, has stepped up its enforcement of the employer sanctions law in the past year,

Bush: Iran must halt Iraq actions 'at once'... Developing...

(CBS) CHICAGO Former U.S. House Speaker Dennis Hastert is in Asia, but he's scheduled a news conference in Kendall County for Friday. CBS 2 Political Editor Mike Flannery reports exclusively sources say that they expect Hastert to announce he will not seek re-election next year. In personal terms, it's been a big year for him and wife, Jean. Denny Hastert turned 65, and the couple just welcomed their first grandchild, Jack Hastert, to the family. He also had to surrender the speaker's gavel to a Democrat. While sources tell CBS 2 that he’s leaving Congress after 22 years, he’s ridiculed...

YOU might be a Stupid American IF? 10. you don't know how many Legal Americans died at the hands of Illegal Aliens everday. 9. you can't name the three branches of government. 8. you believe "Big Oil" makes the most profit off gas. 7. you think it takes a village (the gov't.) to raise a child 6. you don't know the difference between Shiite and Sunni Muslims. 5. you don't know how many inmates are illegal aliens in the U.S. prison system. 4. you don't know the difference of socialism. 3. you think more American Troops die everyday in Iraq...

Given W’s untreatable Mexican fetish, it may be prudent to simply shove him out of Air Force One, swaddled in a golden parachute, somewhere over Mexico City. Remember, the man is nearly 61 years old, and is obviously growing weary and older by the minute. And why shouldn’t he be burned out? After all, actively helping millions of illiterate peasants to invade America is hard work that would wear anyone out! Even more taxing: Trying to explain away that invasion as good for the U.S. economy and pretending that is in the national interest to grant amnesty and a path...

Now that the president has tried to revive the comatose Senate amnesty bill, at least as big a question as whether he can bring it back to life is why on earth he would want to. Sure, he wants a win, because he hasn't had one lately. Sure, he wants a (gulp) legacy, because it's that clock-ticking time in his second term. But why this particular attempted win, which his political base sees only as betrayal? Why this hoped-for legacy, which would eliminate him from any conservative pantheon? "It's a very emotional issue." That's what the president says by way...

A spokeman for the Bush administration sent an e-mail to Jim Robinson and myself confirming the authenticity of a post on Free Republic this afternoon regarding the immigration bill currently before the Senate as having been posted on behalf of the White House.The spokesman, Nicholas Thompson, works for the White House Office of Strategic Initiatives. The Politico reported yesterday that Thompson and Kerrie Rushton, associate directors in the Office of Strategic Initiatives who work under Karl Rove, would be engaging the blogosphere on the immigration bill.Thompson's post is on the thread titled Penalty Mitigation in the Immigration Reform Bill, a...

The Presidency: Burdened by a Democratic Congress that can't see beyond the next election, at least the U.S. is blessed with a president with the ability to see a better future and the courage to take risks to achieve it. His father didn't have the vision thing, but fortunately it's one trait that didn't skip the son's generation. Bush the younger sees a world where democracy is the wave of the future, and an ownership society where people aren't at the mercy of politicians bribing them with their own money.

WASHINGTON — President George W. Bush pulled the plug on the nomination of Clayton businessman Sam Fox to be ambassador to Belgium after learning just minutes before Wednesday's confirmation hearing that Democrats had the votes to defeat him. A solid wall of Democrats on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee planned to oppose Fox because of his donations to the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth, which denigrated the Vietnam War service of 2004 Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry, a panel member. On Tuesday, veterans who served with Kerry wrote panel members urging them to oppose the nomination. "My understanding is the...

White House Withdraws Nominee Fox - Gave to 2004 Anti-Kerry 'Swift Boat' Group WASHINGTON (March 28) - President Bush on Wednesday withdrew the ambassadorial nomination of businessman Sam Fox after Democrats denounced Fox for giving money to a controversial conservative group that undermined Sen. John Kerry's 2004 presidential campaign. Kerry, D-Mass., had criticized Fox because of a $50,000 contribution that Fox made in 2004 to the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth. Many Democrats blame the group for sinking Kerry's presidential hopes that year after it aired a series of controversial ads that impugned Kerry's military record in the Vietnam War.