George W. Bush

=== Domestic policy ===
{{Main|Domestic policy of the George W. Bush administration}}

==== Economic policy ====
{{Main|Economic policy of the George W. Bush administration}}

Bush took office during a period of economic recession in the wake of the bursting of the [[dot-com bubble]].<ref>Roger Lowenstein (2004), ''Origins of the Crash: The Great Bubble and Its Undoing'', Penguin Books, {{ISBN|978-1-59420-003-8}} pp. 114–115</ref> The September 11 terrorist attacks also [[Economic effects of the September 11 attacks|impacted the economy]].

His administration increased federal [[government spending]] from $1.789{{nbs}}trillion to $2.983{{nbs}}trillion (60 percent), while revenues increased from $2.025{{nbs}}trillion to $2.524{{nbs}}trillion (from 2000 to 2008). Individual income tax revenues increased by 14 percent, corporate tax revenues by 50 percent, and customs and duties by 40 percent. Discretionary defense spending was increased by 107 percent, discretionary domestic spending by 62 percent, Medicare spending by 131 percent, social security by 51 percent, and income security spending by 130 percent. Cyclically adjusted, revenues rose by 35 percent and spending by 65 percent.<ref>[http://www.cbo.gov/ftpdocs/108xx/doc10871/appendixf.shtml Historical Budget Data] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120205054450/http://www.cbo.gov/ftpdocs/108xx/doc10871/AppendixF.shtml |date=February 5, 2012 }}, Congressional Budget Office, Tables F-1, F-3, F-7, F-9, and F-12.</ref> The increase in spending was more than under any predecessor since [[Lyndon B. Johnson]].<ref>[http://mercatus.org/uploadedFiles/Mercatus/WP0904_GAP_Spending%20Under%20President%20George%20W%20Bush.pdf Spending Under President George W. Bush] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120425034211/http://mercatus.org/uploadedFiles/Mercatus/WP0904_GAP_Spending%20Under%20President%20George%20W%20Bush.pdf |date=April 25, 2012 }}, Veronique de Rugy, [[Mercatus Center]], George Mason University, Mar 2009, Table 2</ref> The number of [[economic regulation]] governmental workers increased by 91,196.<ref name="bushregulation">{{cite web |title=Bush's Regulatory Kiss-Off – Obama's assertions to the contrary, the 43rd president was the biggest regulator since Nixon |url=http://www.reason.com/news/show/130328.html |work=Reason |date=January 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090902085717/http://www.reason.com/news/show/130328.html |archive-date=September 2, 2009 |access-date=May 13, 2012 }}</ref>

The surplus in fiscal year 2000 was $237{{nbs}}billion{{snd}}the third consecutive surplus and the largest surplus ever.<ref name=omb>Office of Management! and Budget; National Economic Council, September 27, 2000</ref> In 2001, Bush's budget estimated that there would be a $5.6{{nbs}}trillion surplus over the next ten years.<ref>{{cite book|url=http://www.gpoaccess.gov/usbudget/fy02/pdf/blueprnt.pdf|title=A Blueprint for New Beginnings: A Responsible Budget for America's Priorities|last=Bush|first=George W.|publisher=Office of Management and Budget, Executive Office of the President |year=2001 |isbn=0-16-050683-2 |location=Washington |oclc=46346977|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041018020541/http://www.gpoaccess.gov/usbudget/fy02/pdf/blueprnt.pdf|archive-date=October 18, 2004}}</ref> Facing congressional opposition, Bush held town hall-style meetings across the U.S. to increase public support for his plan for a $1.35{{nbs}}trillion [[Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001|tax cut program]], one of the largest tax cuts in U.S. history.<ref name=msn /> Bush argued that unspent government funds should be returned to taxpayers, saying "the surplus is not the government's money. The surplus is the people's money."<ref name=msn /> Federal Reserve chairman [[Alan Greenspan]] warned of a recession and Bush stated that a tax cut would stimulate the economy and create jobs.<ref>{{cite news |first=Kelly |last=Wallace |title=$1.35 trillion tax cut becomes law |url=http://edition.cnn.com/2001/ALLPOLITICS/06/07/bush.taxes/ |publisher=CNN |date=June 7, 2001 |access-date=June 30, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060515081611/http://edition.cnn.com/2001/ALLPOLITICS/06/07/bush.taxes/ |archive-date=May 15, 2006}}</ref> Treasury Secretary [[Paul H. O'Neill]], opposed some of the tax cuts on the basis that they would contribute to budget deficits and undermine [[Social Security (United States)|Social Security]].<ref>{{cite news |title=CBS Interviews Former Treasury Secretary Paul O'Neill |url=http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article5510.htm |access-date=September 1, 2008 |archive-date=May 15, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060515081611/http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article5510.htm }}</ref> O'Neill disputes the claim, made in Bush's book ''Decision Points'', that he never openly disagreed with him on planned tax cuts.<ref>{{cite news |title=O'Neill Says He 'Clearly' Disagreed With Bush Tax Cuts |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/video/2010/12/06/VI2010120604011.html |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=December 6, 2010 |access-date=December 12, 2010 |archive-date=January 31, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110131185030/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/video/2010/12/06/VI2010120604011.html |url-status=live }}</ref> By 2003, the economy showed signs of improvement, though job growth remained stagnant.<ref name=msn /> [[Jobs and Growth Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2003|Another tax cut]] was passed that year.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.cato.org/pub_display.php?pub_id=6621 | title=Tax Policy Under President Bush | publisher=Cato Institute | access-date=July 7, 2023 | archive-date=May 30, 2023 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230530003442/http://www.cato.org/pub_display.php?pub_id=6621 | url-status=live }}</ref>

