Bush administration – News Stories About Bush administration - Page 14

ANALYSIS

Dec 21, 2008 6:52 AM CST

How Bush Fueled the Mortgage Mess

His philosophy at center of housing crisis

(Newser) - A range of factors led to the housing crisis that dragged the economy into the toilet—but President Bush’s philosophy likely played a key role in the collapse, reports the New York Times. Dozens of interviews point to both Bush’s drive to expand homeownership and his steadfast belief...

Torture a Dead End:
Intelligence Experts

Glossies

Dec 21, 2008 6:20 AM CST

Torture a Dead End: Intelligence Experts

Intelligence often false and comes at great cost to US reputation

(Newser) - Governments have known for centuries that torture yields questionable intelligence, and none of the evidence accumulated during US grilling sessions contradicts that argument, David Rose writes in Vanity Fair. Rose carefully documents the inaccurate and even falsified information obtained from suspects Abu Zubaydah, Binyam Mohamed, Jose Padilla, and Khalid Sheikh...

Auto Rescue Lifts Stocks

MARKET Open

Dec 19, 2008 8:53 AM CST

Auto Rescue Lifts Stocks

In some ways, these tiny days are a nice change of pace

(Newser) - Stocks started off in the right direction this morning, buoyed by the White House’s rollout of its auto rescue plan. The Dow rose 67 points, while the S&P and Nasdaq added 0.7% and 1.6% respectively, the Wall Street Journal reports. President Bush announced a $17.4...

White House Preps Crisis Scenarios for Obama Team

Dec 17, 2008 6:15 AM CST

White House Preps Crisis Scenarios for Obama Team

Bush administration strives to stop transition period becoming a security weak spot

(Newser) - The White House has drawn up more than a dozen contingency plans to help Barack Obama if a crisis erupts early in his presidency, the New York Times reports. The briefings go way beyond what other administrations have prepared and deal with potential threats ranging from a North Korean nuclear...

First Dog Releases Last Video

Dec 15, 2008 2:42 PM CST

First Dog Releases Last Video

Olympic medalists Phelps, Liukin guest-star in 2008 'Barney Cam'

(Newser) - The White House released its final “Barney Cam” Christmas video today, continuing the adventures of the first dog, the AP reports. This year, the Bushes’ terrier dreams of representing America as an Olympic pole-vaulter and swimmer before clinching a US victory in the Ryder Cup. After waking, Barney decks...

Wiretap Whistleblower
Reflects on Fateful Leak

Dec 15, 2008 9:45 AM CST

Wiretap Whistleblower Reflects on Fateful Leak

Fmr. Justice official wrestles with effects of NYT call

(Newser) - The government lawyer who blew the whistle on the Bush administration’s domestic wiretapping program has wrestled with the consequences of his decision, but he felt obligated to tell the truth, Newsweek reports. “I thought this (secret program) was something the other branches of the government—and the public—...

Bailout Exec Pay
Limits Have No Bite

Dec 15, 2008 7:36 AM CST

Bailout Exec Pay Limits Have No Bite

Critics say White House added language to bailout bill that blunted super-pay language

(Newser) - Thanks to a last-minute change pushed by the Bush administration, the $700 billion bailout has a giant loophole Wall Street executives will be able to float golden parachutes through. Congress put unprecedented restrictions on lofty pay into the final bill, but the only enforceable one became inapplicable after a one-sentence...

Bush: Auto Bailout
'Not Ready'

Dec 15, 2008 3:58 AM CST

Bush: Auto Bailout 'Not Ready'

Deal seems to be grinding gears

(Newser) - The federal auto industry bailout appeared to be stuck in neutral as President Bush warned today that a deal is not imminent. "We're not quite ready to announce that yet," Bush told reporters on a plane to Afghanistan. Lawmakers expected the administration to quickly reallocate part of the...

The Best of the Bush Years: Cultural Edition

glossies

Dec 14, 2008 4:57 PM CST

The Best of the Bush Years: Cultural Edition

Newsweek picks most emblematic TV, music, movies of last 8 years

(Newser) - The Bush years have been their own little era, sparking artistic dissent and encouraging elaborations on new national themes. Newsweek had its top critics pick the piece from their field that seems most indicative of this decade:

American Idol: "Like Dubya, the show makes a virtue of its unflagging

...

Bush Loosens
Endangered Species Act

Dec 12, 2008 9:59 AM CST

Bush Loosens Endangered Species Act

Another midnight ruling refuses protection to threatened animals

(Newser) - The White House incensed environmental groups yesterday by announcing sweeping changes to the Endangered Species Act, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. Federal agencies will no longer have to consult with scientists before approving potentially harmful building or logging projects, and the government will not recognize the threat that global warming...

