Twitter is just as good a place as any to criticize your former president, as Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-Calif.) proved on Wednesday. The GOP congressman wrote a tweet saying that George W. Bush was not a "class act" and had, in fact, "destroyed" his party.
"@MarkRMatthews Bush not class act, destroyed GOP, jailed Ramos & Compean, left us bailouts, gave more power to fed gov & China," Rohrabacher's tweet read.
A further look at the digital dialogue shows that Mark R. Matthews, a "very conservative" law professor, had earlier commended Bush as a "class act" for his decision not to criticize President Obama during his pre-book release interview with Oprah, or at all during his media tour.
The Hill reports on the background of the California congressman's missive:
Rohrabacher alluded to the jailing of two Border Patrol agents -- Ignacio Ramos and Jose Compean -- whose sentences Bush commuted in his last day in office. The pair had been convicted of shooting a Mexican drug dealer, and conservatives had championed their release.
The 11-term legislator also expressed his disapproval of Bush's Troubled Asset Relief Program, commonly known as the Wall Street or bank bailout, a frequently disparaged program that has haunted many of the lawmakers who have supported it.
For what it's worth, TARP is actually shaping up to be more successful than its reputation as a failed bailout would suggest.
Matthews later responded to Rohrabacher's rebuttal, calling it "true," but maintaining that it was "refreshing" to see the "dignity" that Bush exhibited by choosing not to talk poorly of Obama.
.@MarkRMatthews Bush not class act, destroyed GOP, jailed Ramos & Compean, left us bailouts, gave more power to fed gov & China.
DanaRohrabacher