Liz Smith | 01/21/2009 7:00 am

Liz Smith: Nancy Pelosi, Buy a Clue!

Nancy Pelosi and President Obama © AP

“Far away there in the sunshine are my highest aspirations. I may not reach them but I can look up and see their beauty and try to follow them.”

So wrote Louisa May Alcott.

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Today is the first full day of the presidency of Barack Hussein Obama, and millions of people in this country and around the world are peering far into the horizon, hoping that aspirations for their county and themselves can be reached. You could power the state of Texas with the good-will energy that has swept the country. (Though maybe that’s not a good metaphor since Texas is still very much a red state.)

I hope people realize that President Obama is but a man, and the world won’t change in an instant. You see that today is like any other day, yes? (Although we are still emotionally hung over from yesterday’s historic event.)

Give him a chance. Change takes time. Republicans can’t be counted on to jump on board with all of Obama’s plans — though I sense relief that he hasn’t, you know, made Bill Ayres Secretary of Defense, or some equally crazy appointment that the right-wing blogs were predicting.

I’m more worried about the Democrats and their mumbling about taking members of the Bush administration — perhaps even the ex-president himself — to legal task for eight years of ineptitude and possibly worse. Please! Nancy Pelosi, buy a clue. When your president talks about turning the page, he doesn’t mean to have the country and media embroiled and obsessed with Bush and company for ages ahead.

I don’t want to see or hear or concern myself with anything Bush from now on. Leave them all to heaven.

Or … wherever.

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One more point. There’s lots of talk over the airwaves about how the election of Barack Obama to the highest office in the land proves “anybody can become president.” OK, it’s a big push forward, no doubt about it. But let’s wait on that sweeping judgment until there is a Jewish president, an atheist president, a gay president, an unmarried (modern-day) president, an Asian president, a Latino president, a Muslim president. And folks, let’s not forget — a woman president!

Oh, and I just love the praise we’re getting from abroad on America’s big step forward. I’ll take all that with a grain of salt until Britain, France, Italy, etc., elect a person of African descent to lead them.

Click here on this text to read my New York Post column.

110 Reader Comments (so far…) Sign In or Register to comment

Very good post Marjorie. We have no idea what went on in the other wars, and it’s a good thing they didn’t have cameras and journalists following our soldiers around and reporting everything that happened in the earlier wars. We have to start trusting the Commander in Chiefs at the time and believe they did the right thing. No one knows what and why decisions were made. But we are still a free world country after all the wars we have been through, and I have to believe no matter what happens in the future, we will always be just that. We are Americans!!!

By Libra Lady on 01/21/2009 6:13 pm

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deber: …daily game shows of who can say the most negative comments on George Bush. Well put. The competition in negativity has become a bummer, even Liz Smith, apparently, has grown weary of it.

By Marjorie C. on 01/21/2009 11:12 am

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deber— How can one “move forward” without understanding the past? How can you understand the past without the facts? How can you get the facts without an investigation? So shouldnt it go without saying that in order to move forward there must be an investigation? So many times Bush supporters have said….. why investigate…. there is no evidence showing wrong doings. Those same supporters didnt mind when the Bush Administration refused to give information that they were legally required to give. Remember Alberto Gonzales answered more than 1/2 of his questions with “I dont recall” Cheney was so secretive that he made claim that he wasnt part of the Executive or Legislative branch of government He even had the VP residence on Google Map “pixeled out” The biggest thing that the Bush Administration said to the American people was “trust me” but wasnt it the “Hero” of the Republican party that said……… Trust but Verify…… that is a quote from Ronald Regan. An investigation will verify. I will make changes in myself and in my surroundings…… I am still working on that……. but I can actually do both…. improve myself and also make sure the facts stay the facts.

By Roger from Ohio on 01/21/2009 11:29 am

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Roger from Ohio - I do not find your arguments sound. You want to investigate. Investigate what? You claim the former President committed crimes yet you do not name them nor do you have proof to back up your allegation. You want to investigate …in order to prove a man innocent? I don’t think so. You want to investigate in order to prove a man guilty. Our juridical system does not work that way. First, an investigation is held when there is substance, when there is evidence, when there is a crime. You want there to be a crime because you disagree politically with George Bush; because you personally disagree with the President’s decision about Iraq. I think most of the posters here have this one correct …. it is far better to move on than to light the fire that will burn the goodwill already established by the new President with both the Congress and, more importantly, with the country at large. George Bush may have left the White House with a 34% approval rating but more than 60% of the nation likes him as a man and a human being.

By Bonnie Oliver on 01/21/2009 4:12 pm

George Bush may have left the White House with a 34% approval rating but more than 60% of the nation likes him as a man and a human being. By Bonnie Oliver on 01/21/2009 5:12 pm Bonnie- Thank you! I did not vote for Bush however I respect the man.

By T P on 01/21/2009 4:27 pm

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Alright Bonnie…. you want some specifics….. Lets start with torture….. We tortured people that we said were terrorists…. They not only ordered it…… there is proof of that…. but they justified it by stating that they saved thousands of people by torture….. there is no proof of that. Is this true….. we wont know without an investigation. There have been 100s of thousands of Iraqi civilians targeted and killed all in the name of the “War on Terror”….. there has been so many killed that the military refuses to release the numbers…… These are facts that needs to be investigated. Lets not forget the “no bid” contracts that were given to “friends of the administration” companies like Halliburton, and Blackwater….. The money that was given to them has not been accounted for…… where did the money go? Maybe an investigation could find the answer. Lets not forget… there was a 6 year Republican “independent investigation” of Bill Clinton…. WHILE HE WAS STILL IN OFFICE….. but you dont want anyone to look into the Bush Administration because it will “light the fire that will burn the goodwill already established by the new President”

