Vote Here on the Bush Years

What is the absolute worst catastrophe of the Bush presidency? Choose one (or more, I guess, if you can't make up your mind) or append your very own disaster. 

1.  The completely botched New Orleans mess (incompetent Bushies in critical offices, carelessness, implicit racism).

2.  The attorney-general scandal (incompetent immature Bushies in critical office, subversion of the constitution, elevation of party loyalty above loyalty to the country).

3.  Compromising of the civil service (appointments based on ideology rather than merit, suppression of informed opinion).

4.  War on the environment (incompetent Bushies in high places, suppression of scientific evidence, politicization of science).

5.  Torture -- or "enhanced interrogation techniques" -- of suspects (subversion of the constitution, illegal legal memos, clandestine government).

6.  Collapse of housing market (under regulation, false optimism, indifference, atavistic economic policies).

7.  Skyrocketing of national debt (tax policy favorable to the very rich, war on the cheap).

8.  Medical policy that rewards insurance companies, penalizes patients and doctors.

9.  Collapse of the dollar.

10  Energy policy (secret, favorable to big oil, indifference to conservation).

11. Iraq war (endless, fraudulent, expensive in treasure and lives, counter-productive).

12.  Failure to capture Bin Laden (stupidity, obsession with Iraq).

13.  Compromising of the judiciary (appointment of loyal Bushies, extreme right-wingers, ideologues).

That's my top thirteen,  but I've drawn it up without much thought, off the top of my head.  I'm sure that I've left out some big ones. 

Comments

[Chris Casey]

Good list, and yet there's so much to add. I'd have to include at least a few more like:

14. Establishment of a surveillance state in the name of the 'war on terrorism'; illegal wiretaps, library use monitoring, etc...

15. Unconstitutional expansion of Executive powers; bill signing statements that undermine the legislation, DOJ memos justifying Executive power abuses, claims of 'Executive privilege' to ignore attempts at Congressional oversight

[Otis Jefferson Brown]

Too big a subject for my typing finger.