Faulty prewar intelligence and a scandal surrounding the indictment of the vice president’s chief of staff and presidential adviser, Scooter Libby, the internal war waged between the intelligence community and Vice President Dick Cheney took the United States into the dark side of war. Working cleverly and quietly, without discussion or debate, the Bush administration launched a worldwide covert operation and global dragnet to snag suspected terrorists. Unfortunately while doing so, the Northern Alliance in Afghanistan (profiting handsomely for their cooperation) and other intel on the ground in Iraq arrested hundreds of innocent people in the process. While in custody, many innocent victims of the war on terror were inhumanely treated and tortured.
The covert operation occurring on the dark side alienated the global community and world at large, ironically causing our former allies to look at the United States itself as uncouth and a bully on an international scale.
Cheney advocating a robust and pre-emptive foreign policy, with all eyes on Iraq and the profitability of its resources and rebuilding (following the invasion, destruction, and occupation), with the compliance and cooperation of former CIA director George Tenet managed to increase his stock shares in Halliburton over 400% during the Bush administration. Incidentally, Halliburton knowing and foreseeing possible culpability for war crimes against humanity, has since relocated its global headquarters outside of U.S. soil and secured its present operation in Dubai.
With Cheney expanding the powers of the vice president and Tenet at the CIA providing “slam dunk” phony intel, questionable intelligence was easily stovepiped and rammed through with warmonger fearful rhetoric to ensure a compliant Congress. Little did the American people know what they were electing during the 2nd term of the Bush administration.
Yet the final four years of the Bush and Cheney junta would be very revealing indeed. Not only would the infamous CIA leak case expose the maneuverings of Cheney and Karl Rove through Scooter Libby, but the head of the justice (or shall we say injustice) department himself, Alberto Gonzales, was brought to the stand to testify about inappropriate maneuverings to illegally wiretap American citizens. Of course Mr. Gonzales when asked to testify suddenly did not recall and many vital documents and emails pertinent to the investigation suddenly were missing. Meanwhile the politicization of justice was occurring as some of the best prosecutors serving the justice department were fired when they wouldn’t comply with Bush political mandates.
The $10 billion a month war in Iraq certainly further enflamed the hatred against us as a people and nation. Yet the people of America themselves were adamantly against the war. Nevertheless Bush was determined to go down in history as a “war president” – that he has accomplished and alienated our allies in the process.
To cap off the Bush administration October, 2008 proved to be a devastating drop in the economy as Wall Street investment financial firms and bank houses declared bankruptcy (that after telling the American people their financials were strong, of course with the help of some clever accounting firms who cooked their books until the very end).
Republican deregulation on Wall Street has definitely taken its toll on the American economy and we the taxpayers shall be made to pay heavily.
Let’s hope and pray President elect Obama can build bridges globally, restore the U.S. economy, and restore the trust of the American people in government.
Paul F. Davis worked on ground zero in New York the week of 9-11 and is the author of United States of Arrogance. Paul F Davis is a world-changer who has touched over 50 countries, more than 50 islands, and 6 continents empowering people throughout the earth to live their dreams!
Paul is the author of 14 books and premier life coach building dreams, transcending limitations, and transforming individuals and organizations. Paul is a change master that knows how to play with pain, while elegantly and humorously navigating through transition to ride the waves of change.
