One would expect a real contrast between Hillary Clinton and George W. Bush. One is a lame duck failing Republican President, the other is an aspiring Democratic presidential candidate. One is as right wing Republican as they get, the other is on the left wing on the Democratic party. So how could one claim that they are similar?
The simple answer is distraction. The public and the media are so focused on the contrasting policies of Hillary and Bush that little is said about their character. Bush is for as little government intervention as possible and belongs to the part of the party that reiterates that whatever the government does the private sector does better. His failures are so large that some see a devious attempt to make the government fail to prove his point. Conspiracy theories aside, the fact is that his performance failed to achieve Republican goals. Launching a war on false pretense, having it stretched beyond our worse predictions, failing to equip our soldiers, treat them well when they return home -- these are merely few of Bush's administration failures. Hillary Clinton, on the other hand, believes in government intervention more than other Democrats. Whereas Bill Clinton pulled the party to the center and enacted policies that limited government aid, Hillary believes in strong government role both in health care and in her recently announced plan to bail our home owners who cannot support their mortgage. In glaring contrast to GW, Hillary is articulate and has a good public presence.
But Bush political failings are not describing his character or the root cause of his failures. They are merely the results. What better describes Bush are his tenacity, unwillingness to compromise, to reach out, to listen to contrarian opinions, to admit a mistake, to change the course. Bush is unchangeable and will pursue his goals against all odds with total disregard to the costs he puts on anyone around him.
If the current Democratic primaries taught us anything, it is that Hillary Clinton is similarly tenacious, unwilling to compromise, to admit mistakes, to give up when odds of winning are so slim as to become unrealistic. She seems to pursue her own interests with total disregard to the damage she inflicts on the Democratic party.
So the question is, if against all odds Hillary Clinton becomes our next President, will we have four more Bush years?
