Americans Blame Bush, Not Obama, for Deficit, Jobs, Afghan War

[Joanne98]

July 16 (Bloomberg) -- Democrats, facing a U.S. electorate angry about the economy and other issues, still have one political asset: George W. Bush.

The former Republican president is blamed more than President Barack Obama for the budget deficit, unemployment and illegal immigration, according to a Bloomberg National Poll conducted July 9-12.

Most surprising is that 60 percent say Bush is primarily responsible for the current situation in Afghanistan. Just 10 percent point to Obama, who has ordered 51,000 additional troops to that country since taking office, doubling the number deployed by Bush.

When Obama entered office in January 2009, there had been 568 U.S. casualties associated with the Afghanistan conflict, a number that has grown to 1,086, as of yesterday, according to the Defense Department. The president has vowed to start withdrawing forces in July 2011, with the pacing determined by conditions on the ground.

http://noir.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601109&sid=a_9nTgFReJXY&pos=10

[Deep13]

1. That's probably because Bush caused deficit, jobs and lost the war. nt