Between 2001 and 2008, GDP grew at an average annual rate of 2.125 percent,<ref>{{cite web |title=Gross Domestic Product |url=https://www.bea.gov/iTable/iTableHtml.cfm?reqid=9&step=3&isuri=1&910=X&911=0&903=1&904=2001&905=2008&906=A |publisher=Bureau of Economic Analysis |date=July 31, 2013 |access-date=August 1, 2013 |archive-date=November 5, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131105050641/http://www.bea.gov/iTable/iTableHtml.cfm?reqid=9&step=3&isuri=1&910=X&911=0&903=1&904=2001&905=2008&906=A |url-status=live }}</ref> less than for past business cycles.<ref name="Price & Ratner">{{cite web |url=http://www.epi.org/economic_snapshots/entry/webfeatures_snapshots_20051026/ |last1=Price |first1=L. |last2=Ratner |first2=D. |date=October 26, 2005 |title=Economy pays price for Bush's tax cuts |access-date=June 23, 2009 |archive-date=May 15, 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060515081611/http://www.epi.org/economic_snapshots/entry/webfeatures_snapshots_20051026/ }}</ref> Bush entered office with the [[Dow Jones Industrial Average]] at 10,587, and the average peaked in October 2007 at over 14,000. When Bush left office, the average was at 7,949, one of the lowest levels of his presidency.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://finance.yahoo.com/q/hp?s=%5EDJI |title=Historical Prices for Dow Jones Industrial Average |publisher=[[Yahoo! Finance]] |archive-date=October 5, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131005212821/https://finance.yahoo.com/q/hp?s=%5EDJI |url-status=live }}</ref> Only four other U.S. presidents have left office with the stock market lower than when they began.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://money.com/money/5140978/a-100-year-curse-on-gop-presidents-might-explain-why-stocks-are-tumbling/|title=A 100-Year Curse on GOP Presidents Might Explain Why Stocks Are Tumbling|last=Lim|first=Paul J.|date=February 9, 2018|work=Money|access-date=November 23, 2019|archive-date=December 2, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191202131125/http://money.com/money/5140978/a-100-year-curse-on-gop-presidents-might-explain-why-stocks-are-tumbling/|url-status=live}}</ref>

[[File:Deficits vs. Debt Increases - 2009.png|thumb|upright=1.35|[[United States federal budget|Deficit]] and [[United States public debt|debt]] increases from 2001 to 2009. Gross debt increased over $500{{nbs}}billion each year after the 2003 fiscal year.]]

