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Nov. 6, 2009
Rabbi Berel Wein: Choosing to hear
JWisdom.com Zero to 1/60th: How to Empower An Hour with Gavriel Aryeh Sande (7 minutes)
Caroline B. Glick The mullahs' big week
Suzanne Fields A Fallen Wall for Fallen Man
Nov. 5, 2009
The Kosher Gourmet: Three scrumptious -- but simple -- butternut squash dishes
JWisdom.com Hidden Hints: Unlocking Faith & Prayer with Rabbi Jay Yaacov Schwartz (10 minutes)
Nov. 4, 2009
Tom Hamburger and Kim Geiger: Should prayers be covered?
JWisdom.com When God played peacemaker With Rabbi Sroy Levitansky (5 minutes)
Nov. 3, 2009
Martin Peretz: Beware, Barack. Beware, Rahm. Beware, Axelrod
JWisdom.com Are you are closet idolater? With Sara Yoheved Rigler (10 minutes)
Nov. 2, 2009
Paul Greenberg: The Holocaust is now on Facebook
JWisdom.com Abraham's Strange Change With Rabbi Yitzchok Fingerer (5 minutes)
Oct. 30, 2009
Rabbi David Aaron: Secret to Immortality
Caroline B. Glick Silencing dissent in America
Oct. 29, 2009
Lini S. Kadaba: Do tactics avert flu or reduce humanity?
JWisdom.com We Must Revamp our Religious Vocabulary With Gavriel Aryeh Sanders ( 10 minutes)
Oct. 28, 2009
Rabbi Yonason Goldson: Atheists in Bubbleland
JWisdom.com Why what we wear impacts who we are With Rabbis Mordechai Becher, Menachem Golberger and Aliza Bulow ( 10 minutes)
Oct. 27, 2009
Paul Greenberg: The United Nations Is Outraged Again, Or: Department of Mideast Static
JWisdom.com The Science of Love With Rabbi Jonathan Rietti ( 7 minutes)
Oct. 26, 2009
The Jewish Ethicist by Rabbi Dr. Asher Meir: Damaging disclosures with a twist
JWisdom.com Wisdom and Wonks With Rabbi Eytan Feiner ( 7 minutes)
Oct. 23, 2009
Rabbi David Aaron: Are you ready for the ultimate pleasure?
JWisdom.com Watermark and oneness with Rabbi Sroy Levitansky ( 4 minutes)
Caroline B. Glick Stop using limited powers in a way that expands our enemies' advantages over us
Oct. 22, 2009
Steven Emerson: Terror Cases Share Desire to Kill Americans
JWisdom.com No More More Family Fights --- Really? By Sarah Chana Radcliffe ( 5 minutes)
Oct. 21, 2009
Tonya Alanez: Holocaust denier sues survivor, calling Auschwitz memoir 'vicious lies'
JWisdom.com Meditating Jewishly: A Panacea for Success by Sarah Yoheved Rigler ( 7 minutes)
Oct. 20, 2009
Dennis Prager: Obama and Dalai Lama: Why Israel Worries about U.S. President
JWisdom.com Abraham was not religious By Rabbi Yitzchok Fingerer ( 6 minutes)
Oct. 19, 2009
JWisdom.comWhy Good People Do Bad Things By Rabbi Eytan Feiner ( 7 minutes)
Oct. 16, 2009
Rabbi Yonason Goldson: The Perfect Number
JWisdom.com Hearing Voices By Rabbi Sroy Levitansky ( 5 minutes)
Caroline B. Glick How Turkey was lost
Oct. 15, 2009
Jeff Jacoby: Peace vs. the 'peace process'
JWisdom.com: Former MTV producer and stand-up comedian Rabbi Lawrence Hajioff: Taming a Control Freak (A VERY fast 15 minutes)
Oct. 29, 2003
Mortimer B. Zuckerman: Graffiti On History's Walls (MUST-READ!)

Jewish World Review January 30, 2008 / 23 Shevat 5768

This President's appropriately modest agenda

By Robert Robb

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http://www.JewishWorldReview.com | The state of the union is much better than the state of George W. Bush's presidency.


Although the country currently has an economic headache, the recovery from the triple hit of the dot.com bubble, recession and the 9/11 attacks was remarkable.


The economic recovery produced strong revenue growth for the federal government which has resulted in an essentially balanced budget. The deficit is less than what the federal government is spending in large capital purchases, which are customarily financed by state and local governments.


The surge in Iraq has significantly reduced the violence, created civic living space in much of the country, and renewed hope for the country's future.


Perhaps most important of all, there has not been another domestic terrorist attack since 9/11.


Yet Bush's approval ratings are abysmal and every public opinion poll indicates that the country wants a change in direction. Why the large disconnect between the reality of the country's situation during Bush's presidency and public opinion regarding his stewardship?


Part of it is due to factors beyond Bush's control.


Due to globalization, the pace of the creative destruction that is an inherent part of a market economy has quickened. Jobs are created and eliminated more rapidly. People are feeling economically insecure.


Some of the traditional bridges to the middle class for those without a college education — manufacturing and construction — have weakened. For manufacturing, it has been primarily a result of mechanization and productivity gains and only secondarily off-shoring. For construction, it is largely a result of the depressive effect of uncontrolled immigrant labor on wages.


Incomes have been rising, particularly after-tax income due to the Bush tax cuts. However, inflation is eating away the gains.


Inflation has been very rampant in health care and higher education, two markets substantially influenced by government. However, general consumer inflation is now over four percent.


While these factors are largely outside of Bush's ability to influence, he didn't use his bully pulpit to address and explain them and perhaps adopt more extensive and broadly-based cushioning programs, such as retraining accounts. The predominant attitude coming out of the Bush administration was that the sense of anxiety was irrational; the economy was doing fine. Of course, by rushing into an emergency stimulus package, the administration is flashing neon signs that the economy is not fine.


Meanwhile, the Fed is taking action that will exacerbate the inflation problem.


This has been a Bush tendency. Avoid hard discussions, such as why tax cuts for the wealthy are economically important. And when hard discussions cannot be avoided, paper them over with a political solution. If economic anxiety has reached a politically unavoidable level, throw $150 billion at the population.


On Iraq, things might be going better. But the American people still believe that the enterprise hasn't been worth its cost.


Bush's political persona has also not worn well. The Texas swagger doesn't match the American sense of uncertainty and unease on many fronts.


And after seven years, the lecturing style of Bush's speech-making grates. His State of the Union address was full of things Congress "must" do. His foreign policy speeches are full of things other sovereign countries "must" do.


Well, Bush may have identified things Congress and other countries ought to do, or that it would be beneficial for them to do. But they are independent entities. Enacting the Bush agenda is not a "must" for them.


I should cheer Bush finally getting tough on spending and earmarks. But I just can't work up that much enthusiasm or appreciation. The fact that he only found a backbone on spending after Democrats took over Congress just makes it too hypocritical and hollow.


American politicians rarely leave the stage gracefully. But the modesty, in substance if not in length, of Bush's State of Union address suggests he might manage the process better than most.


Stripped to its essence, this was Bush's pitch: I have some things I need to say politically. But the bottom line is this: please don't pull the rug out from under me on Iraq and don't rob me of the surveillance capability to protect the country against terrorist attack.


That's an appropriately modest agenda for a man who retains power but has lost persuasion.

Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in in the media and Washington consider "must-reading". Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.

JWR contributor Robert Robb is a columnist for The Arizona Republic. Comment by clicking here.

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