Where there's a Bush, there's a debacle: DyNasty has ruined America

email Stephen L Goldstein: trendsman@aol.com
Follow on Twitter: @drslgoldstein

            Where there’s a Bush, there’s a debacle—too often, with Florida at the center of it and the rest of the nation wondering what’s wrong with the Sunshine State. I wish the nightmares could be wiped away with the shake of an Etch A Sketch. But unfortunately life doesn’t follow art. Instead, the dynasty continues relentlessly to pursue its agenda of imposing its self-righteous will on the rest of a nation—and what’s wrong with “us” is that too many of us are slow to connect the dots.

            Past Bush Debacle One: In 2000, the eyes of the world were on Florida during the torturous recount of presidential votes. That bruising fiasco featured George W. Bush in the foreground and Jeb Bush in the background, pulling the strings of then-Secretary of State Katherine Harris. Who can forget her Sunday-evening rush to take center stage to “certify” the results of the Florida vote—or the consequences of that suspect election? The lack of integrity of the voting process in this country was exposed, to our collective shock. Even the most cynical among us never imagined the degree to which ballots were routinely tossed or otherwsie compromised. In its politically tainted decisions in Bush v. Gore, the U.S. Supreme Court lost all credibility, from which it has never recovered. And the course of history was changed. George W. entangled us in a war in Iraq and put Roberts and Alito on the Supreme Court, setting in motion some of the worst decisions it has ever made. Al Gore wouldn’t have done any of that.

            Past Bush Debacle Two: From 2003 to 2005, the brothers Bush muscled the power of the state into a devastating family matter. The heart-wrenching case of the brain-dead Terri Schiavo kept alive on a feeding tube was turned into political theatre—and posturing. An aide’s legal memo written to then-Florida Republican Senator Mel Martinez even crassly suggested that the case would resonate with the GOP’s political base. Who can forget the legal appeals and stays, press conferences and pronouncements, an extraordinary weekend session of Congress, George W.’s interrupting his vacation to return to Washington to sign a misguided bill at 1 a.m. transferring jurisdiction of the Schiavo case to federal courts? Jeb Bush orchestrated the torturous affair. Ultimately, it rightly backfired on him, but it divided the country and destroyed a family in the process.

            Current Bush Debacle: And now, there’s the murder of Trayvon Martin, another tragic tale on the public scene in which Jeb’s political judgment is transparent, but his moral judgment was clouded. During a 2005 photo-op, with a lobbyist for the National Rifle Association by his side, the-then governor signed (what is commonly referred to as) “The Stand Your Ground Law.” It gives Floridians who feel threatened the right to shoot to kill anyone anywhere—and ask questions later.

            Critics predicted that it would lead to disastrous consequences. Former Miami Police Chief John Timoney has been quoted saying, “Whether it’s trick-or-treaters or kids playing in the yard of someone who doesn’t want them there or some drunk guy stumbling into the wrong house[,] you’re encouraging people to possibly use deadly physical force where it shouldn’t be used.” Since the law was passed, through June 2010, “justifiable” homicides in Florida have tripled. If only Jeb had listened to the warnings and had stood up to the NRA, Trayvon Martin might be alive. At the time of this writing, he’s found words to endorse Mitt Romney and recommend Marco Rubio for vice president; but none for Trayvon Martin.

            Future Bush Debacles: What disasters could loom from the policies of The House of Bush? Lives destroyed because of ill-advised Medicaid reforms? A building collapsed because a charter school conglomerate built a facility on the cheap? Floridians devastated by a hurricane because budget cuts have dismantled emergency services? I don’t have a crystal ball to predict—or an Etch A Sketch to make it go away: Just hope against hope that it never happens, but gnawing fear that it might.#