Terrorism, War, and Bush 43: Crash Course US History #46

Summary

This CrashCourse video explores the 21st-century U.S. history, focusing on George W. Bush's presidency, the controversial 2000 election, the 9/11 attacks, and the subsequent War on Terror. It also covers domestic policies like the No Child Left Behind Act and the USA PATRIOT Act, highlighting the challenges of balancing security with civil liberties.

Takeaways

• 🏛️ The 2000 U.S. presidential election was highly controversial, with Al Gore winning the popular vote but losing the electoral vote to George W. Bush, largely due to the contested results in Florida.
• 🌐 George W. Bush's presidency focused on a 'Compassionate Conservative' agenda, aiming to unite religious and fiscal conservatives, and his policies included tax cuts, education reform, and opposition to the Kyoto Protocol.
• 🛡️ The Bush administration's foreign policy was significantly shaped by the events of September 11, 2001, leading to the declaration of a 'War on Terror' and the Bush Doctrine, which asserted that nations either supported the U.S. or were complicit with terrorists.
• 🌟 The U.S. invasion of Afghanistan in 2001 aimed to topple the Taliban regime and disrupt al-Qaeda, leading to the establishment of a new Afghan government but also a resurgence of the Taliban by 2007.
• 🔍 The 'Axis of Evil' speech by Bush in 2002 labeled Iran, Iraq, and North Korea as threats, setting the stage for the 2003 invasion of Iraq, which was justified by claims of weapons of mass destruction and links to terrorism.
• 💔 The aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in 2005 exposed significant failures in disaster response and management, highlighting racial and economic disparities and contributing to a loss of public confidence in the Bush administration.
• 📈 Economic challenges during Bush's presidency included a recession in 2001, a 'jobless recovery,' and a manufacturing job decline, culminating in a net loss of jobs, the first since Herbert Hoover.
• 🛑 The USA PATRIOT Act expanded government surveillance and law enforcement powers in the name of counter-terrorism, leading to widespread controversy and concerns about civil liberties.
• 🏆 George W. Bush was re-elected in 2004, despite a contentious first term marked by war, economic struggles, and the growing complexity of the 'War on Terror'.
• 💡 The script underscores the ongoing debate about the balance between national security and individual freedoms, a central theme of the 21st century, particularly in the context of counter-terrorism efforts.

Q & A

What significant event marked the beginning of the 21st century in U.S. history as discussed in the script?

The script discusses the presidency of George W. Bush and the events of September 11, 2001, which is marked as a significant event that dominated the opening decade of the 21st century.

What was the controversy surrounding the 2000 U.S. presidential election?

The 2000 U.S. presidential election was controversial due to its close results, particularly in Florida. The election was ultimately decided by the Electoral College, not the popular vote, and involved a recount and legal battles that led to the controversial Supreme Court decision in Bush v. Gore.

What was George W. Bush's campaign promise that he aimed to implement during his presidency?

George W. Bush campaigned as a 'Compassionate Conservative,' promising to implement policies such as a missile defense system similar to Star Wars, barring federal funding for stem cell research, supporting oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, and education reform with the No Child Left Behind Act.

How did the Bush administration's environmental policy differ from that of previous administrations?

The Bush administration announced that it would not abide by the 1997 Kyoto Protocol on carbon emissions, which was a significant departure from the environmental policies of previous administrations and was met with criticism from environmentalists.

What was the Bush Doctrine as announced by President Bush in his September 20 speech after the 9/11 attacks?

The Bush Doctrine was a guiding principle in foreign policy that stated America would go to war with terrorism, making no distinction between the terrorists and nations that harbored them. It was a declaration that set the stage for the Global War on Terror.

What was the significance of the 2003 invasion of Iraq in the context of the Global War on Terror?

The 2003 invasion of Iraq was significant as it expanded the scope of the Global War on Terror. It was based on the premise that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction and a potential link to Al Qaeda, leading to the overthrow of Saddam Hussein's regime and the establishment of a new government.

