This is almost too funny not to be a spoof. Sadly and astonishingly, it’s real. MRCTV’s Dan Joseph conducted a man-on-the-street survey in which he asked passersby who they think is responsible for the current government shutdown. Many of those queried didn’t fault House Republicans or the tea party or (God forbid!) Barack Obama. They fixed the blame squarely on the shoulders of … (drum roll) … George W. Bush!
Granted Joseph’s question was loaded, since it was phrased as a multiple choice with Bush as an option. Nevertheless, it takes a special brand of ignorance to pin the blame on a man been out of the presidency — and outside the Beltway — for four years and nine months. In that time, the former president has maintained the code of silence observed by every commander-in-chief since the age of television began with the exception of Jimmy Carter. (Bill Clinton probably also deserved a dishonorable mention in this regard.)
But I digress. How do some Americans reckon that Bush is the culprit in the current showdown and shutdown? One line of “reasoning” is that Obama is still cleaning up the mess he inherited. This is an idea that perhaps stuck after it was pounded home for the bajillonth time by The New York Times, The Washington Post, “news” reports on the three major networks, and — of course — Obama himself on countless occasions.
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