Unemployment originally rose from 4.2 percent in January 2001 to 6.3 percent in June 2003, but subsequently dropped to 4.5 percent in July 2007.<ref>{{cite web |access-date=September 1, 2008 |url=http://www.bls.gov/webapps/legacy/cpsatab1.htm |title=Labor Force Statistics from the Current Population Survey |publisher=[[United States Department of Labor]] |archive-date=October 5, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131005212821/http://www.bls.gov/webapps/legacy/cpsatab1.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> Adjusted for inflation, [[median household income]] dropped by $1,175 between 2000 and 2007,<ref>{{cite news |title=Middle class: 'On the edge' |url=https://money.cnn.com/2008/07/23/news/economy/middle_class/index.htm |publisher=CNN |first=Tami |last=Luhby |date=July 24, 2008 |access-date=July 24, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130914045319/http://money.cnn.com/2008/07/23/news/economy/middle_class/index.htm |archive-date=September 14, 2013 |url-status=live }}</ref> while Professor Ken Homa of [[Georgetown University]] has noted that "Median real after-tax household income went up two percent".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://kenhoma.wordpress.com/2008/08/28/from-clinton-to-bush-after-tax-household-income-is-up/ |title=From Clinton to Bush, after-tax household income is up! |publisher=The Homa Files |first=Ken |last=Homa |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130919071931/http://kenhoma.wordpress.com/2008/08/28/from-clinton-to-bush-after-tax-household-income-is-up/ |url-status=live |archive-date=September 19, 2013 |date=August 28, 2008 }}</ref> The poverty rate increased from 11.3 percent in 2000 to 12.3 percent in 2006 after peaking at 12.7 percent in 2004.<ref>{{cite web |title=Historical Poverty Timeline |url=https://www.census.gov/hhes/www/poverty/data/historical/people.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070103080222/http://www.census.gov/hhes/www/poverty/histpov/hstpov2.html |archive-date=January 3, 2007 |publisher=[[United States Census]] |access-date=December 31, 2006 }}</ref> By October 2008, due to increases in spending,<ref name="greenburg">{{Cite book|title=Supreme Conflict: The Inside Story of the Struggle for Control of the United States Supreme Court|last=Greenburg|first=Jan C.|publisher=Penguin |year=2007|isbn=978-0-14-311304-1|location=New York|oclc=166382420|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/supremeconflicti00janc}}</ref>{{Rp|273}} the [[National debt of the United States|national debt]] had risen to $11.3{{nbs}}trillion,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sbscpagroup.com/blog/debt-nation-post-two/|title=Debt nation, post two|last=Sylvester|first=Mike|date=October 13, 2008|website=Small Business Services CPA Group|language=en-US|access-date=November 20, 2019|archive-date=January 14, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160114012300/http://www.sbscpagroup.com/blog/debt-nation-post-two/|url-status=dead}}</ref> more than doubling it since 2000.<ref>{{cite web |title=Revenues, Outlays, Surpluses, Deficits, and Debt Held by the Public, 1962 to 2006 |publisher=[[Congressional Budget Office]] |access-date=September 1, 2008 |url=http://www.cbo.gov/budget/historical.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070628072448/http://www.cbo.gov/budget/historical.pdf |archive-date=June 28, 2007 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2007/sep/02/spending-and-the-national-debt/ |title=Spending and the National Debt |access-date=September 1, 2008 |date=September 2, 2007 |work=The Washington Times |archive-date=October 5, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131005212821/http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2007/sep/02/spending-and-the-national-debt }}</ref>{{unreliable source?|date=May 2020}} Most debt was accumulated as a result of what became known as the "[[Bush tax cuts]]" and increased national security spending.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=909 |last1=Fiedler |first2=R. |last2=Kogan |date=December 13, 2006 |title=From Surplus to Deficit: Legislation Enacted Over the Last Six Years Has Raised the Debt by $2.3 Trillion |access-date=November 10, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131005212821/http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=909 |archive-date=October 5, 2013 }}</ref> In March 2006, then-Senator [[Barack Obama]] said when he voted against raising the [[United States debt ceiling|debt ceiling]]: "The fact that we are here today to debate raising America's debt limit is a sign of leadership failure."<ref>{{cite news|url=http://blogs.chicagotribune.com/news_columnists_ezorn/2011/04/saying-no-to-raising-the-debt-ceiling.html|title=Saying 'no' to raising the debt ceiling|last=Zorn|first=Eric|date=April 11, 2011|newspaper=[[Chicago Tribune]]|access-date=November 23, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131005212821/http://blogs.chicagotribune.com/news_columnists_ezorn/2011/04/saying-no-to-raising-the-debt-ceiling.html|archive-date=October 5, 2013|issn=2165-171X}}</ref> By the end of Bush's presidency, unemployment climbed to 7.2 percent.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bls.gov/news.release/archives/empsit_01092009.htm|title=The Employment Situation: December 2008|date=January 9, 2009|website=Bureau of Labor Statistics|publisher=[[United States Department of Labor]]|access-date=November 23, 2019|archive-date=December 2, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191202132741/https://www.bls.gov/news.release/archives/empsit_01092009.htm|url-status=live}}</ref>