How did the USA PATRIOT Act impact domestic policy and civil liberties in the U.S.?

The USA PATRIOT Act gave the government unprecedented law enforcement powers to combat domestic terrorism, including the ability to wiretap and spy on Americans. It led to widespread surveillance and questioning of individuals connected to the Middle East, raising concerns about civil liberties.

What was the impact of Hurricane Katrina on the Bush administration's public image and the U.S. political landscape?

Hurricane Katrina exposed the inadequacies in disaster preparation and response at various levels of government, leading to a significant loss of public confidence in the Bush administration. It also contributed to the Democratic Party gaining majorities in both houses of Congress in the 2006 mid-term elections.

How did the economic conditions during George W. Bush's first term affect his re-election prospects?

Despite a recession that began during 2001 and a 'jobless recovery,' George W. Bush was re-elected in 2004. The economic conditions, while not ideal, did not significantly hinder his re-election, which was influenced by factors such as the ongoing Iraq war and his stance on terrorism.

What were the key elements of 'freedom' as defined by President Bush in the context of the Global War on Terror?

President Bush defined 'freedom' in the context of the Global War on Terror as consisting of political democracy, free expression, religious toleration, free trade, and free markets. He believed these freedoms were universal and essential for every society.

Outlines

00:00

😀 Introduction to 21st Century History

In this introductory paragraph, John Green humorously acknowledges that they've reached the 21st century, a topic often overlooked in history classes due to time constraints. He playfully interacts with his past self, emphasizing the importance of time and how it is used. Green also hints at the relevance of understanding the recent past, even if it's not covered in traditional curriculums like the AP test. The focus is on the presidency of George W. Bush, which he suggests will be crucial for understanding contemporary United States, starting with the controversial 2000 election.

05:03

🏛️ The 2000 Election and Bush's Domestic Policies

This paragraph delves into the contentious 2000 U.S. presidential election, highlighting the roles of Al Gore and George W. Bush. It discusses Bush's campaign strategy, focusing on his 'Compassionate Conservative' image and the coalition he built. The election's outcome hinged on Florida's electoral votes, leading to a recount and the Supreme Court's intervention in Bush v. Gore. Green also touches on Bush's early presidential actions, such as barring federal funding for stem cell research, opposing the Kyoto Protocol, and implementing the No Child Left Behind Act. The paragraph concludes with the largest tax cut in American history, aimed at stimulating economic growth post-dot-com bubble burst.

10:07

🌏 Post-9/11 Foreign Policy and the Bush Doctrine

The narrative shifts to the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 attacks, which redirected the focus of the Bush administration from domestic to foreign policy. The paragraph details the hijackings, the national response, and President Bush's soaring popularity. It introduces the 'Bush Doctrine', which declared war on terrorism and those who harbor terrorists, leading to military actions in Afghanistan. The paragraph also covers the initial success and subsequent challenges of the Afghan campaign, the 'axis of evil' speech, and the rationale behind the 2003 invasion of Iraq. The economic and human costs of the Iraq war are highlighted, along with the unintended consequences of the invasion.

15:09

📈 Domestic Challenges and the PATRIOT Act

This paragraph addresses the domestic challenges faced during George W. Bush's presidency, particularly the economic recession and the controversial PATRIOT Act. The Act expanded law enforcement powers to combat terrorism, leading to widespread surveillance and detentions. The paragraph also discusses the establishment of Guantanamo Bay, warrantless wiretapping, and the broader implications of these policies on civil liberties. The narrative concludes with Bush's re-election, the impact of Hurricane Katrina, and the political shifts that occurred during his second term, setting the stage for the financial crisis of 2008.

🌟 Conclusion and Thanks for Watching

In the final paragraph, John Green wraps up the discussion by reflecting on the historical significance of the Bush years and the evolving definitions of freedom in the context of global terrorism. He acknowledges the complexity of the issues and the ongoing debate about the balance between security and civil liberties. Green also thanks the viewers for their support and encourages them to continue being awesome, ending the video on a positive note.

