When did you first realize Bush was Bad?

[madmusic]

For me, that moment came before he was first elected, in 2000, after reading Solon's http://archive.salon.com/politics2000/feature/2000/05/11/bush/index.html">"The hanging governor". Being so indifferent was just too much of a warning sign. Then, of course, when he invaded Iraq and ignored bin Laden, that confirmed he would have no qualms about squandering lives with impunity.

[KingFlorez]

1. When he became Governor of Texas

[blue cat]

3. Me too

I never liked him.

[Frank Cannon]

103. Me three

I saw through his "good ol' boy" bullshit from day one.

[madmusic]

9. That's funny. I'd never really heard of him then.

And knew nothing of his "policies."

[texpatriot2004]

57. Or before, Don't vote for the Son of a Bush has always been my

motto.

[txindy]

66. I don't think many people did that first time.

I will never believe that Ann Richards lost with over a 90% approval rating. That election was their warm-up for theft on a national scale.

[texpatriot2004]

87. Absolutely Right! I agree nm

[Kerrytravelers]

70. I first heard of him when I was watching a report on the Death Penalty

and learned just how many people died under his watch. he seemed a bit to gleeful about it, to me.

[William Bloode]

97. Same here.

At the time the Hangin' Governor was a big story for awhile. I knew he was not the kind of person i want representing me. I was very opposed to him in 2000 mostly due to the above mentioned. Add to that the nasty selection and i've loathed him since.

[SharonAnn]

90. That, then the Election 2000 "recount", then appointing Rumsfield.

When he announced Rumsfield's appointment, I knew we were in for it with the right-wingers. I just didn't have any idea of how bad it would actually be, though I knew it would be bad.

I'd followed his Texas gubernatorial career and there were plenty of bad signs there.

Arrogant, spoiled, shallow, selfish, greedy, petulant, etc. Not what you want for the Presidency of the United States.

[ck4829]

2. 9/11

When I realized that he was exploiting it.

[Liberal Veteran]

4. When I saw the (R) beside his name.

And I make no apologies for it.

[madmusic]

25. No fair. At some point you realized even for the average (R) he was bad.

EDIT: even with that, a typo!

[AlCzervik]

5. when i lived in Texas and he was the gov.

[tblue]

6. When I read Shrub by Molly Ivins

I found out what a shyster he is.

[BrotherBuzz]

35. My first introduction, too

Molly Ivins is a voice I trusted, so her book was a must read.

[tblue]

50. But no one could have anticipated the breach of the CONSTITUTION!

[proud patriot]

88. Me Too

then I read the Bush Deslexicon and then Fortunate Son

[Avalux]

7. When I first heard he would run for Governor here in Texas -

knowig the family, I knew he was bad news. His campaign was nothing less than I expected; dirty as hell, attacking Ann Richards.

[Poll_Blind]

8. I hated him before election but it was his first week in office that...

...sent me through the roof. Monday, cut funding to all planned-parenthood-type organizations which in any way supported abortion as an option. Tuesday, same sort of thing, different issue. Wednesday, same sort of thing, different issue.

  He just went though day by day dismantling stuff. By Wednesday I knew it was going to be a long 4 years.


  How ignorant I was of what would unfold.

  All with "It's a MANDATE!" bullshit...Jesus Christ, it still gets me worked up to think about.


PB

[hwmnbn]

10. Way back when during before the 2000 campaign......

I was sitting in a bar and the news came on. They did a story about the chimp and it was the first I'd heard of him. When they showed his picture, I remarked to some fellow patrons....

"That motherfucker looks like Ted Bundy!"

Those were my exact words. They turned out to be prophetic.

[bedazzled]

80. ted was much handsomer than george!

but the eyes are definitely the same, you've got that right...

[Doctor_J]

96. Bundy only killed 60 or so people

Smirk's going to kill a million before he's done

[grytpype]

11. When he stole the 2000 election.

[malaise]

40. When he said his brother promised him Florida

in 2000.

