# Bush or Obama - The Better President **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 8, 2010, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-or-obama-the-better-president/556532 "2010-10-08T21:05:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2010, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-or-obama-the-better-president/556532/1 "2010-10-08T21:05:13Z")
CNN is reporting a poll: CNN Poll: Was Bush better president than Obama? > [@](#): > > **(CNN)** - Americans are divided over whether President Barack Obama or his predecessor has performed better in the White House, according to a new national poll. > And a CNN/Opinion Research Corporation survey released Friday also indicates in the battle for Congress, Republicans hold large advantages over the Democrats among independents, men and blue-collar whites. The poll also indicates that Republicans are much more enthusiastic than Democrats to vote. > > By 47 to 45 percent, Americans say Obama is a better president than George W. Bush. But that two point margin is down from a 23 point advantage one year ago. [http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2010/10/08/cnntime-poll-was-bush-better-president-than-obama/?iref=NS1](http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2010/10/08/cnntime-poll-was-bush-better-president-than-obama/?iref=NS1) So let’s see how the SDMB comes out. ---
**Author:** ![Gagundathar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a183cd/32.png) [@Gagundathar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gagundathar)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2010, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-or-obama-the-better-president/556532/2 "2010-10-08T21:10:49Z")
Yegads! This is astounding, but come to think of it, there is a solid 25-30% of folks who believe that Mr. Obama is a secret Muslim/Marxist/Antichrist, so I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised. ---
**Author:** ![Oakminster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/77aa72/32.png) [@Oakminster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oakminster)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2010, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-or-obama-the-better-president/556532/3 "2010-10-08T21:14:04Z")
Bush was horrible, Obama is simply not very good, so I’d give Obama the win, but not by a huge margin. Frankly, both suck for different reasons. ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2010, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-or-obama-the-better-president/556532/4 "2010-10-08T21:15:23Z")
I don’t recall what I was reading but one of the polling opinion blogs was talking about the “Obama as Muslim” poll and their opinion was that the number was largely overinflated by people who just don’t like Obama and thus will give the worst possible sounding answers in a poll. They don’t actually think he’s a secret Islamic terrorist or the literal Antichrist or whatever but they want to stick it to him in the polling. ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2010, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-or-obama-the-better-president/556532/5 "2010-10-08T21:33:48Z")
> [@Oakminster](#): > > Bush was horrible, Obama is simply not very good, so I’d give Obama the win, but not by a huge margin. Frankly, both suck for different reasons. Seconded. I have no liking for Obama, but he’d have to work at it to be as bad as Bush. ---
**Author:** ![MacTech](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c0e974/32.png) [@MacTech](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MacTech)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2010, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-or-obama-the-better-president/556532/6 "2010-10-09T00:11:56Z")
Where’s the option for “they both suck”? Republican leaning independent here, I’d give a slight nod to Obama as the better president, but not by much Then again, I’ve seen slime molds and rotten vegetables that were more intelligent than dubya… ---
**Author:** ![InterestedObserver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/838e76/32.png) [@InterestedObserver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/InterestedObserver)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2010, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-or-obama-the-better-president/556532/7 "2010-10-09T00:25:37Z")
Where is the “Are you fucking kidding me, where WERE you for the last decade or so?” option? 😕 :smack: ---
**Author:** ![nate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nate/32/13085_2.png) [@nate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nate)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2010, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-or-obama-the-better-president/556532/8 "2010-10-09T00:54:15Z")
I’ve pretty much lost any hope in the American people the last several months… It’s like half the country is living in some altered reality with no memory. I can’t believe this is even a poll… Obama is not effective, but he has a long way to go before he stoops to the level of starting an unjustified war. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Man\_With\_The\_Golden\_Gun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/dc4da7/32.png) [@The\_Man\_With\_The\_Golden\_Gun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Man_With_The_Golden_Gun)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2010, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-or-obama-the-better-president/556532/9 "2010-10-09T01:29:44Z")
When it comes to best president of the 21st century, I’d stick Bush in third place myself. ---