==== 2008 financial crisis ====
In December 2007, the United States entered the longest post–[[World War II]] recession,<ref name=longest1 /> [[Causes of the Great Recession|caused]] by a [[United States housing market correction|housing market correction]], a [[subprime mortgage crisis]], [[2000s energy crisis|soaring oil prices]], and other factors. In February 2008, 63,000 jobs were lost, a five-year record,<ref>Aversa, Jeannine, [https://www.nbcnews.com/id/23518599 Employers Slash 63,000 Jobs] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200403222700/http://www.nbcnews.com/id/23518599 |date=April 3, 2020 }}, "Employers slash jobs by most in{{nbs}}5 years", Associated Press, March 7, 2008. Retrieved July 11, 2008.</ref> and in November, over 500,000 jobs were lost, which marked the largest loss of jobs in the United States in 34 years.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://moneycentral.msn.com/content/P146055.asp|title=The numbers behind the lies|last=Fleckenstein|first=Bill|date=March 6, 2006|work=[[MSN Money]]|access-date=November 19, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071228031542/http://moneycentral.msn.com/content/P146055.asp|archive-date=December 28, 2007}}</ref> The [[Bureau of Labor Statistics]] reported that in the last four months of 2008, 1.9&nbsp;million jobs were lost.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/empsit.pdf|title=The Employment Situation|date=January 9, 2009|website=Bureau of Labor Statistics|publisher=Department of Labor|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131006034714/http://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/empsit.pdf|archive-date=October 6, 2013}}</ref> By the end of 2008, the U.S. had lost 2.6&nbsp;million jobs.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://money.cnn.com/2009/01/09/news/economy/jobs_december/index.htm|title=Worst year for jobs since '45|last=Goldman|first=David|date=January 9, 2009|access-date=June 23, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131006034714/http://money.cnn.com/2009/01/09/news/economy/jobs_december/index.htm|archive-date=October 6, 2013|publisher=CNN}}</ref>