[MADem]

12. When he announced for the Presidency.

I knew before then that he was an asshole, but frankly my dear, I didn't give a damn! Deepest apologies to the citizens of TX, but since I didn't live there I was unable to fully appreciate or feel their pain. Once the bum announced, I knew that if he did make it (and with Deadeye Dick on his team doing the VP search among other duties) we'd have trouble.

[vogonity]

45. This is when I noticed too...

For me it was seeing that smirk. That fucking, cocky arrogant smirk.

[WorseBeforeBetter]

13. When I first laid eyes on him during the 2000 campaign season.

Those beady eyes, the smirk, the swagger - I knew he was bad news.

[ClintonTyree]

39. Same here....

I NEVER trust anyone who has beady eyes. I think some psychologist should do a study on people who's eyes are too close together, the "beady eyed" syndrome. I've known a lot of those "beady eyed" people in my lifetime and I couldn't trust one of them. My brother included.

[sweetheart]

46. ditto nt

[NNadir]

14. I never thought of him as anything but bad.

The first I heard of him was when he was taking sadistic pleasure in executing people in Texas. I immediately detested him. The execution crap made nauseous.

I could not believe it when he occupied the White House. I didn't think it would prove to quite as terrible as it has proved to be, but I certainly knew it was going to hurt our country and our planet. The magnitude of the disaster is a surprise, but I knew it wouldn't be good.

[misternormal]

15. The first time I saw His chimpy little mug... n/t

[Riddler]

16. As soon as I found out his last name was "Bush" I knew he was a lying POS

[acmavm]

17. Reading all the stories that came out of Texas when he was

governor. But I didn't expect anything else from him because of his breeding (or lack of).

My Dad hated Poopy and he always said that no one, without exception, who was ever head of an intelligence agency should ever be allowed to run for political office, especially the presidency.

My Dad screwed up a lot of things I'll be the first to admit. But he was no dummy. And he was right on this. And I don't know how he knew so much about the man, but he dispised Poopy.

[madmusic]

36. You're dad has a good point. Maybe there should be a law agains that.

And your post reminds me of a Mark Twain quote: "When I was a boy of fourteen, my father was so ignorant I could hardly stand to have the old man around. But when I got to be twenty-one, I was astonished at how much he had learned."

Always get a chuckle out of that.

[txindy]

67. There's plenty to despise, too.

Not many pilots ditch their crew and bail out of a crashing plane while wearing the only parachute. Poppy is so 'special'. :eyes:

[sakabatou]

18. Around the end of 2003.

[thereismore]

19. when I heard his last name. nt

[Straight Shooter]

20. When I saw his photo in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram when I lived in Texas.

I said to myself, "That is a cold man."

He proved it sometime later, with his "Please don't kill me" whiny-voiced mockery of Karla Faye Tucker. At least Karla repented for her crimes. bush never will.

[Marr]

21. When he used a woman's shirt to clean his glasses on Letterman.

This was during the presidential campaign. I remember turning to my friend I was watching TV with and asking what sort of pampered asshole assumes that other peoples' shirts are his cleaning rags.

I had no idea he'd try to turn the country into a totalitarian state back then- let alone succeed. But it was clear to me then that GW Bush was an arrogant, spoiled aristocrat- and not a very bright one.

[in_cog_ni_to]

22. In 2000 when he let daddy's SCOTUS appoint him

when Al Gore actually won the election.

[JohnnyLib2]

23. Like NNadir--it was stories of the Texas executions years ago.

And in my naive way, I thought, "he'll never be nominated."

Should have reread my Mark Twain quotes.

[cali]

29. I'm another

I heard a program on NPR about how he mocked that woman on death row, when she begged for clemency. What a clueless, heartless, fuckhead.

[JitterbugPerfume]

24. I disliked him the first time I was aware of him

it was a visceral thing .

[sarge43]

26. When I saw a picture taken during the primary here in NH

He was in a bus looking out the window. He had a bored contemptuous semi-smirk on his weaselly face. I thought "Oh, oh he doesn't give a damn."

Then I read his bio; the creature hadn't done a worthwhile thing in his life, had faced no challenges, just got by on Daddy's Rolodex and name.

