Obama Already Correcting Bush Mistakes

When we've had a president as incompetent as George W. Bush has been for eight years, the thought of figuring out how many of his actions need to be corrected is probably intimidating. Luckily the Obama campaign, preparing for the win months ahead of time, stuck a few staffers in a room and had them sorting through the mounds of incompetent and ideologically-driven executive orders and policies written and approved by the Bush administration. From the Washington Post:

Transition advisers to President-elect Barack Obama have compiled a list of about 200 Bush administration actions and executive orders that could be swiftly undone to reverse the president on climate change, stem cell research, reproductive rights and other issues, according to congressional Democrats, campaign aides and experts working with the transition team.

A team of four dozen advisers, working for months in virtual solitude, set out to identify regulatory and policy changes Obama could implement soon after his inauguration. The team is now consulting with liberal advocacy groups, Capitol Hill staffers and potential agency chiefs to prioritize those they regard as the most onerous or ideologically offensive, said a top transition official who was not permitted to speak on the record about the inner workings of the transition.

While Obama's spokesperson for the transition does note that many of these "corrections" would need to be discussed with the appropriate cabinet nominees, there are a few that could be made immediately.

President Bush's executive order restricting federal funding for embryonic stem cell research, for example, would be overturned. In addition, President-elect Obama could also step in and overturn an order that prohibits the state of California from regulating carbon dioxide emissions from automobiles.

With the end of Bush's term approaching, it will be interesting to see what other nonsensical orders will be issued, as Bush staffers attempt to nail down loose ends prior to leaving the White House. You can bet that Obama won't put up with it, and the transition team will be ready to go come January 20th.

The "honeymoon" each new president enjoys could be strengthened for Obama (especially if he has his ducks in a row like this) given Bush's political toxicity.

(h/t SusanG)