RateItAll: The Opinion Network

Never had any doubt about it. Democrats still cannot recover from the 2004 defeat. Bad losers they are.

Some of it certainly it is. Lots of people hated Clinton simply because of who he was, not his policies. The same is true of Bush. Bush's presidency, however, has been a disaster by any objective standard. There is good reason to criticize his irresponsible economic and foreign policies, as well as his administration's relentless dishonesty and incompetence. I don't believe that Bush is either stupid or crazy, nor do most people who criticize him. Had he chosen more intelligent, less deluded advisors (James Baker, Colin Powell) Bush might have had a modestly successful, moderate-conservative presidency. This has not been the case.

Somewhat true but mostly it's due to the fact that he is incompetent and is surrounded by a pack of warmongers.

There may be truth to this in some cases, but this happens to all public figures of any type here and abroad throughout history. And some use this allegation as a defense against any and all criticism of his statements and policies.

I would say this argument was true up until the last few months when it seems that Republicans have been disagreeing with him more as well.

Sorry,but you can't blame Bushs critics for his glaring defects.In fact,when Bush first got into office,I was optimistic about him.I remember telling friends he might suprise me and get my vote for a second term."He can't be THAT bad" I said to someone who foresaw the worst and told me "That man is going to get us into a War". Speaking of "Personal,Partisan Hatred"-what's up with blaming slick Willie for every screw-up comitted by Cheney,Rummy and Bush?

Strangely, I probably would actually LIKE Bush on a personal level. If I met him would probably share a joke or two or have a brief conversation (then the secret service would stuff me into a black van and drive me out to the desert and bury me, but c'est la vie.) It's just his politics, family, intolerance and philosophy I am utterly opposed to. Other than that, great guy! :-)

Absolute cop-out used by people who have no defense for the list of lies and mistakes by this administration- and hating people that butcher the language in an embarrassing fashion, hating people who start wars in the wrong territories on falsehoods, people who have no respect for civil liberties will (and always) be treated with disdain.

This is a defense of an administration? Ridiculous.

Sure, there's a lot of partisanship out there, but when you're at 29% approval, the criticism is far more broad-based. Bush faces the potential of losing his a good portion of his conservative base.

Surprisingly, I've been accused of this, and have heard the word "hatred" bandied about with great alacrity recently, but I think it's a bogus, hypocritical charge made by those who, at this point in time at least, have precious little of substance in their arsenal of vituperation. After years of a campaign of concentrated hatred against Bill Clinton (and they still can't let go of it), they act with disingenuous shock and sputtering "outrage" that such an unsightly emotion could enter the arena of American politics. How silly! When Bush was first elected, I can't say my feelings about him were positive, but there was no personal animus involved, even though his record as Governor of Texas was deplorable. He seemed like nothing more than an opportunistic political hack, trading in on his family connections, but that certainly didn't make him unique in this country. In fact, I felt a bit sorry for him, thinking he was getting in way over his head. He had my support after 9/11, and he had the support of most of the civilized world. Several years later, after thousands of lives have been lost, soldiers and civilians maimed, billions of dollars gone with the wind, the international situation more perilous and unstable than its ever been, I think "hatred" is a natural reaction to the mess he and his handlers have made. Indeed, I think those who continue to give Bush and his people a free pass all these years later are suffering from personal problems far more complex and profound than simple "hatred". And, I might add, conservatives accusing other people of "hatred" is deceit of the most craven kind. After all, they've been perfecting the fine art of "hatred" since the days of FDR. Sort of the pot calling the kettle black, in my humble opinion.

I think in some cases, this might be true. I know some people who can't even watch President Bush speak without going into a rage.

However, I think it's a cop-out to overuse this defense. So you feel that Bush's failure to veto any of the obscene spending bills coming out of congress is bad for the country? Oh, it's because you just hate George Bush (you stupid liberal).

So you're morally opposed to wars of choice? That's because you personally dislike President Bush, not because you've rationally thought about the issue.

It's not the worst defense, but when overused, it can be laughable.