A BIRD IN THE BUSH A BIRD IN THE BUSH: Failed Policies of the George W. Bush Administration Dowling Campbell, Northern Arizona University John Kemoli Sagala, Northern Arizona University Zachary A. Smith, Northern Arizona University Sayuri Guthrie-Shimizu, Michigan State University Jaina L. Moan, Northern Arizona University Don Rich, Delaware and Montgomery County Colleges Douglas Becker, University of Southern California Jerry F. Hough, Duke University Preface & Introduction by Dowling Campbell Algora Publishing New York © 2005 by Algora Publishing in the name of Raymond Monsour Scurfield All Rights Reserved www.algora.com No portion of this book (beyond what is permitted by Sections 107 or 108 of the United States Copyright Act of 1976) may be reproduced by any process, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form, or by any means, without the express written permission of the publisher. ISBN: 0-87586-340-X (softcover) ISBN: 0-87586-341-8 (hardcover) ISBN: 0-87586-342-6 (ebook) Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data — A bird in the Bush: failed policies of the George W. Bush administration / Dowl- ing G. Campbell, editor. p. cm. Summary: “In eight studies by history and political science specialists, Bush's policies are examined, from taxes to employment, the environment, sex education, social security, health care and the war in Iraq” Includes bibliographical references. ISBN 0-87586-340-X (soft: alk. paper) — ISBN 0-87586-341-8 (hard: alk. paper) — ISBN 0-87586-342-6 (e-book: alk. paper) 1. United States—Politics and government—2001- 2. Bush, George W. (George Walker), 1946- 3. United States—Foreign relations—2001- 4. United States—Eco - nomic policy—2001- 5. United States—Social policy—1993- I. Campbell, Dowling. E902.B555 2005 973.931—dc22 2005012337 Front Cover: President George W. Bush delivers remarks at the 20th anniver- sary of the National Endowment for Democracy at the US Chamber of Commerce on November 6, 2003 in Washington. Image: © Brooks Kraft/Corbis Photographer: Brooks Kraft Date Photographed: November 6, 2003 Printed in the United States One epigraph for each of the last six centuries — “As for Marcus Aurelius, even if we grant that he was a good emperor — … there can be no doubt that he did more damage to the state by leaving such a son behind him than he ever benefited it by his own rule.” — Desiderius Erasmus, The Praise of Folly. (Sixteenth century; trans. by Clarence H. Miller) “Notwithstanding the fact that what the old man told us a little while ago is pro- verbial and commonly accepted, yet it seemed to me altogether false, like many another saying which is current among the ignorant; for I think they introduce these expressions in order to give the appearance of knowing something about mat - ters which they do not understand.” — Galileo Galilei, Dialogues Concerning Two New Sciences. (Seventeenth century; trans. by Henry Crew and Alfonso de Salvio) “A little learning is a dangerous thing; Drink deep or taste not the Pierian Spring.” — Alexander Pope, An Essay on Criticism. (Eighteenth century, written in English) “Oh my dear friend, would you like to know why genius so seldom overflows its banks to make its wondrous way down the valley, where it would enrich all the downstream soils and plants with nutrients and life? It is because of the conserva - tive gentlemen who live downstream and have built their winter mansions and summer cottages, complete with flower gardens and tulip beds behind white picket fences, right next to the river, and who know how to damn up such threats to progress and new thinking in good time.” — Wolfgang von Goethe, The Sorrows of Young Werther. (Nineteenth century, translation paraphrased by Dowling G. Campbell) “Many races, like many individuals, have indulged in practices which must in the end destroy them.” — Sir James George Frazier, The Golden Bough, III. VII. p. 196. (Twentieth century, written in English) “I just know how this world works.” — George Walker Bush, during a debate with Senator John Kerry. (Early twenty first century, gobbledygook) 9 P REFACE 1 I NTRODUCTION: BUSH’S SECOND INAUGURAL ADDRESS IN A “REPUBLICAN” P ERSPECTIVE 3 by Dowling Campbell CHAPTER 1. GEORGE W. BUSH POLICIES — THE HEIGHT OF FOLLY 19 by Dowling G. Campbell CHAPTER 2. GEORGE W. BUSH AND REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH AND HIV/AIDS POLICY 55 by John Kemoli Sagala and Zachary A. Smith Abstract 55 Introduction 55 Bush and the 2000 Presidential Elections 56 Historical Analysis of Abortion Law and Policy 57 Executive Appointments and Reproductive Health Policy 59 Bush’s Judicial Appointments and Reproductive Health 60 Contraceptives, Emergency Contraception and Pregnancy Prevention 61 Teen Sexual Health and Sex Education 62 Family Values, Strong Marriages, Infertility and Child-Adoption 63 Bush on Human Cloning 64 The HIV/AIDS Pandemic 64 Bush: International HIV/AIDS Policy 66 The Use or Misuse of Science 68 The Bush Policy: Our PostScript 68 C HAPTER 3. ENVIRONMENTAL UNILATERALISM: THE BUSH ADMINISTRATION’S W ITHDRAWAL FROM THE KYOTO PROTOCOL ON GLOBAL WARMING 71 by Sayuri Guthrie-Shimizu TABLE OF CONTENTS A Bird in the Bush 10 CHAPTER 4. BUSH AND THE ENVIRONMENT 81 by Jaina L. Moan and Zachary A. Smith Introduction 81 Bush and Water 82 Deregulation and the Clean Water Act 83 Transfer of Regulatory Power to States 85 River Management Policies 87 Bush, Air and Climate Change 88 Deregulation and the Clean Air Act 88 Climate Change and “Sound” Science 91 Bush and Energy 92 National Security and ANWR 93 Bush and Public Lands Policy 95 The Roadless Rule 95 Snowmobile Bans 96 Healthy Forests Restoration Act 97 “Sound” Science and National Security 98 Conclusion 99 B USH’S FISCAL POLICY: THE SHORT AND THE LONG OF