Then, I got my paws on his FOIA military records :nuke:

[sallyseven]

27. The day he was born. A cloud went over my house.

[madmusic]

42. LOL, sure it wasn't 3 clouds?

[sarge43]

53. Wasn't there blood on the moon? n/t

[Jazzgirl]

28. When he ran for Governor in Texas and totally smeared

Ann Richards. I knew he was pigshit then.

JG

[Cameron27]

43. Yep

The Ann Richards smear did it for me too.

[warrior1]

30. He always seem like

a big loser baby to me. I was right.

[boolean]

31. When he was campaigning against McCain

The SCUMBAG Rove tactics were all over the place there.

[Jane Austin]

32. 1993

I'm from Texas and you could see he was Bad News as soon as he came on the scene.

[marlakay]

33. After 9-11

And what he did to Bill Maher. I voted for Gore and was upset at the vote but thought it was the republican machine not him until after 9-11 what he did to Bill and I read the Clarke book and it changed my life politically.

[Clinton Crusader]

34. Election Night 2000

He was NOT ever elected. He was Selected and then a thief.
:mad:

[OnionPatch]

37. When he started the war in Iraq

I was alarmed when the 2000 election seemed to have been stolen, but was a brand-new mother at the time and not paying much attention to politics. When the Bush Cabal used propaganda to start a war with the WRONG country, against the will of most of the world, I knew they were going to do whatever they wanted by any means possible. :scared:

[Yavin4]

38. During the 2000 Campaign

I looked at his resume, and I knew immediately that he wasn't qualified for the job. He was a man that was given EVERYTHING in life from birth, and he did absolutely nothing with it. He had ZERO major accomplishments in life given all that he was given.

For example, when his father was president, the Berlin wall came down, and he never thought once to go over there and see history first hand, even though he had ample opportunity to do so. For me, this was clear that he was a lazy, unmotivated person. I went to school and worked with people like him all of my life, and I cannot stand people who don't take advantage of what's given them in life. And, I especially don't want them to be president.

[CanonRay]

41. When he wore the transmitter during the Gore debate!

That told me he was a cheat and liar.

[Swamp Rat]

44. 1980

[Warpy]

47. 1973

Don't ask.

[Fuzz]

95. But I have to ask now.

:)

[KharmaTrain]

48. When He Bought The Primaries in '99

Some may remember the talking heads kept marvelling at all the money this asshat was raising. The meme was the GOOP wasn't going to nominate another Bob Dole and the Boooosh cabal was hard at work isolating all the big money to freeze out any real primary threat. Repugnicans never had a chance to realy vote on this assclown as by the time the primaries arose he had such a large warchest that he could easily smear and outspend McCain back onto his "bullshit express". The fix was in long before a single vote was cast in the '00 primaries.

[Sugarcoated]

49. It was that debate with McCain, I don't remember which one

but the now well known moment where McCain turned to him and told him how it felt to be smeared, how it hurt him, and Bush just looked so devoid of anything. Character? A soul? Intelligence? There was a big piece of "something" missing from that man. I had alot of respect for John McCain at that time, and to be honest, may have voted for him over Gore (though my hand may have been physically unable to do it). That any politician could smear a man who gave so much for our country disgusted me in to a degree hard to put into words. I remember that moment clearly, I knew I could never support an organization that could think that those ends could justify winning an election. Frankly, if they were capable of such a thing to win against ONE OF THEIR OWN, I was suspicious they could be capable of very bad things.

His inability to answer questions, repeating the same empty phrases to the point of absurdity. No depth, cluelessness of basic facts.

Incompetent and evil.
I had know idea just how right I was.

[Uncle Joe]

51. During the coup of 2000 when his true identity "The Incredible Shrinking Man"

became so apparent as make him invisible to me. Ever since there has been this void in the White House, no President resides there.

[Generic Other]

52. When he got that glint in his eye about the death penalty

I saw the sadistic streak.

[cadmium]

54. It came in stages.

#1 Hearing about smirking over the execution of Tammy F Baker on Larry King. I didn't see it and at the time I doubted he really smirked

#2 During the counting of the votes in 2000, watching how aggressively hae declared victory was a bad signal. He seemed too ambitious.
During the counting of the votes in 2000 listening to his supporters' wrath. The head editorialist of the Eagle-Tribune called Gore a traitor as did callers and talk show hosts all over the country. Bad sign.