To aid with the situation, Bush signed a $170{{nbs}}billion economic stimulus package which was intended to improve the economic situation by sending tax rebate checks to many Americans and providing tax breaks for struggling businesses. The Bush administration pushed for significantly increased regulation of [[Fannie Mae]] and [[Freddie Mac]] in 2003,<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2003/09/11/business/new-agency-proposed-to-oversee-freddie-mac-and-fannie-mae.html |title=New Agency Proposed to Oversee Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae |access-date=June 23, 2009 |date=September 11, 2003 |first=Stephen |last=Labaton |newspaper=The New York Times |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131005212821/http://www.nytimes.com/2003/09/11/business/new-agency-proposed-to-oversee-freddie-mac-and-fannie-mae.html |archive-date=October 5, 2013 }}</ref> and after two years, the regulations passed the House but died in the Senate. Many Republican senators, as well as influential members of the Bush Administration, feared that the agency created by these regulations would merely be mimicking the private sector's risky practices.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/21/business/21admin.html|title=The Reckoning – Bush's Philosophy Stoked the Mortgage Bonfire|last1=Becker|first1=Jo|date=December 20, 2008|work=The New York Times|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131213173917/http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/21/business/21admin.html|archive-date=December 13, 2013|last2=Stolberg|first2=Sheryl G.|page=4 of 6|last3=Labaton|first3=Stephen}}</ref><ref name="admin crisis">{{cite web |url=http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=h109-1461 |title=H.R. 1461 (109th): Federal Housing Finance Reform Act of 2005 |date=May 25, 2005 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120305114601/http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=h109-1461 |url-status=live |archive-date=March 5, 2012 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/20/business/worldbusiness/20iht-prexy.4.16321064.html|title=Bush can share the blame for financial crisis|last1=Stolberg|first1=Sheryl G.|date=September 20, 2008|work=The New York Times|access-date=October 9, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140414140254/http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/20/business/worldbusiness/20iht-prexy.4.16321064.html|archive-date=April 14, 2014|last2=Landler|first2=Mark}}</ref> In September 2008, [[Financial crisis of 2007–08|the crisis became much more serious]] beginning with the government takeover of [[Federal takeover of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac|Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac]] followed by the collapse of [[Lehman Brothers]] and a federal bailout of [[American International Group]] for $85{{nbs}}billion.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/conciseencyclope0000rose|url-access=registration|title=The Concise Encyclopedia of The Great Recession 2007–2012|last=Rosenberg|first=Jerry M.|publisher=Scarecrow Press|year=2012|isbn=978-0-8108-8340-6|location=Lanham|page=[https://archive.org/details/conciseencyclope0000rose/page/244 244]|oclc=806034394}}</ref>

Many economists and world governments determined that the situation had become the worst financial crisis since the [[Great Depression]].<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/business/2008/mar/18/creditcrunch.marketturmoil1 |title=A financial crisis unmatched since the Great Depression |last=Elliott |first=Larry |date=March 18, 2008 |access-date=June 23, 2009 |newspaper=The Guardian |location=London |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121111023001/http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2008/mar/18/creditcrunch.marketturmoil1 |archive-date=November 11, 2012 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.foxnews.com/story/2008/09/18/worst-financial-crisis-since-30s-with-no-end-yet-in-sight/|title=Worst Financial Crisis Since '30s, With No End Yet in Sight|last1=Hilsenrath|first1=Jon|date=September 18, 2008|publisher=Fox News|access-date=June 23, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131111115843/http://www.foxnews.com/story/2008/09/18/worst-financial-crisis-since-30s-with-no-end-yet-in-sight/|archive-date=November 11, 2013|last2=Ng|first2=Serena|last3=Paletta|first3=Damian}}</ref> Additional regulation over the housing market would have been beneficial, according to former Federal Reserve chairman [[Alan Greenspan]].<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/10/23/AR2008102300193.html |newspaper=The Washington Post |access-date=December 9, 2008 |date=October 24, 2008 |title=Greenspan Says He Was Wrong On Regulation |author1=Irwin, Neil |author2=Amit R. Paley |archive-date=August 21, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110821213911/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/10/23/AR2008102300193.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Bush, meanwhile, proposed a [[Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008|financial rescue plan]] to buy back a large portion of the U.S. mortgage market.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7625727.stm |title=Bush hails financial rescue plan |access-date=September 22, 2008 |work=BBC News |date=September 20, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131005212821/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7625727.stm |archive-date=October 5, 2013 }}</ref> Vince Reinhardt, a former Federal Reserve economist now at the [[American Enterprise Institute]], said "it would have helped for the Bush administration to empower the folks at Treasury and the Federal Reserve and the comptroller of the currency and the [[Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation|FDIC]] to look at these issues more closely", and additionally, that it would have helped "for Congress to have held hearings".<ref name="admin crisis" />

==== Education and public health ====
Bush undertook many educational agendas, such as increasing the funding for the [[National Science Foundation]] and [[National Institutes of Health]] in his first years of office and creating education programs to strengthen the grounding in science and mathematics for American high school students. Funding for the NIH was cut in 2006, the first such cut in 36 years, due to rising inflation.<ref>{{cite news |title=President Bush and House Republicans Undermine Life-Saving Health Research |publisher=United States House of Representatives |date=September 12, 2006}}</ref>

