Bush: "I'm Sorry" About The Economic Crisis

WASHINGTON — President George W. Bush expressed remorse that the global financial crisis has cost jobs and harmed retirement accounts and said he'll back more government intervention if needed to ease the recession.

"I'm sorry it's happening, of course," Bush said in a wide-ranging interview with ABC's "World News," which was airing Monday. "Obviously I don't like the idea of people losing jobs, or being worried about their 401(k)s. On the other hand, the American people got to know that we will safeguard the system. I mean, we're in. And if we need to be in more, we will."

The U.S. economy fell into a recession in December 2007, the National Bureau of Economic Research reported on Monday. Many economists believe the current downturn will last until the middle of 2009 and will be the most severe slump since the 1981-82 recession.

Bush said he felt responsible for the economic downturn because it's occurring on his watch, but he added: "I think when the history of this period is written, people will realize a lot of the decisions that were made on Wall Street took place over a decade or so" before he became president.

He said he would like to see "instant liquidity" in the markets given the extent of the financial rescue plan, yet he understands that fear has paralyzed the markets.

"It is hard for the average citizen to understand how frozen the system became and how over-leveraged the system became," Bush said. "And so what we're watching is the de-leveraging of our financial markets, which is obviously affecting the growth of the economy."

Last week, the Bush administration and the Federal Reserve pledged $800 billion to break through blockades on credit cards, auto loans, mortgages and other borrowing. The latest moves raised U.S. commitments to contain the financial crisis to nearly $7 trillion _ though no one thinks the government will actually spend that much.

The figures include loans that are expected to be repaid, loan authorities to back mortgages, purchases of stock in banks, guarantees to support loans among banks and pledges backing other transactions.

"This economy will recover," Bush said in the interview conducted last Wednesday at the Camp David, Md., presidential retreat. "And when it recovers, many of the assets backed by the government now will be redeemed, and we will _ could conceivably _ make money off of some of the holdings."

Later in the interview, he said: "I can't guarantee that we'll get all our money back, but it's conceivable we could."

Comments

[Lotto]

But he and Cheney became billionaires by war profiteering and up to today he couldn't tell the deregulation that was pushed through under Reagan era reform and Senator Graham at midnight might in 1999 might cause some problems. He must have missed the 1980s and 1990s banking scandals. Hard to top this dumb explanation except with the last 8 years record.

[Dystopic]

neither are billionaires.

[justus1]

want to bet. do you think they would tell us if they were

[helmboy]

Cheney's known income went from about 17 mil to over 100. he has foreign accounts worth zillions and he has them in euros. they all do.

[mlaiuppa]

"I'm sorry it's happening" so I'm going to screw over the environment too.

This guy should have been impeached long ago.

[Excitedforfuture]

I'm sorry he ever got elected!!! I mean I'm sorry he was able to steal an election!

(I never voted for him)

[downtherabbithole]

Look, Bush is and was nothing but a joke. In the year 2000, the Supreme Court(supposedly a group of nine judges, by a vote of 5-4) did not give a hoot about their country, only about their positions as kingmaker. Those judges who put this country on their knees, should be removed.

[raymurt]

not as sorry as we are, d***weed

[drkazmd65]

Excellently put raymurt.

[BarackstarObama]

He's sorry, but he helped to allow the disaster..­. what a lying hypocrite.

[scoochman]

Bush doesn't give a ---p. He doesn't need to. He was born rich, and will d.ie rich. He's in no danger of not having food on the table anytime soon.

[curiousasheck]

And of course if BO is successful they will say Obama inherited an economy that was on the way up thanks to Republicans.

[curiousasheck]

Trying to tug on the heart strings.

Yeah the American people are a forgiving bunch.

[SaintAlphonso]

Yet another failure by the worst president ever. What a legacy: he screwed up everything there is to screw up. Those who continue to support this failed administration are guilty of treason, IMHO.

[BabsfromKansas]

Cry me a river

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p242/carlapryor/Crocodile_Tears.jpg

[1sparrow]

eight years of bush and the economy is gored permanently. take the 2$ gas and shove it you thieving swine. may all the history books give you your own chapter. lets hope for a miracle.

[BabsfromKansas]

Redeem yourself, Bush... sepuku is your only option!

[johnie2xs]

Seppuku! Nice idea. Wish I'd thought of it. Kudos for the suggestion.

[OhReallySheSaid]

So here comes the new GOP/Bushie talking point: That the crash happened because of the relaxation of regulation oversight during the Clintons. Those are the culprits! Blame them! While Bush was busy reinterpreting every bill he signed toward his looney view of life with his signing statements, it never occurred to the Bushies to reinterpret any Clinton financial bill for the last eight years. Bush hopes that history will see it his way. The reality is as we raffle thru the Bush files we will find that his well coordinated economic policy is actually the same used by the Vandals when sacking Rome: Rape, Pillage, and Plunder.

[zedthewizard]

well, what about the stimulass or stimulus

[outnow]

The GOP appointed a president who waged a war based on false pretenses and who allowed predatory lending to (further) inflate a real estate bubble. Bush's buddies got no-bid contracts and he was "re-electe­d." The Wall Streeters got their upfront fees and removed the risk from their balance sheets with "derivatives" that they sold overseas.

The next time the GOP voter wants to have a beer with someone, don't put him in the White House unless you want to bankrupt the country and the rest of the world. They can rip us off even more in the recession.

[itolduso]

He really had no choice....­if you want to go down in history, there's only two ways to do it...... either be very, very good at what you do.... or be very, very, very bad. As I said, he had no choice.