Keywords

💡21st Century

The term '21st Century' refers to the current century, which began on January 1, 2001, and will end on December 31, 2100. In the context of the video, it signifies the modern era that the history course is finally reaching, a time not typically covered in traditional history classes. The script mentions that this period is characterized by events and developments that have shaped the contemporary world, such as the presidency of George W. Bush and the aftermath of the September 11 attacks.

💡AP Test

The 'AP Test' stands for Advanced Placement Test, which are standardized exams in the United States used for college-level credit and placement. The script humorously notes that the content of the 21st century might not be covered in the AP U.S. History exam, indicating that the course material may not be as relevant for students preparing for that specific test, but it is still important for understanding recent history.

💡Electoral College

The 'Electoral College' is a body of electors established by the United States Constitution, which forms the mechanism for electing the president and vice president. The script discusses the controversial 2000 presidential election, emphasizing that the presidency is not decided by the popular vote but by the Electoral College, highlighting the complexity of the American electoral system.

💡Compassionate Conservative

A 'Compassionate Conservative' is a political term used to describe a conservative who advocates for policies that show concern for social welfare. In the script, George W. Bush is described as running as a 'Compassionate Conservative,' which means he aimed to appeal to both religious and fiscal conservatives, indicating a political strategy to unite different factions within the conservative spectrum.

💡Kyoto Protocol

The 'Kyoto Protocol' is an international treaty that commits state parties to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, aiming to combat climate change. The script mentions the Bush administration's decision not to abide by the protocol, reflecting the contentious nature of environmental policy and international agreements in U.S. politics.

💡No Child Left Behind Act

The 'No Child Left Behind Act' is a U.S. federal law that was designed to improve the performance of America's primary and secondary schools. The script refers to this act as controversial, particularly among teachers, due to its emphasis on standardized testing and accountability measures, which have been debated for their effectiveness in improving educational outcomes.

💡Bush Doctrine

The 'Bush Doctrine' refers to the foreign policy strategy announced by President George W. Bush after the September 11 attacks, which included a commitment to preemptive military action against terrorism and states that harbor terrorists. The script explains that this doctrine marked a significant shift in U.S. foreign policy, emphasizing the global war on terror and the promotion of freedom as key objectives.

💡Axis of Evil

The term 'Axis of Evil' was used by President George W. Bush in his 2002 State of the Union address to describe Iran, Iraq, and North Korea as countries that he accused of sponsoring terrorism and seeking weapons of mass destruction. The script notes that this declaration expanded the scope of the Global War on Terror and was a significant element of Bush's foreign policy.

💡USA PATRIOT Act

The 'USA PATRIOT Act' is an acronym for 'Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001.' It is a law passed in response to the September 11 attacks, which significantly expanded U.S. government surveillance and law enforcement powers. The script discusses the act as a controversial measure that raised concerns about civil liberties in the name of national security.

💡Hurricane Katrina

Hurricane Katrina was one of the deadliest and costliest hurricanes in U.S. history, causing extensive damage along the Gulf Coast in 2005. The script describes the federal, state, and local government's response to the disaster as poor, particularly highlighting the slow reaction of FEMA and the Department of Homeland Security, which led to widespread criticism and exposed underlying social and racial issues.

💡Financial Crisis of 2008

The 'Financial Crisis of 2008' refers to a global economic downturn that began with the bursting of the U.S. housing bubble, leading to the collapse of major financial institutions and a severe recession. The script alludes to this crisis as a significant event that will be discussed in more detail in a subsequent video, indicating its importance in shaping the economic landscape of the 21st century.

Highlights

The 21st century is introduced with a history course that extends into the present, a unique approach not typically covered in traditional education.

The 2000 U.S. Presidential Election controversy and its implications, highlighting the Electoral College's role over popular vote.

