In the below video, we see excerpts of Bush’s final press conference, in which the bumbling fake cowboy (actually, East Coast rich boy) we elected—twice—begins to try and shape a legacy out of the ashes of his Presidency. I watched the whole thing, and it was ugly. Offering eloquent  slash funny commentary as always, Jon Stewart hits hard, but squarely on the jaw.

Given the contrast between the last eight years and the great hope and tough work that begins for all Americans tomorrow morning, when Mr. Obama becomes President Obama and we begin to dig ourselves out of an economic and moral hole—it’s too soon to forgive…

…the gutting of our American ideals and our middle and lower classes.

….it’s too soon to forgive the wiretapping of our own citizens,

…the record number of executive orders,

…the failure to honor military leaders who told us Iraq would require adequate troops,

…the flaunting of Geneva that led to Abu Ghraib,

…the failure to respond to Katrina,

…the failure to marshall our great power and form a coordinated attack on the root causes of Climate Change,

…the used-to-be-illegal Bush Doctrine (the right to attack a country upon suspicion of future threat even if it hasn’t attacked you or anyone else),

…or the gutted economy while we spend billions fighting the wrong war, killing civilians and stirring up resentment around the world.

The last eight years don’t represent American ideals of

…individual freedom,

…of small government,

…of maintaining Peace on Earth except when absolutely necessary,

…of truly honoring our soldiers (with proper healthcare, for instance, or attending funerals),

…of establishing a bipartisan, respectful agree-to-disagree Washington culture in which our government remembers that they’re representing us, and that we are all, fundamentally, on the same team (talking to you MSNBC and FOX, both).

I won’t be sorry to see Bush go. But I will be glad to see the partisan hackery of the last eight years go with him, and look forward to seeing Democrats and Republicans work together, with mutual respect, to right this country, and once again work together to realize the greatness of our ideals. 

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