By Roger from Ohio on 01/21/2009 5:00 pm

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You do not state facts. And you might remember that Congress kept ducking the issue of Bill Clinton’s misdemeanors and continued to pass on new allegations to the special counsel, Ken Starr. Everything from the whitewater business to the impropriety of Clinton’s conduct with Monica Lewinsky. Thank goodness the law regarding the appointments of special counsels was allow to expire. Your arguments against certain conduct of the former administration are old and rather like an old retreaded tire. You call water-boarding torture? John McCain agrees with you. Unfortunately, I am not so sure. I call pulling out fingernails, hanging a person by his arms from the ceiling, leaving a person to starve…. this is torture. Water-boarding is an old hazing technique used by frat houses. And, yes… is is darn scary. As for Halliburton and Blackwater… has not the Congress already held hearings where representatives of these two companies testified. You want to go fishing? Try somewhere else and let the new Administration begin with goodwill. You are a Bush hater. I replied to your earlier post before I finished reading the entire thread of conversation. If I had done that, then I would have realized that you do not debate…. you hate. Too bad.

By Bonnie Oliver on 01/21/2009 5:30 pm

Very good post Bonnie and well said. Thank you.

By Libra Lady on 01/21/2009 7:06 pm

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You would be better off if you’d stay on the View blogs with those that appreciate your intelligence.

By Diamond In The Rough on 01/21/2009 6:23 pm

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Roger..I live with a man who fought in Iraq and he saw more Iraq’s killing Iraq’s then our Soldiers…But it would get reported that our Soldiers killed b/c our media wanted Bush to look bad. What a lot of people fail to realize is that Iraq Terrorists hide amongst Iraq Civilians…they come in and take over their homes…the civilians have no choice but to stay b/c if they try to leave, they & their whole family is killed. The military shouldnt have to release numbers, what good does that do for anyone? I mean every year on 9/11 we release the names of every man, woman and child that was killed, what does that do? It reminds our Country of when we were attacked in our backyard and it opens wounds that are trying to heal yet can’t b/c they know every 9/11 it will be brought up…I am not saying we should not pay tribute but when is enough enough? If you were in power and you had friends who ran companies who did security work, would you not offer them contracts? I mean that goes on in every day life. Hey you need work done, go see my friend…yes this was done on a much larger scale but where is that a crime? Why do you care where the money went? I mean they sent men and women over to Iraq, with no military escorts to deliver items to Iraqs, so if the money was used to pay their salaries or if the money was used to armor their vehicles, if the money was used to transport their vehicles there, why do we care? I can tell you stories of torture…How would you like to be riding down the streets of Iraq and all of a sudden you smell this GOD awful odor, not sure what it is, so you pull your scarf up around your nose & mouth but that doesnt stop the stench…you go further and off in the distant desert you see hunders of people standing around…you get closer and you see them peering down a huge crater in the earth filled with dead rotting bodies of men, women and children put there by Sadam…just b/c someone in their family said something or did something against Sadam…most of those bodies were put in there still alive and had to die slow horrible deaths. If we hurt terrorists or used methods that were disrespectful to their religion, so what? They did the same to us and would again if given the slightest chance…If we let all those detainees out of GITMO without knowing who they are, where would they go? Do you want them in your neighborhood living next to you and your family? I surely dont want them in mine with my 3 year old.

By C Hardy on 01/21/2009 8:25 pm

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Wow…very good post C Hardy….Just now read it. So much truth and passion…again, thank you. Obama may plan to close GITMO, but it will take a few years. No one wants these detainees in their country, imagine that! And no one wants to release them, because the next one that performs a terrorist act could be on your watch. We shall see what happens.

By Libra Lady on 01/21/2009 11:20 pm

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C Hardy, thank you for putting this painful truth before the democrats. Certain people on this and other threads go to bed hating Bush and they wake up every morning trying to put something they “think is clever” in print in their desperate attempt to drive nails into a Bush/Cheney coffin. Actually, certain democrats don’t want to know the truth as you have described it with firsthand knowledge. They only want to “agitate.” None of us should forget about Saddam Hussein. He was a monster. George Bush got rid of him. If we used methods to get much needed intelligence out of them and we were successful then it saved American lives as well as Iraqi lives. War is different today. The people we face abroad are all armed with WMD’s. Just as we placed spies in the Taliban camp in Afghanistan, they have spies right here in the United States and, yes, they might be living next door to any one of us. This is a different war that requires different measures. I bet all of the Bush haters will think again when we are once again revisited by the terrorists. Forget New York City…..they want Los Angeles, Chicago and all of Washington DC. Would our Bush haters oppose waterboarding or any form of torture to get the people responsible?

By deber B on 01/22/2009 9:24 am

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dennis kucinich drew up a list of 35 articles of impeachment against george w. bush: http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/busharticles just because congress did not act to impeach him in 2007 or 2008 does not mean he is innocent or a decent person. let there be a special prosecutor.

By Elisabeth S on 01/21/2009 11:11 pm

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Only at the peril of a successful Obama presidency. Your choice. If you claim President Bush is indecent - then that is your opinion. If you cannot accept the fact that there was no impeachment because there were no grounds - that too is your opinion. I find Dennis Kucinich not reliable; just because he drew up Articles of Impeachment is a silly argument. Articles of Impeachment I believe are supposed to be drawn up by the Judiciary Committee and then voted on in the Committee. The Committee’s inaction speaks volumes about Kucinich’s articles.

By Bonnie Oliver on 01/22/2009 1:31 am

Elisabeth S - I owe you an apology. I should not have called your statement silly. I could call Dennis Kucinich’s articles silly but not your statement in favor of those same articles. I do apologize.

By Bonnie Oliver on 01/26/2009 8:21 am