George W. Bush's campaign as a 'Compassionate Conservative' and the formation of a coalition between religious and fiscal conservatives.

Al Gore's popular vote win contrasted with the electoral vote outcome, emphasizing the complexity of the U.S. election system.

The role of Jeb Bush in the Florida recount and the Supreme Court's intervention in the 2000 Election, a pivotal moment in U.S. political history.

George W. Bush's domestic policy initiatives, including a missile defense system reminiscent of Reagan's 'Star Wars' and restrictions on stem cell research.

The Kyoto Protocol rejection by the Bush administration and its environmental policy stance.

The introduction and controversy of the No Child Left Behind Act, affecting education standards and testing in the U.S.

The largest tax cut in American history in 2001, aiming to stimulate economic growth post-dot-com bubble burst.

The impact of September 11, 2001 on U.S. foreign policy and the collective national response to the tragedy.

The Bush Doctrine's introduction, marking a new era in U.S. foreign policy focusing on the war against terrorism.

The U.S. military actions in Afghanistan, the fall of the Taliban, and the establishment of a new Afghan government.

The 'axis of evil' concept and its implications for U.S. relations with Iran, Iraq, and North Korea.

The 2003 invasion of Iraq, the search for weapons of mass destruction, and the subsequent sectarian chaos.

The USA PATRIOT Act and its impact on civil liberties, law enforcement powers, and surveillance in the U.S.

The Guantanamo Bay detention camp and the controversy over 'enhanced interrogation techniques'.

George W. Bush's re-election in 2004 and the political landscape leading up to it, including economic challenges.

Hurricane Katrina's impact on the Bush administration's reputation and the暴露 of racial and economic disparities in the U.S.

The 2008 financial crisis and its roots in the housing market, marking a significant economic downturn.

Transcripts

Hi, I’m John Green, this is CrashCourse U.S. history and today we’ve done it!

WE’VE FINALLY REACHED THE 21st CENTURY!

Today, we boldly go where no history course has gone before, because your teacher ran

out of time and never made it to the present.

Also, if you’re preparing for the AP test it’s unlikely that today’s video will

be helpful to you because, you know, they never get to this stuff.

Mr. Green, Mr. Green?

Awesome, free period.

Yeah, Me From the Past, there’s no such thing as a free period.

There’s only time, and how you choose to use it.

Also, Me From the Past, we’re in your future, hold on I’ve got to take this stuff off

it’s hard to take me seriously with that.

We’re in the future for you which means that you are learning important things about

the you who does not yet exist.

You know about Lady GaGa, Kanye and Kim, Bieber, well you’re not going to find out about

any of those things because this is a history class, but it’s still going to be interesting.

INTRO So the presidency of George W. Bush may not

end up on your AP exam, but it’s very important when it comes to understanding the United

States that we live in today The controversy starts with the 2000 Election.

Democratic presidential candidate Al “I invented the Internet” Gore was sitting

Vice President, and he asked Bill Clinton not to campaign much because a lot of voters

kind of hated Bill Clinton.

The republican candidate was George W. Bush, governor of Texas and unlike his father a

reasonably authentic Texan.

You know, as people from Connecticut go.

Bush was a former oil guy and baseball team owner and he was running as a Compassionate

Conservative, which meant he was organizing a coalition of religious people and fiscal

conservatives.

And that turned out to be a very effective coalition and George W Bush got a lot of votes.

He did not however get as many votes as Al Gore.

But as you’ll no doubt remember from earlier in Crash Course US History, in the United

States presidential elections are not decided by popular vote.

They are decided by the Electoral College.

So the election was incredibly close.

It solidified the Red-Blue divide that has become a trope for politicians since.

And in the end Gore won the popular vote by about 500,000 votes.

However, Al Gore did not have the necessary electoral votes to become president.

Unless he won Florida.

Did he win Florida?

I don’t even want to go there…

In Florida the vote was ridiculously close, but George W Bush had a gigantic advantage

which is that his brother, Jeb Bush, was the governor of Florida.