#3 The run up to the Iraq war---still in the fall of 2002 it seemed like it was the republican supporting the war fever for the off-year election. The wide spread MSM publicity discrediting the UN inspectors. However, Bush still had plausible deniablility.

#4 The invasion----------------> still could be given the benefit of a doubt if some major threat was discovered. At this point I thought they would plant something. On the other hand, I was open to the fact that Bush was right about the Iraq invasion.

#5 The obvous media complicity was a bad sign--A few too many news stories about the glory of the invasion. Calling Iraqi resistance fighters "terrorists" was a sign of phoniness

#6 The series of domestic bills that were pushed through coinciding with the war, bankruptcy bill, change to labor laws-re overtime, patriot act, etc etc were signs of bad faith.

#7 The jokes about looking for weapons of Mass Destruction before the Correspondants dinner

#8 The election season of 2004.

#9 Katrina--------> revealing absolute disdain for human beings that should have been evident all along

#10 More damaging than simply evil: Formalizing warrantless wire tapping. Defying the Constitution with weakening Habeus Corpus and defying the Geneva convention by approval of torture.

[Mythsaje]

55. Hah...

The first time I heard his name and knew from whence he came.

Another Bush?

My first thought was "dynasty." I trusted not his father--a former CIA man who didn't know we were selling arms to Iran?

Puh-leeze.

They were fed deceptions at their mother's teat, these men. Or, should I say, "disinformation?" I don't have to read their lips to know they're lying.

[GoneOffShore]

56. First time I heard him speak

And realized that he was a shit kicker - not even ambitious enough to be a redneck.

[Solly Mack]

58. I knew the history of the Bush family long before Shrub ever

hit the spotlight.

Nothing good has ever come from that family and nothing ever will.

[abluelady]

59. The first time I heard him open his mouth. eom

[leftofthedial]

60. when he was a fake "oilman"

in Midland

and when I met his brother Neil

[NightOwwl]

61. The first time I saw him...

I knew he was bad news. I could tell just by looking at that smirk, he was a spoiled frat boy who would lie, cheat, steal and sell out his own mother to get what he wanted.

[LNM]

62. When he was governor of Texas

Started hating him after Kyoto.

[LWolf]

63. When he replaced Ann Richards.

To be honest, I never paid any attention to George I's kids before that.

[survivor999]

64. When poppy Chimpy was prez.

[Ignacio Upton]

65. When he ran against McCain in South Carolina

That was one of the most despicable campaign I have ever heard of.

[Liberal In Texas]

68. When he ran for gov. Which is why I keep telling the Kinky supporters

that say the governors position doesn't mean that much anyway, look at where a former governor of Texas is now and what he's doing to the country.

[sandnsea]

71. Presidents don't mean much either

Isn't that what they said in 2000? The President is just a figurehead?? Good god. How can they STILL use that excuse to vote for another idiot?

[Jo March]

69. Some time in late 1998

When his name was starting to be whispered as a potential candidate for president. I did some research on him and it took about 5 minutes to see that he was 1) incompetent and 2) a very, very bad man.

I remember wondering why repubs were so enthusiastic about him. He's failed at every job he's every had, including the current job.

[BlackVelvet04]

72. When I saw a video of him reading "My Pet Goat"....

before that I wasn't paying a lot of attention. I was a newlywed and had just completed a 2,500 mile move and didn't vote in 2000 because I hadn't changed my voter registration.

I bought a copy of Molly Ivins' book Shrub and that pretty much opened my eyes. I found political message boards on the internet and started researching.

[Puglover]

73. The first time I heard the slimy bastard talk.

I admit I had a prejudice to begin with but all I had to do was listen to him for 5 minutes and look at those glittering reptilian eyes and I knew all I needed to know.