White House May Divert
TARP Funds to Automakers

Dec 12, 2008 9:30 AM CST

White House May Divert TARP Funds to Automakers

The President may tap bailout funds once thought off-limits to Detroit

(Newser) - The Bush administration said today it will consider using funds from the $700 billion market-rescue plan to bail out GM and Chrysler, MarketWatch reports. The shift comes after the Senate failed to pass $14 billion in emergency loans last night. The plans aren't final, but the money could help one...

US to Sign Nuclear Pact With UAE

Dec 12, 2008 6:42 AM CST

US to Sign Nuclear Pact With UAE

Some fear move could help fuel Iran's nuclear ambitions

(Newser) - The White House is set to sign a nuclear cooperation agreement with the United Arab Emirates—a move some fear could put nuclear materials in the hands of Iran, the UAE’s top trading partner. The Bush administration’s first such pact with a Middle Eastern country would mean sharing...

Senate Report
Pins Torture
on Rumsfeld

Dec 11, 2008 2:48 PM CST

Senate Report Pins Torture on Rumsfeld

Bipartisan panel, including McCain, concludes detainee abuse not just because of 'a few bad apples'

(Newser) - Former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and other top White House officials were responsible for detainee abuse at US military prisons, a bipartisan Senate report finds. After 2 years of hearing testimony and reviewing documents, the study—released by Sens. John McCain and Carl Levin—traces controversial interrogation practices like sleep...

Bush Helps Shield Iraq From Gulf War Legal Claims

Dec 11, 2008 11:25 AM CST

Bush Helps Shield Iraq From Gulf War Legal Claims

Compensation could bankrupt country, it says; Americans hurt by Saddam differ

(Newser) - President Bush has wedged himself between Americans and Iraq by supporting a UN measure that stops financial claims against the fledgling democracy. Iraq faces bankruptcy if claims are added to $26 billion it already owes companies and individuals who suffered in the first Gulf war. But the temporary plug keeps...

US May Take
Big Stake in Big 3

Dec 9, 2008 6:40 AM CST

US May Take Big Stake in Big 3

Draft bill creates 'auto czar' for firms' reorganization

(Newser) - As a $15 billion auto industry rescue takes shape, the terms of the plan would give government a major stake in the Big Three and allow it to guide a bankruptcy-like restructuring process, the Wall Street Journal reports. Under the terms of draft legislation, the US could take shares worth...

Bush, Obama Camps at Odds on Rescue Plans

ANALYSIS

Dec 8, 2008 10:40 AM CST

Bush, Obama Camps at Odds on Rescue Plans

White House seeks input; Dem focused on stimulus over bailout

(Newser) - Growing tension between the Bush administration and its replacement is making the waters of the economic turmoil more uncertain, the Wall Street Journal reports. With the first half of the $700 billion bailout fund nearly gone, the White House wants more input for Barack Obama on securing the next $350...

Latest Rage-Reducer: WWOD?

OPINION

Dec 6, 2008 9:02 AM CST

Latest Rage-Reducer: WWOD?

If Obama can forgive Lieberman, writer can forgive slapdash husband

(Newser) - What would Obama do? Leslie Savan decided not to blast her husband for faulty dishwashing after asking herself this question, she writes in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, and she's not the only person she knows who's paused in moments of fury to consider the president-elect's level-headed ways. It's "more than...

Guns OK'd in National Parks

Dec 6, 2008 6:10 AM CST

Guns OK'd in National Parks

Campers will be allowed to pack heat in all but 3 of America's national parks

(Newser) - Visitors will be allowed to carry concealed and loaded weapons in all but three of America's 391 national parks under a new Bush administration policy, the Washington Times reports. The move, widely seen as a parting gift to the NRA from the president, reverses a 25-year-old Interior Department policy and...

'He Kept Us
Safe': Noonan

OPINION

Dec 5, 2008 9:20 AM CST

'He Kept Us Safe': Noonan

President has one argument to hang his hat on

(Newser) - In the Republican social circles Peggy Noonan swims in, there is much grousing about George W. Bush. These days, however, it’s almost always followed by one sentence: “But he kept us safe.” It’s a meme destined to linger as the final argument for Bush. “There’...

Dems: Obama Must Take Charge of Economy Now

Dec 5, 2008 1:54 AM CST

Dems: Obama Must Take Charge of Economy Now

There's no time to waste, pols warn

(Newser) - Top Democrats are becoming increasingly frustrated with Barack Obama's reluctance to take charge of the economic crises, AP reports. The president-elect has consistently said it would be premature for him to dictate solutions to the auto industry's woes, and steer $700 billion in bailout funds, but critics in his...