[[File:No Child Left Behind Act.jpg|thumb|President Bush signing the [[No Child Left Behind Act]] into law, January 8, 2002]]
One of the administration's early major initiatives was the [[No Child Left Behind Act]], which aimed to measure and close the gap between rich and poor student performance, provide options to parents with students in low-performing schools, and target more federal funding to low-income schools. This landmark education initiative passed with broad bipartisan support, including that of Senator [[Ted Kennedy]] of Massachusetts.<ref>{{cite news |newspaper=The New York Times |url=http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/subjects/n/no_child_left_behind_act/index.html |date=March 16, 2010 |access-date=September 26, 2010 |first=Sam |last=Dillon |title=No Child Left Behind Act |archive-date=October 6, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131006034714/http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/subjects/n/no_child_left_behind_act/index.html }}</ref> It was signed into law by Bush in early 2002.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2002/01/20020108-1.html |title=President Signs Landmark No Child Left Behind Education Bill |date=January 8, 2002 |access-date=May 5, 2008 |archive-date=October 6, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131006034714/http://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2002/01/20020108-1.html |via=[[NARA|National Archives]] |publisher=[[White House]] }}</ref> Many contend that the initiative has been successful, as cited by the fact that students in the U.S. have performed significantly better on state reading and math tests since Bush signed "No Child Left Behind" into law.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/06/05/AR2007060502684.html|title=Scores Up Since 'No Child' Was Signed|last=Paley|first=Amit R.|date=June 6, 2007|newspaper=The Washington Post|access-date=May 30, 2008|archive-date=October 16, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111016224329/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/06/05/AR2007060502684.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Critics{{who|date=February 2021}} argue that it is underfunded<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.theamericanconservative.com/articles/leaving-no-child-left-behind/|title=Leaving No Child Left Behind|last=Antle III|first=W. James|date=August 1, 2005|work=[[The American Conservative]]|access-date=September 1, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120921072049/http://www.theamericanconservative.com/articles/leaving-no-child-left-behind/|archive-date=September 21, 2012}}</ref>{{Better source needed|date=February 2021|reason=primary source for one minor view}} and that NCLBA's focus on "high-stakes testing" and quantitative outcomes is counterproductive.<ref>{{cite news |author=Harvard Graduate School of Education |url=http://www.gse.harvard.edu/news/features/pierce07012002.html |title=No Child Left Behind? |work=HGSE News |date=June 1, 2002 |access-date=September 1, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131006034714/http://www.gse.harvard.edu/news/features/pierce07012002.html |archive-date=October 6, 2013 |author-link=Harvard Graduate School of Education }}; {{cite book |title=Raising Standards or Raising Barriers? |editor=Gary Orfield |author=Mindy L. Kornhaber |publisher=The Century Foundation Press |date=May 1, 2001}}</ref>

On November 1, 2005, Bush announced a ''National Strategy for Pandemic Influenza'' to prepare the United States for a [[flu pandemic]], which culminated in an implementation plan published by the Homeland Security Council in May 2006.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Mosk|first=Matthew|date=April 5, 2020|title=George W. Bush in 2005: 'If we wait for a pandemic to appear, it will be too late to prepare'|language=en|website=ABC News|url=https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/george-bush-2005-wait-pandemic-late-prepare/story?id=69979013|access-date=April 6, 2020|archive-date=December 27, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211227200945/https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/george-bush-2005-wait-pandemic-late-prepare/story?id=69979013|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pandemic-influenza-implementation.pdf|title=National Strategy for Pandemic Influenza – Implementation Plan|last=Homeland Security Council|date=May 2006|access-date=April 6, 2020|archive-date=April 23, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200423232518/https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pandemic-influenza-implementation.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>

