Carter vs Bush

Ex-President Carter used some strong words to show his disapproval of the Bush Administration, calling it "the worst in history". Using language that is unusual for a President, or for any politician for that matter, and by that I mean plain unambiguous English, Carter criticized Bush's foreign policy. "I think as far as the adverse impact on the nation around the world, this administration has been the worst in history."

When asked about the war in Iraq Carter had this to say:

"We now have endorsed the concept of pre-emptive war, where we go to war with another nation militarily, even though our own security is not directly threatened, if we want to change the regime there or if we fear that some time in the future our security might be endangered," explained Carter

On the role of the British Prime Minister Tony Blair's support for Bush's policies:

Carter criticized Blair's "blind" support of Bush's war in Iraq, suggesting that the British prime minister had been "subservient" to the American president. Noting that Blair's "almost undeviating" allegiance to Bush's Middle East dogmas had done much to legitimize them at precisely the time when they should have been challenged, Carter argued that the prime minister's promotion of "the ill-advised policies of President Bush in Iraq had been a major tragedy for the world."

Other criticism of Bush by Carter included:

Carter criticized Bush for having "zero peace talks" in Israel. Carter also said the administration "abandoned or directly refuted" every negotiated nuclear arms agreement, as well as environmental efforts by other presidents.

White House spokesman Tony Fratto responded by saying: "I think it's sad that President Carter's reckless personal criticism is out there," griped White House spokesman Tony Fratto "I think it's unfortunate. And I think he is proving to be increasingly irrelevant with these kinds of comments."

According to John Nichols of The Capital Times:

The irony is that there is nothing unfortunate about Carter's remarks for the United States. By making it perfectly clear that Americans are unsettled by their president's reckless disregard for the rule of law and common sense at home and abroad, Carter helps to separate Bush from America in the eyes of the world, which is a very, very good thing for the American people.

After making his remarks about the Bush Administration, Carter seemed to back down a little and clarified what he meant by saying "The worst in history": Carter said that when he made the comment, he was responding to a question comparing the Bush administration's foreign policy to that of Richard Nixon.

I think Richard Nixon had a very good and productive foreign policy and my remarks were maybe careless or misinterpreted. But I wasn't comparing the overall administration, and I was certainly not talking personally about any president," Carter said. "I think this administration's foreign policy compared to president Nixon's was much worse," he said, but he said he did not mean to call it the worst in history.

White House spokesman Tony Fratto in reply said: "I think it just highlights the importance of being careful in choosing your words. I'll just leave it at that." When asked about the matter President Bush shrugged it off saying that criticism came along with his job and he would continue to do what he felt was right for America. Below is a recap of the Carter comment followed by the clarification and the Bush response.

[youtube=http://youtube.com/watch?v=G9ljAY_iFUg]
[youtube=http://youtube.com/watch?v=p37sJ3WbKO4]

Comments

[V.Ananda Murti]

It is unreasonable to revile the former president Carter for his truthful remarks on the Bush administration. If you take a worldwide poll on the performance of the Bush administration,Carter would win hands down.

In just a period of six years president Bush has successfully destroyed the great liberal and humanitarian traditions built up by many great Americans in two centuries, and brought infamy to America. Many people consider Bush worse than Saddam Hussain whom the former targeted. Former president Carter was quite right in his remarks when he said that this administration is the worst in American history.