[WinkyDink]

74. When I knew he was a Republican.

[Rocknrule]

75. The first time I had ever heard of him

in a Dave Letterman Top 10

[Justice]

76. When I read Molly Ivins' columns about it, and she kept warning us

[MUSTANG_2004]

77. On Sept. 11

When he flew all over the country instead of back to Washington.

[undeterred]

78. When he mocked Karla Tucker as she begged for her life.

I knew he wasn't fit to be governor or hold any elected office.

[Mr_Spock]

79. I had a vision when he was sworn in...

I saw people running in horror in a scene where buildings were broken in half and the sky was smoky and red colored. In the vision it was understood that this was revenge for Bush being elected and the hatred of the Bush family and especially his petulant son.

[bedazzled]

81. when i heard his last name! i couldn't stand his parents, either

right before the election i read an article in vanity
fair that made me alarmed.

and i knew we were in trouble deep as i listened to the
supreme court award him the election. i walked around
in shock for days after that. absolutely amazed that no
one seemed as alarmed as me.

they've destroyed even more than i thought they would.
must've been the extra years they stole.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

82. When I saw the (R) behind his name.

[Hubert Flottz]

83. When his daddy was in office...

[Fuzz]

84. When he got a hard-on, literally, when he got the votes to put him

over the top at the RNC.

The Daily Show showed it, even highlighted it, but I have been unable to find video of it anywhere.

The camera was on him in his hotel room, or wherever he was, the votes to put him over the top were cast, he shifted to his right, a stiffy clearly popped up in his pants, he got a cue from off camera to kiss his wife, he did.

[rucky]

85. When he traded Sammy Sosa. n/t

[StoryTeller]

86. Iraq

It took me a little longer--mainly because I was indifferent and didn't pay attention. At first, I listened to the feel-good stories about him in my conservative church community and bought into that whole lie. But the lead-up to invading Iraq was when I finally started having my eyes opened. It just didn't make any sense. I could tell he had an agenda, but couldn't figure out what. And I hadn't found DU yet, so there was nothing to give me an alternate view at that point.

But Iraq was definitely the turning point for me.

[spanone]

89. Watched every debate in 2000. He was pathetic. Worse than pathetic. Incompetent.

[roamer65]

91. 1988

That's when I realized it was the "Bush Crime Family". Poppy and Neil Bush back then. With Raisinbrain, I figured he wouldn't fall very far from the crime family tree. His degree of incompetence and lying, however, has surprised me. Must be all the drug use and the genetics in tandem.

[Generic Brad]

92. When I learned he mocked a woman who was scheduled to be executed

That was before he cheated in 2000.

[wellst0nev0ter]

93. During High School Debates

Back when Bush was campaigning in 2000, the topic was Bush or Gore. I was always afraid of arguing for Bush, because I was at a loss of anything to say that would merit his election. The only arguments were "tax cuts are AWESOME!" or "privitising Social Security makes perfect sense." Of course when the other team gets Bush, they score most of their points by smearing Gore ("duh, he's a liar, he said he invent the internets").

His thin record as Texas state governor didn't help much either. I could unfurl a scroll and roll off the number of categories Texas was last or the bottom of among states. So I knew Bush was bad news from the beginning.

[FedUpWithIt All]

94. Watching the 2000 election unfold...

it occurred to me that something was very wrong. My opinion of him was formed when i watched him stand by while the voice of the people was being ignored.

[951-Riverside]

98. When I first saw him in 1999 I knew he was bad but I didnt think he would win

[dailykoff]

99. It's been a steady accumulation of horror.

I cut him some slack on 9/11 before I realized that it was also one of Junior's atrocities.

[FyurFly]

100. When he played top gun and declared mission accomplished ...

and troops were still dieing on the battlefield

[wildflowergardener]

101. Iraq

When he invaded Iraq - using 9-11 as an excuse to attack a country that didn't attack us and didn't even have anything to do with 9-11. That was the first in a long long series of things I couldn't believe he'd do - which just keep getting worse and worse - now I pretty much believe he'll do anything.

Also reading Al Franken's lies and liers book was a big eye opener for me. Also Air America radio. I watched Fox news during the beginning of the Iraq war - not knowing how slanted they were.