After being re-elected, Bush signed into law a [[Medicare (United States)|Medicare]] drug benefit program that, according to [[Jan Crawford]], resulted in "the greatest expansion in America's [[welfare state]] in forty years" – the bill's costs approached $7{{nbs}}trillion.<ref name="greenburg" />{{Rp|274}} In 2007, Bush opposed and vetoed [[State Children's Health Insurance Program]] (SCHIP) legislation, which was added by the Democrats onto a war funding bill and passed by Congress. The SCHIP legislation would have significantly expanded federally funded healthcare benefits and plans to children of some low-income families. It was to be funded by an increase in the cigarette tax.<ref>{{cite news |author1=Michael Abramowitz |author2=Jonathan Weisman |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/10/03/AR2007100300116_pf.html |title=Bush Vetoes Health Measure |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=October 4, 2007 |access-date=October 9, 2007 |archive-date=November 2, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121102202603/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/10/03/AR2007100300116_pf.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Bush viewed the legislation as a move toward [[socialized health care]], and asserted that the program could benefit families making as much as $83,000 per year who did not need the help.<ref>{{cite news |date=October 4, 2007 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/04/washington/04bush.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071016064819/http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/04/washington/04bush.html |archive-date=October 16, 2007 |url-access=limited |url-status=live |title=Bush Vetoes Child Health Bill Privately |work=The New York Times |access-date=September 1, 2008}}</ref>

On May 21, 2008, Bush signed into law the [[Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act]], aimed to protect Americans against health insurance and employment discrimination based on a person's genetic information. The issue had been debated for 13 years before it finally became law. The measure is designed to protect citizens without hindering genetic research.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.genome.gov/24519851|title=Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008|access-date=July 15, 2013|publisher=Genome.gov|archive-date=July 24, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130724085916/http://www.genome.gov/24519851|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ornl.gov/sci/techresources/Human_Genome/publicat/GINAMay2008.pdf|title=PUBLIC LAW 110–233 – MAY 21, 2008|publisher=[[Oak Ridge National Laboratory]]|access-date=February 2, 2014|archive-date=May 13, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130513220407/http://www.ornl.gov/sci/techresources/Human_Genome/publicat/GINAMay2008.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>

==== Social services and Social Security ====
Following Republican efforts to pass the [[Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act|Medicare Act of 2003]], Bush signed the bill, which included major changes to the [[Medicare (United States)|Medicare]] program by providing beneficiaries with some assistance in paying for prescription drugs, while relying on private insurance for the delivery of benefits.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ncpssm.org/pdf/PL108summary.pdf |title=Summary of Medicare Act of 2003 |access-date=August 20, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080724191249/http://www.ncpssm.org/pdf/PL108summary.pdf |archive-date=July 24, 2008 }}</ref> The retired persons lobby group [[AARP]] worked with the Bush Administration on the program and gave their endorsement. Bush said the law, estimated to cost $400{{nbs}}billion over the first ten years, would give the elderly "better choices and more control over their health care".<ref>{{cite web |url=https://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2003/12/20031208-2.html |title=President Signs Medicare Legislation |date=December 8, 2003 |access-date=September 1, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131006034714/http://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2003/12/20031208-2.html |archive-date=October 6, 2013 |via=[[NARA|National Archives]] |publisher=[[White House]] }}</ref>

Bush began his second term by outlining a major initiative to [[Social Security debate in the United States|reform]] Social Security,<ref name="ss-msnbc">{{cite news |last=Wolk |first=Martin |publisher=NBC News |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/id/6903273 |title=Bush pushes his Social Security overhaul |access-date=August 20, 2008 |date=February 16, 2005 |archive-date=November 4, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131104140339/http://www.nbcnews.com/id/6903273/ |url-status=live }}</ref> which was facing record deficit projections beginning in 2005. Bush made it the centerpiece of his domestic agenda despite opposition from some in the U.S. Congress.<ref name="ss-msnbc" /> In his [[2005 State of the Union Address]], Bush discussed the potential impending bankruptcy of the program and outlined his new program, which included partial privatization of the system, personal Social Security accounts, and options to permit Americans to divert a portion of their Social Security tax ([[Federal Insurance Contributions Act tax|FICA]]) into secured investments.<ref name="ss-msnbc" /> Democrats opposed the proposal to partially privatize the system.<ref name="ss-msnbc" />