IT 101 Don Rich Plan of Attack 104 General Overview of Bush’s Tax Cuts 106 Comparative Perspective on Budget Deficits 108 General Observations About Budget Forecasting and Fiscal Policy 110 Security and the Budget 117 No Veto 121 Long Term: The Entitlements 122 Conclusion 127 C HAPTER 6. THE BUSH ADMINISTRATION’S CAMPAIGN AGAINST THE I NTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT 131 by Douglas Becker Introduction 131 The Rome Statute and its Purposes 133 American Opposition to the ICC 135 American Servicepersons Protection Act of 2001 (ASPA) 138 Article 98 Agreements 140 The Campaign at the UN 144 Conclusion: Possible Scenarios for the ICC in light of US Opposition 149 The Bush Administration’s Record on the ICC 152 Table of Contents 11 Appendix 1: The American Servicepersons Protection Act — Full Text 154 Appendix 2: The US-Proposed “Article 98” Agreement Template 168 Appendix 3: UN Security Council Resolution 1422 170 Appendix 4: UN Resolution 1593 (2005) 171 C HAPTER 7. NATIONALISM AS THE NEW CULTURAL ISSUE 175 by Jerry F. Hough The Republicans and the Red-State Strategy 178 The Possible Democratic Responses 185 The New Democratic Suburban Strategy and the Republican Problem 189 The Erosion of the Old Cultural Issues 194 The Issue of Nationalism 198 George W. Bush and Nationalism 202 The 2004 Election and Beyond 204 C ONTRIBUTORS 211 [...]... expect Of course, a certain amount of vagueness and generalizing must occur when speaking of national and international issues in such a truncated time frame, but the confusion and contradictions can also be used to obfuscate and beguile, rather than lead and explain “After the shipwreck of communism, there came a time of quiet, years of repose, years of sabbatical… And then there came a day of fire.” The. .. he was “keeping the pressure on Bin Laden, and keeping him in hiding Which is another way of saying they haven’t been able to find him.” The task of A Bird in the Bush is to get both the facts and the language as straight as possible One of the best recent balancers of language is Brian Green In The Fabric of the Cosmos, Green lists “Entropy” as the 2nd law of thermodynamics This law states that things... second inaugural address, President George W Bush transformed the office of the President of the United States into a personal “mission” that serves his individual needs and agenda rather than the needs and agenda of the nation that elected him A self-appointed “apostle of freedom,” Bush has made the world a more dangerous rather than a safer place His stated intention to bring freedom and democracy to... Kerry pointed out during the debates, Iraq did 4 Introduction: Bush s Second Inaugural Address in a “Republican” Perspective not attack the US There was no threat of attack from Iraq, in spite of Washington’s efforts to find one By attacking Iraq, Bush has actually increased the danger for America — and directly, for those Americans fighting and dying there Bush mused upon a time “When the captives are... fashion themselves as intellectuals.” Agnew did not realize that to “fashion” oneself as an intellectual actually was a compliment It means to make or mold or shape in a certain way, rather than to fake it But that misunderstanding made no difference Agnew got much mileage from that phrase Fortunately, in the end the language of the Nixon-Agnew conservative faction failed The language of this book may fail,... presentations Also, books are just as susceptible to logical fallacies and propaganda devices as other media forms are The writers represented in A Bird in the Bush: Failed Domestic Policies of the George W Bush Administration have attempted accuracy and honesty, above all else I am most grateful to all the scholars who have contributed so generously of their time, talent, and yeoman effort, to say nothing of their... through the (apparently intentional) confusion and vagueness that bridges from Watergate to Bush II, a language that aims toward truth and integrity — but most of all, a language that balances the scales of justice This language needs to be at the same time a language of inspiration, for this book hopes to save the United States from being sidetracked from its traditional mission as stated in the Declaration... Behind, and 7) the folly of neglect The “war” against Iraq surpasses any category of its own This military action pervades all the other follies, and every aspect of life All Americans are affected by every aspect of this war, from the actual killings on all sides to the carefully disguised massive expansion of expense, and the windfall profits to the Halliburton Corporation and others The declaration... with reality Bush has sounded a repeated call for the United States to do the very thing that J William Fulbright repeatedly warns against in The Arrogance of Power: setting up this nation as the vanguard of democracy and freedom for the rest of the world There is no basis for such a crusade, not even an implication, in any of the founding documents Bush is creating his own apostleship, as Alexander... not a Republican, as we understand the term today, but a Democrat True, he was a member of the “Republican” party, but at that time the “Republican” party embraced and practiced the ideals and platforms and philosophies of today’s Democratic party It was years later that the Republican and Democratic parties evolved with their present opposing platforms and political and social and financial approaches . A BIRD IN THE BUSH A BIRD IN THE BUSH: Failed Policies of the George W. Bush Administration Dowling Campbell, Northern Arizona University John. advocating the rights of nations like Pakistan, Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Iran, and, yes, Iraq; and, rather than labeling them as evil, treating