So when it came time to certify the election Jeb was like, “Yeah.

My brother won.

No big deal.”

But then the Gore campaign sued to have a recount by hand which is allowed under Florida

law.

But then Bush’s lawyers asked the Supreme Court to intervene and they did.

Their decision in Bush v. Gore remains rather controversial.

They ruled that the recount should be stopped, interfering with a state law and also a state’s

electoral process, which is a weird decision for strict constructionists to make.

However, one of the strong points of the United States these past couple centuries has been

that sometimes we have the opportunity to go to war over whether this person or that

person should be president and we chose not to.

So regardless of whether you think the recount should have gone on, or George W Bush should

have been elected, he was, and he set to work implementing his campaign promises, including

working on a missile defence system that was very similar to Star Wars.

And that was Ronald Reagan’s Star Wars, not George Lucas’ Star Wars.

Man if we could get a federally funded new Star Wars trilogy that doesn’t suck that

would be awesome.

Anyway, in the first 100 days of his presidency Bush also barred federal funding for stem

cell research, and he supported oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

And speaking of environmental policy, the Bush administration announced that it would

not abide by the 1997 Kyoto Protocol on carbon emissions and that didn’t go over well with

environmentalists in the U.S. or in all of these green parts of not-America because they

were like, “You guys made all the carbon.”

To which we said, “This is America.”

Libertage Bush also attempted education reform with

the No Child Left Behind Act, which mandated that states implement “rigorous” standards

and testing regimes to prove that those standards were being met.

The No Child Left Behind Act is especially controversial with teachers who are great

friends of Crash Course US History so we will say nothing more.

Most importantly, George W Bush pushed through the largest tax cut in American history in

2001.

Claiming that putting more money in Americans’ pockets would stimulate growth in an economy

that had stumbled after the bursting of the dot-com bubble in 2000.

Oh, it’s time for the Mystery Document?

The rules here are simple.

I guess the author of the Mystery Document, I either get it right, or I get shocked with

the shock pen.

Alright, what have we got here today.

I’ve got a feeling it’s going to be a sad one.

“It was a beautiful fall day, with a crisp, blue sky.

I was coming in to work late that day; I guess I didn’t have first period class.

It was only the second or third day of school.

When I emerged from the subway, Union Square was strangely quiet, which only added to the

beauty of the day.

People were standing still, which is weird in New York under any circumstances, and looking

down University Place towards lower Manhattan.

Before I even looked I asked a passerby what had happened.

She, or he, I really don’t remember, said that a plane had crashed into the Trade Center.

Then I looked and saw the smoke coming billo wing out of the South Tower.

I thought it was an accident, but I knew that this was not going to be an easy day.

Well it’s obviously someone who was in New York City on September 11, 2001, but that

only narrows it down to like 10 million people.

However, I happen to know that it is Crash Course historian and my high school history

teacher Raoul Meyer who wrote that account.

This is the saddest I have ever been not to be shocked.

So whether George Bush’s domestic policy would have worked is up for debate, but the

events of September 11, 2001 ensured that foreign policy would dominate any discussion

of the opening decade of the 21st century.

That morning terrorists affiliated with al Qaeda hijacked 4 airliners.

Two planes were flown into Manhattan’s World Trade Center, a third was crashed into the

Pentagon in Washington and a fourth, also headed for Washington DC crashed in Pennsylvania

when passengers overpowered the hijackers.

Almost 3,000 people died including almost 400 policemen and firefighters.

As Americans rushed to help in the search for survivors and to rebuild a devastated

city, a shared sense of trauma and a desire to show resolve really did bring the country

together.

President Bush’s popularity soared in the wake of the attacks.

In a speech on September 20, the president told Americans watching on television that

the terrorists had targeted America “Because we love freedom […]. And they hate freedom.”

This is another critical moment in American history where the definition of freedom is

being reimagined.

And we were reminded in the wake of September 11th that one of the central things that government

does to keep us free is to keep us safe.