Meg

[ribrepin]

102. When I saw what happened in florida.

That's when I first saw the "My way or the highway" attitude.

[agincourt]

104. 2000, when I heard the ditto-pig

praising him on my local radio station.

[Neshanic]

105. Not me but his Mothra mom may have thought the prehensile tail was...

not a good start.

[SunDrop23]

106. As soon as I learned his party affiliation (nfm)

[grasswire]

107. so many people tried to stop his election and selection

I was part of the group posting over at Salon's Table Talk. How we tried in 2000 to force the media to cover his TANG desertion. How we tried. It was heartbreaking that the media refused to cover the story. It wasn't until the week before the election that Senator Bob Kerrey actually understood the meaning of Bush's AWOL status and called a press conference on that Friday afternoon. He was there with other holders of the Congressional Medal of Honor. Max Cleland. Sen. Inouye, too. They challenged Bush to explain his absence from the National Guard.

But before the press could pick this up and run with it, the DUI story obliterated the AWOL story. It was one of Karl Rove's most successful moves.

The man who had worked so hard to expose the AWOL story was an Iowa pig farmer named Marty. He filed the FOIAs. He compiled the information and fed it to those of us who made thousands of phone calls, e-mails, personal visits to Congressional offices, etc. Marty, an American hero who did the work of the press corps -- the press corps that refused to cover the story that the man who would be commander in chief had abandoned his post of duty during wartime.

Anyway, I knew in 1999 that Bush was a skunk. And when he was SELECTED and sworn in, I said this: "He cannot govern; he can only rule."

Unfortunately, I was right.

[Marie26]

108. Letterman appearance

Making mean, odd jokes about Letterman's heart surgery, wiping his glasses on Letterman's producer; it all showed a mindset of seeing people as objects to be used, derided or discarded. That's when I first thought that there was something really wrong w/this guy.

[Kerrytravelers]

109. I remember the first time I saw him.

I just thought he looked like a little spoiled brat.

I could not believe he became their nominee- especially when they had mccain running. Now, I understand how he got the nom. $$$$ and dirty tricks against mccain and others.

[clyrc]

110. I lived in Midland, Texas in 1998

I got to see his loathsome campaign commercials. He was slouching in one particular commercial, talking about people who believe life is all about having fun and not taking responsibility for their lives. I wanted to vomit then, but now when I think of it, it makes me furious.

[Thegonagle]

111. Just after the 2000 election, when he demanded that the votes

NOT be counted. I thought, WTF, something is very, very wrong.

Also, my mother saw the war coming as soon as B*sh started appointing Reagan and G.H.W. B*sh cabinet to his own cabinet. Sadly, she was right.

[FrenchieCat]

112. The first time I laid eyes on him.........and not one second after!

[lpbk2713]

113. The Y2K primary campaigns

I really couldn't believe how someone that stupid could be running for office on a national level. It taught me a lot about the demographic of the rethuglican voter.Obviously they saw something in him they could identify with. Stupidity.

[Skittles]

114. when he became governor of my state

I've seen through that incompetent little shit since day one

[Bad Penny]

115. When he was Texas governor

the record death row executions stood out, even though I didn't pay much if any attention to what else was going on with bush in Texas, I got a very creepy feeling down my back the day he announced he was running for president. every nerve in my body was saying 'danger!' 'danger!'
I just could feel things were going to be underhanded on an unprecented scale if he became prez. The 2000 election confirmed my worries. I'll never forget the image of the little hitler arrogantly swaggering and gloating for the cameras when the election results were still being contested. Everything about him indicated he cared nothing for the democratic process and saw the white house as his birthright. He knew it was being fixed for him by the Supreme Court. We were about to embark on a very dark journey I thought then and it's been nothing short of a bus hijacking since.

And god only knows what kind of destruction he has yet to inflict

[madmusic]

116. Kick for the Sunday crowd

[yurbud]

117. "watch what you say" by Ari Fleischer after 9/11

Before that, Bush just seemed like an incompetent, mean-spirited fuck, and I was expecting a C student rerun of his dad's presidency. Instead, we got a combination of Gordon Gecko, Elmer Gantry, and Charles Manson in charge.