Almost any president worth his salt in the united states will be hated by at least somebody for something, but the teething amount of hate directed at one of them requires some attention. Currently, it would seem, George W. Bush Jr. is recognized as the very devil on NSG, with people blaming him for everything from the Judean People's Front (monty python reference) to head lice. So I figured I would list 5 excellent things his presidency did for the country and the world, with sources listed.
1. First Federal Ban on Racial Profiling:
During his first State of the Union address in early 2001, President Bush vowed to end racial profiling. In 2003, he acted on his promise by issuing an order to 70 federal law enforcement agencies calling for an end to most forms of racial and ethnic profiling. The ban was not airtight, but it was the first ban of its kind.
(Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2003/06/17/polit ... -PROF.html)
2. Federal Funding to fight the AIDS Epidemic and Help Developing Nations in Africa in General:
In his 2003 State of the Union address, President Bush announced the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), a $15 billion global program to fight HIV/AIDS—the largest international effort in history created to fight a disease. In July 2008, Congress passed a $48 billion reauthorization that adds significant funding for tuberculosis and malaria. Frequent administration critic Sen. Joe Biden (D-Del.) has called PEPFAR "the single most significant thing the president has done." The effort is part of Bush's emphasis on foreign aid, particularly within Africa. In the president's first term, the US more than doubled development assistance to Africa and helped secure $34 billion in debt relief for 19 African countries. Today, foreign aid across the globe is three times what it was upon Bill Clinton's departure, though it is still lower, as a percentage of GDP, than most developed nations.
(Source:http://articles.washingtonpost.com/2012-07-26/opinions/35487798_1_african-countries-pepfar-antiretroviral-treatment)
3. Protected the Right to Bear Arms
When President Bush came into office, the Clinton-era "assault weapons" ban was still in effect. Even though he had supported the ban consistently during his 2000 campaign, President Bush made no serious effort to seek its renewal and it expired in 2004. Since that time, President Bush has also signed legislation preventing local law enforcement agencies from forcibly confiscating legally-owned firearms, as was done on a large scale in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.
(Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Criticism_ ... ne_Katrina (confiscation of firearms subsection))
4. Diversified the Executive Branch like Never Before
President Bush has appointed more women and minorities to high-level posts than any other president in history. Everyone can point to his two African American secretaries of state, Colin Powell and Condoleezza Rice, as well as his Hispanic attorney general, Alberto Gonzales. But a number of lesser-known Cabinet secretaries also broke the old-boy mold. His commerce secretary, Carlos Gutierrez, is a Cuban-born businessman. His past and present transportation secretaries have been an Asian American man (Norman Mineta) and a woman (Mary Peters). His education secretaries have been an African American man (Rod Paige) and a woman (Margaret Spellings). His labor secretary, Elaine Chao, was the first Asian American woman in US history to be appointed to a Cabinet post. Unfortunately, Bush's diverse picks did not always do the country proud. Gonzales presided over the politicization of the Department of Justice and provided the administration with a legal rationale for detainee torture. Former Housing and Urban Development chief Alphonso Jackson, another Bush hand from Texas, allegedly used his post to hand out contracts to friends and political allies. He left office under investigation by an inspector general, the FBI, and the Justice Department.
(Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Presidency ... ge_W._Bush (just a basic list of his cabinet))
5. Got North Korea to Shut Down it's Nuclear Reactor (At least until recently)
In what is considered a diplomatic "win" for U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice over the more aggressive policies of Vice President Dick Cheney, the United States has made slow but steady progress in dealing with North Korea. At least until recently, but we have a new administration to blame for that.
(Source: http://usforeignpolicy.about.com/b/2007 ... -korea.htm)
Really though, while definitely not the best of presidents, he's hardly the super-extra totalitarian bigot alot of people make him out to be. Not saying he was THE BEST PRESIDENT EVER, but he was better then a lot of others *cough*andrew-jackson-woodrow-wilson-james-buchanan-richard-nixon-obama*cough*. He may have made some mistakes, but he also did some pretty awesome stuff as I just described to you. So next time when you wonder if he did anything good, remember this list.