**Author:** ![joebuck20](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/74df32/32.png) [@joebuck20](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joebuck20)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2010, 3:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-or-obama-the-better-president/556532/10 "2010-10-09T03:26:55Z")
> [@nate](#): > > I’ve pretty much lost any hope in the American people the last several months… It’s like half the country is living in some altered reality with no memory. I can’t believe this is even a poll… Obama is not effective, but he has a long way to go before he stoops to the level of starting an unjustified war. I agree. This country is fucked. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2010, 5:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-or-obama-the-better-president/556532/11 "2010-10-09T05:44:00Z")
Obama is shaping up to be an average President. But Bush? He doesn’t make the Top 40. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2010, 6:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-or-obama-the-better-president/556532/12 "2010-10-09T06:06:28Z")
Has anybody else noticed that Obama is on TV _every single day?_ ---
**Author:** ![Leaper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/4bbf92/32.png) [@Leaper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaper)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2010, 9:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-or-obama-the-better-president/556532/13 "2010-10-09T09:11:31Z")
Well, it IS election season. He’d be doing his party a disservice if he weren’t. As for the poll… Well, unknown methodology aside, I’m sure there are plenty of Republican voters who feel nostalgic for the days a whi… er, non-Muslim socialist was in the White House. Many of the conservative pundits/bloggers I’ve read have absolutely no love lost for Bush (he made plenty of them plenty mad with much of his domestic agenda, including - and perhaps especially - TARP), but the “voter on the street” seem to have a different impression. ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2010, 9:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-or-obama-the-better-president/556532/14 "2010-10-09T09:40:58Z")
> [@nate](#): > > Obama is not effective, but he has a long way to go before he stoops to the level of starting an unjustified war. There ya go. I’m hoping that Obama will turn it around and become great in his second term, but that is probably pretty naive on my part. ---
**Author:** ![pullin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c57346/32.png) [@pullin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pullin)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2010, 12:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-or-obama-the-better-president/556532/15 "2010-10-09T12:35:42Z")
Right wing Republican here. I have a pretty low opinion of Obama, but at least I can use words when I talk about him. With Bush my communication devolves to mostly spittle. So in this limited poll, I have to vote for Obama. ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2010, 1:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-or-obama-the-better-president/556532/16 "2010-10-09T13:07:23Z")
> [@nate](#): > > I’ve pretty much lost any hope in the American people the last several months… It’s like half the country is living in some altered reality with no memory. I can’t believe this is even a poll… Obama is not effective, but he has a long way to go before he stoops to the level of starting an unjustified war. This reflects my feelings too. Don’t know what is wrong with a country that could hold anything but contempt for Bush. Now we have the so called Tea Party to deal with. ---
**Author:** ![Clothahump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@Clothahump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clothahump)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2010, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-or-obama-the-better-president/556532/17 "2010-10-09T18:48:51Z")
Bush was a good prez for the first six years. Then he started spending like a liberal. Obama has been a failure from day one. The choice is obvious. ---
**Author:** ![pseudotriton\_ruber\_ruber](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a9a28c/32.png) [@pseudotriton\_ruber\_ruber](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pseudotriton_ruber_ruber)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2010, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-or-obama-the-better-president/556532/18 "2010-10-09T19:42:02Z")
> [@Gatopescado](#): > > Has anybody else noticed that Obama is on TV _every single day?_ Whereas Bush hardly ever makes the news anymore. So I;m voting for Bush in this poll. “Who knows how to stay off the TV better? Vote Bush in 2010!!” ---
**Author:** ![SteveG1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bb73d2/32.png) [@SteveG1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SteveG1)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2010, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-or-obama-the-better-president/556532/19 "2010-10-09T19:46:13Z")
I voted Obama. That shouldn’t surprise anybody. ---
**Author:** ![Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/f04885/32.png) [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qin_Shi_Huangdi)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2010, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-or-obama-the-better-president/556532/20 "2010-10-09T19:57:30Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > Obama is shaping up to be an average President. > > But Bush? He doesn’t make the Top 40. There have been 43 Presidents (Cleveland being counted twice). Of them I’d say Buchanan, Pierce, Fillmore, Tyler, Jackson, and Wilson at the least are worse. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bush-or-obama-the-better-president/556532.md?page=2)