But at the same time ensuring our safety sometimes means impinging upon our freedoms.

And the question of how to keep America safe while also preserving our civil liberties

is one of the central questions of the 21st century.

At any rate, in the September 20th speech, the president announced a new guiding principle

in foreign policy that became known as the Bush Doctrine.

America would go to war with terrorism making no distinction between the terrorists and

nations that harbored them.

Bush laid out the terms for the world that night: “Either you are with us or you are

with the terrorists.”

But that dichotomy of course would prove to be a bit of an oversimplification.

So on October 7, the United States launched its first airstrikes on Afghanistan, which

at the time was ruled by a group of Islamic fundamentalists called the Taliban who were

protecting Osama bin Laden, al Qaeda’s leader.

This was followed by American ground troops supporting the anti-Taliban Northern Alliance

in chasing out the Taliban and setting up a new Afghan government that was friendly

to the United States.

This new government did undo many of the worst Taliban policies, for instance allowing women

and girls to go to school, and even to serve in the parliament.

More women than girls in the parliament naturally.

But by 2007 the Taliban was beginning to make a comeback and although fewer than 100 Americans

died in the initial phase of the war, a sizeable force remained and in the ensuing 12 years

the number of Americans killed would continue to rise.

And then, by January 2002, Bush had expanded the scope of the Global War on Terror by proclaiming

that Iran, Iraq and North Korea were an “axis of evil” that harbored terrorists, even

though none of those nations had direct ties to the September 11 attacks.

The ultimate goal of Bush Doctrine was to make the world safe for freedom and also to

spread it and freedom was defined as consisting of political democracy, free expression, religious

toleration, free trade and free markets.

These freedoms, Bush said, were, “right and true for every person, in every society”.

And there’s no question that the Saddam Hussein led Iraq of 2003 was not, by any of

those definitions, free.

But the 2003 invasion of Iraq by the United States was predicated on two ideas.

First, that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction - chemical and biological weapons that they

were refusing to give up.

And second, that there was, or at least may have been, a link between Saddam Hussein's

Iraq and the Al Qaeda attacks of 9-11.

So in March 2003 the United States, Britain, and a coalition of other countries, invaded

Iraq.

Within a month Baghdad was captured, Saddam Hussein was ousted, Iraq created a new government

that was more democratic than Saddam’s dictatorship, and then descended into sectarian chaos.

After Baghdad fell, President Bush declared the end of major combat operations in Iraq,

but troops soon found themselves trying to manage an increasingly organized insurgency

that featured attacks and bombings.

And by 2006 American intelligence analysts concluded that Iraq had become a haven for

Islamist terrorists, which it hadn’t been, before the invasion.

In fact, Saddam Hussein’s socialist government, while it occasionally called upon religion

to unify people against an enemy, was pretty secular.

Although fewer than 200 Americans had died in the initial assaults, by the end of 2006,

more than 3,000 American soldiers had been killed and another 20,000 wounded.

Hundreds of thousands of Iraqis had died in the conflict and the costs of the war which

were promised to be no more than $60 billion had ballooned to $200 billion dollars.

So that, and we try really hard here at Crash Course to be objective was a bit of a disaster.

But let’s now go back to the domestic side of things and jump back in time to the passage

of the USA PATRIOT act.

Which believe it or not is an acronym for the Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing

Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism act of 2001.

Oh, Congress you don’t pass many laws these days but when you do… mmhm….

there’s some winners.

The PATRIOT act gave the government unprecedented law enforcement powers to combat domestic

terrorism including the ability to wiretap and spy on Americans.

At least 5000 people connected to the Middle East were called in for questioning and more

than 1200 were arrested, many held for months without any charge.

The administration also set up a camp for accused terrorists in Guantanamo Bay, in Cuba,

but not the fun kind of camp, the prison kind, it housed more than 700 suspects.

