Difference between revisions of "Bill Clinton vs. George W. Bush"

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| doubled the [[wikipedia:United States Border Patrol|Border Patrol]] early in his first term || severely cut Border Patrol funds{{footnote|1}}
 
| doubled the [[wikipedia:United States Border Patrol|Border Patrol]] early in his first term || severely cut Border Patrol funds{{footnote|1}}
 
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| style="background: #eeeeee;" | Subject of lying
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| Lied about his [[Clinton's bad behavior|personal life]] while under oath.
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| his [[Clinton's bad behavior|personal life]]
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| [[Bush's lies|lied about important matters of state]]
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| [[Bush's lies|significant matters of state]]
 
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| style="background: #eeeeee;" | Severity of lying
 
| charged with [[wikipedia:perjury|perjury]]{{footnote|2}} (lying under oath)
 
| charged with [[wikipedia:perjury|perjury]]{{footnote|2}} (lying under oath)
 
| aforesaid lies were merely official statements and not under oath
 
| aforesaid lies were merely official statements and not under oath

Revision as of 17:05, 26 September 2006

Overview

Defenders of George W. Bush sometimes argue that Bill Clinton set a new (lower) standard for presidential behavior. While this is at best a "he did it first" argument, and more likely just changing the subject, it is worth setting the record straight on the matter in order to minimize the amount of time spent being sidetracked.

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Related Pages

Specific Points

Bill Clinton George W. Bush
doubled the Border Patrol early in his first term severely cut Border Patrol funds1
Subject of lying his personal life significant matters of state
Severity of lying charged with perjury2 (lying under oath) aforesaid lies were merely official statements and not under oath
charged with obstruction of justice2 informally accused of attempted destruction of Democracy
Economy "It's The Economy, Stupid"
Average annual GDP growth 3.6% 2.6%
Non-farm employment added 22.7 million jobs added 3 million jobs
(worst record of any US president in 70 years)
Unemployment 7.3% -> 4.2% 4.2% -> 4.7%
Real median household income grew by $5,825 fell by $1,273
poverty rate fell 3.5% (6.4 million fewer people) rose 1.3% (5.4 million more people)
S&P 500 + 308% (435.49 -> 1342.54) - 2.1% (1342.54 -> 1314.78 as of 9/22/06)
NASDAQ + 395% (700.77 -> 2770.38) - 20% (2770.38 -> 2218.93 as of 9/22/06).
Federal Spending as % of GDP 22.1% (fiscal 1992) to 18.4% in 2000 back up to 20.8% (fiscal 2006)
total executive branch employment
does not include classified numbers for CIA, DIA, NSA, & other intelligence agencies; does not include outsourced jobs 		down by almost 450,000 (2.225 million -> 1.778 million) up by almost 100,000 (to 1.872 million).
Federal Debt deficit of $290 billion —> surplus of $236 billion (fiscal 2000) increased by almost $3 trillion (as of 2006)
Public Debt as % of GDP -16.4% +4.4%

See also Balkans vs. Iraq

Note 1

"savagely cut funds [to the Border Patrol, and continued] cutting till the border tsunami began bothering even his most loyal redstate supporters"[1], leading to the 2006 immigration crisis

Note 2

These charges were made by Republican-led congress but acquitted by the Democrat-led Senate, a decision which many (especially but not exclusively Republicans) disagreed with vehemently.

Bumper Stickers

"No children died / when Clinton lied." – seen 2006-09-22

Quotes

"Republicans used to observe derisively that Clinton had a difficult relationship with the truth. Bush has a difficult relationship with the truth, too. It's just a different – and perhaps more grave – kind of difficulty." – William Saletan

Links

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