“Abysmal.” “Unrealistic.” “Unwise.” Liberals and Democrats who utter these words are derided as “Bush haters.” But when such epithets come from Republicans, including some of the most important conservative figures of the last few decades, a different insult is often appropriate: “hypocrites.” On issue after issue, conservatives have watched this president betray their hopes and, worse, make future progress all the more difficult. Yet few have followed these complaints to their logical conclusion.
What follows is a list of some -- but by no means all -- of the public criticisms of the Bush administration issued by prominent figures all along the right half of the political spectrum. With three notable exceptions, the people on this list have explicitly or tacitly supported George W. Bush's re-election, raising the questions: Have they seen reasons to think another four years would be any better than the first? or are they putting party loyalty or personal interest above what they believe to be America's best interest?
Foreign Policy
"In the lead-up to the Iraq War and its later conduct, I saw at a minimum, true dereliction, negligence, and irresponsibility; at worst, lying, incompetence, and corruption." -- retired General Anthony Zinni, from the book “Battle Ready”, published May 24
“There is little goodwill left in Iraq. The United States government has managed to squander it.” -- Michael Rubin, former political adviser to the Coalition Provisional Authority, August 19
“I think it's a total nightmare and disaster, and I'm ashamed that I went against my own instincts in supporting it.” -- Tucker Carlson, host of Tucker Carlson: Unfiltered, May 12
"This is incompetence in the administration." -- Senator Richard Lugar, September 19
“Your words lacked the minimal dose of honesty a leader owes his nation in times of crisis.” -- Jim Hoagland, Washington Post columnist, May 25
“The handful of valiant American warriors fighting the ‘other' war in Afghanistan is not a happy band of brothers. They are undermanned and feel neglected, lack confidence in their generals, and are disgusted by Afghan political leadership. Most important, they are appalled by the immense but fruitless effort to find Osama bin Laden for purposes of U.S. politics.” -- Robert Novak, syndicated columnist, May 31
“This war, vital as it is, has been exploited by the Bushies for political purposes since it began.” -- Andrew Sullivan, conservative columnist, September 7
“The public rhetoric from the Bush administration remains decidedly unrealistic.” -- Christopher Preble, director of foreign-policy studies at the Cato Institute, August 4
“I believe it is an unnecessary war; it is an unwise war. The United States, by invading that country and taking over its capital, we have inflamed the entire Middle East and Arab and Islamic world. American prestige and support for the president and the United States has never been lower in that part of the world.” -- Pat Buchanan, former Reform Party presidential candidate, September 5
“It was a mistake to launch that military action.” -- Representative Doug Bereuter, August 19
“It turned out to be even worse than I anticipated.” -- Francis Fukuyama, political-science professor at Johns Hopkins University, August 25
“Is America better off as a result of our war in Iraq? The young men and women who were hurt or killed certainly are no better off. Their families are no better off. Taxpayers are no better off. Whether we are safer from terrorism here at home is an open question.” -- Representative Ron Paul, March 22
Economics
“Bush's record on spending restraint has been abysmal” -- Stephen Moore, president of the Club for Growth, June 18
“Republicans have clearly forfeited any claim of being the fiscally responsible party in Washington." -- Veronique de Rugy, visiting fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, June 18
“Republicans are swiftly forfeiting the perception that they are especially responsible stewards of government finances.” -- George F. Will, syndicated columnist, February 8
“The problem is that the original objective of tax cutting has been completely forgotten. Republicans now promote tax cuts simply for their own sake, with no concern for their structure, economic impact, or fiscal consequences. As a result, I think they are creating a grave mess that eventually is going to have terrible repercussions.” -- Bruce Bartlett, senior fellow at the National Center for Policy Analysis, July 26
"The period these people have been in power is a period when very little economic initiative has been coming out of the White House." -- Donald Luskin, National Review Online contributing editor, August 23
"I would be surprised if more than half the people in the room actually wrote checks for him.” -- Tucker Andersen, Club for Growth, June 6
General aptitude
"It doesn't look like the White House is as astute as we thought they were.'' -- Richard Viguerie, president of American Target Advertising, April 19
“Truth be told, I'm fairly disgusted with the GOP these days. Again, I think conservatives sacrificed a lot when we bought into the notion that the president of the United States doesn't need to be an effective communicator. Yes, it's nice to know that Bush's gut instincts are often right (though they're also often left), but his inability or unwillingness to make serious arguments hurts. And that style informs the GOP style across the board these days.” -- Jonah Goldberg, editor-at-large of The National Review, July 8
“[T]hey don't reach out to Democrats, which I think is astounding. And, again, at a time the president and his team need a lot of clearheaded advice, experienced advice, it seems to me -- for the good of the country, and to develop some precision and quality in our policy -- that you would want other points of view. This administration does not do that.” -- Senator Chuck Hagel, May 23
“The president talked about being humble when he was running for office, but the opposite seems to be true." -- Senator Lincoln Chafee, May 24
“Bush is the least knowledgeable president in modern times.” -- Nicholas Berry, director of the Foreign Policy Forum, April 23
“It bothers me enormously. Should I growl?” -- William F. Buckley, founder of The National Review, June 29
The Disendorsements
"I said I would vote Republican. Write-in counts. I'm voting for my party, not necessarily for Bush." -- Senator Lincoln Chafee, September 20
“If the war was the only issue - and the fiscal lunacy, social intolerance, and institutional arrogance were not also in play -- I might have to swallow hard and go for Bush. But a vote for wimping out in Fallujah, bigger government, and the social policy of James Dobson? Please. Bush's crude, see-no-problems campaign has also done a lot to persuade me that he's not up to the job.” -- Andrew Sullivan, September 21
“If those that were responsible for what happened in Iraq, the neoconservatives and others come back, I would have difficulty supporting the administration. I did support it last time, I am a Republican by party affiliation, and so I haven't made a decision.” -- retired General Anthony Zinni, August 2
Jeffrey Dubner is the Prospect's associate Web editor.