The president also authorized the National Security Agency to listen in to telephone

conversations without first obtaining a warrant, the so-called warrantless wiretapping.

In 2013 Americans learned that NSA surveillance has of course gone much farther than this

with surveillance programs like PRISM which sounds like it’s out of an Orwell novel

- I mean both like the name and the actual thing it refers to.

Meredith would like us to point out that Prism is also the name of a Katy Perry album proving

that we here at Crash Course are young and hip and with it.

Who is Katy Perry?

Oh right, she has that song in Madagascar 3.

Sorry, I have little kids.

The Supreme Court eventually limited the executive branch’s power and ruled that enemy combatants

do have some procedural rights.

Congress also banned the use of torture in a 2005 defense appropriations bill sponsored

by Republican John McCain who himself had been a victim of torture in Vietnam.

But the Defense Department did condone the continued use of so-called “enhanced interrogation

techniques” like waterboarding.

Which most countries do consider torture.

But George W Bush won re-election in 2004, defeating the surprisingly weak John Kerry,

who was characterized as a “waffler” on a number of issues including the Iraq war.

Kerry’s history as a Vietnam protester and also terrible windsurfer probably didn’t

help him much.

Bush’s victory is still a bit surprising to historians admittedly at that moment the

Iraq war seemed to be going pretty well.

But during Bush’s first term, the economy, which is usually what really drives voters,

wasn’t that great at all.

A recession began during 2001 and the September 11 attacks made it much worse.

And while the GDP did begin to grow again relatively quickly, employment didn’t recover,

hence all the description of it as a “jobless recovery.”

90% of the jobs lost in the 2001-2002 recession were in manufacturing, continuing a trend

that we had been seeing for 30 years.

The number of steelworkers dropped from 520,000 in 1970 to 120,000 in 2004.

And in his first term George W Bush actually became the first president since Herbert Hoover

to oversee a net loss of jobs.

Now I want to be clear that that’s not necessarily his fault as I have said many times before

- economics are complicated.

And presidents do not decide whether economies grow.

But at any rate George W Bush was re-elected and went on to have an extremely controversial

second term.

Let’s go to the thoughtbubble.

In 2005 several events undermined the public’s confidence in the Bush administration.

First, Vice President Dick Cheney’s chief of staff was indicted for perjury and then

House Majority Leader Tom “The Hammer” DeLay was indicted for violating campaign

finance laws.

Then in August 2005, Hurricane Katrina slammed into the gulf coast near New Orleans submerging

much of the city, killing nearly 1500 people, and leaving thousands stranded without basic

services.

Disaster preparation and response was poor on the state, local, and federal levels, but

the slow response of the Department of Homeland Security and Federal Emergency Management

Agency was particularly noticeable as thousands of mostly African American New Orleans residents

suffered without food or water.

Damage to the city was estimated at around $80 billion dollars.

And the Katrina disaster exposed the persistent poverty and racial divisions in the city.

While the Katrina response probably contributed to the reversal of fortune for Congressional

Republicans in the 2006 mid-terms, it was more likely the spike in gasoline prices that

resulted from the shutting down of refining capacity in the gulf and increased demand

for oil from rapidly growing China.

Voters gave Democrats majorities in both houses, and Nancy Pelosi of California became the

first woman Speaker of the House in American history.

And then, in 2007, the country fell back into recession as a massive housing bubble began

to deflate, followed by the near collapse of the American banking system in 2008.

Thought Bubble, thank you once again for the tremendous downer.

So, the Bush years are still in the recent past, and it’s impossible to tell just what

their historical significance is without some distance.

But the attacks on September 11 had far ranging effects on American foreign policy but also

on the entire world.

Under the leadership of George W Bush the United States began a global fight against

terrorism and for freedom.

But as always, what we mean by the words is evolving and there’s no question that in

trying to ensure a certain kind of freedom we have undermined other kinds of freedom.

We’ll get to the even messier and murkier world of the 2008 financial collapse next

week.

Until then, thanks for watching.

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