Bush embarked on a 60-day national tour, campaigning for his initiative in media events known as "Conversations on Social Security" in an attempt to gain public support.<ref>{{cite news |access-date=September 1, 2008 |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A28120-2005Mar11.html |title=Social Security: On With the Show |author1=Jim VandeHei |author2=Peter Baker |date=February 12, 2005 |newspaper=The Washington Post |archive-date=July 24, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080724154327/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A28120-2005Mar11.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Nevertheless, public support for the proposal declined,<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.ft.com/cms/s/f944a850-b830-11d9-bc7c-00000e2511c8,_i_rssPage=80fdaff6-cbe5-11d7-81c6-0820abe49a01.html|title=Bush shifts approach on Social Security reform|last1=Alden|first1=Edward|date=April 28, 2005|newspaper=Financial Times|access-date=September 9, 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080706122117/http://www.ft.com/cms/s/f944a850-b830-11d9-bc7c-00000e2511c8,Authorised=false.html?_i_location=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ft.com%2Fcms%2Fs%2F0%2Ff944a850-b830-11d9-bc7c-00000e2511c8.html&_i_referer=|archive-date=July 6, 2008|last2=Yeager|first2=Holly|url-access=subscription|url-status=live}}</ref> and the House Republican leadership decided not to put Social Security reform on the priority list for the remainder of their 2005 legislative agenda.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://thehill.com/thehill/export/TheHill/News/Frontpage/060105/social.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051205090810/http://thehill.com/thehill/export/TheHill/News/Frontpage/060105/social.html |archive-date=December 5, 2005 |title=Social Security in Limbo |work=The Hill |date=June 1, 2005 |first=Patrick |last=O'Connor }}</ref> The proposal's legislative prospects were further diminished by autumn 2005 due to political fallout from the response to [[Hurricane Katrina]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://news.ft.com/cms/s/00d6ee20-2b9f-11da-995a-00000e2511c8.html|title=Hurricane dims Bush's hopes on Social Security|last=Yeager|first=Holly|date=September 22, 2005|work=Financial Times|url-access=subscription|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050923024100/http://news.ft.com/cms/s/00d6ee20-2b9f-11da-995a-00000e2511c8.html|archive-date=September 23, 2005|access-date=September 9, 2007}}</ref>

==== Environmental policies ====
{{Main|Domestic policy of the George W. Bush administration#Environment}}

Upon taking office in 2001, Bush stated his opposition to the [[Kyoto Protocol]], an amendment to the [[United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change]] which seeks to impose mandatory targets for reducing [[greenhouse gas emissions]], citing that the treaty exempted 80 percent of the world's population<ref>{{cite web |date=March 13, 2001 |url=https://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2001/03/20010314.html |title=Letter from the President to Senators Hagel, Helms, Craig, and Roberts |publisher=Office of the Press Secretary |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130507053351/http://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2001/03/20010314.html |archive-date=May 7, 2013 }}</ref> and would have cost tens of billions of dollars per year.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.eia.doe.gov/oiaf/kyoto/economic.htm |title=Summary of the Kyoto Report – Assessment of Economic Impacts |publisher=Energy Information Administration |date=July 16, 2002 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110523060852/http://www.eia.doe.gov/oiaf/kyoto/economic.htm |archive-date=May 23, 2011 }}</ref> He also cited that the Senate had voted 95–0 in 1997 on a resolution expressing its disapproval of the protocol.

In May 2001, Bush signed an [[executive order]] to create an interagency task force to streamline energy projects,<ref name=eo13212>Bush, George W. [http://energy.gov/sites/prod/files/oeprod/DocumentsandMedia/Executive_Order_13212.pdf Executive Order 13212 – Actions To Expedite Energy-Related Projects] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120626055924/http://energy.gov/sites/prod/files/oeprod/DocumentsandMedia/Executive_Order_13212.pdf |date=June 26, 2012 }} ''[[United States Department of Energy]]'', May 18, 2001. [http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/index.php?pid=61397 Amendment] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111229023734/http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/index.php?pid=61397 |date=December 29, 2011 }}. Retrieved September 24, 2011.</ref> and later signed two other executive orders to tackle environmental issues.<ref name="sovaWater">{{cite web |author1=Benjamin K. Sovacool |author2=Kelly K. Sovacool |title=Preventing National Electricity-Water Crisis Areas in the United States |url=http://www.columbiaenvironmentallaw.org/assets/pdfs/34.2/6._Sovacool_34.2.pdf |publisher=[[Columbia Journal of Environmental Law]] |access-date=September 24, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131208084904/http://www.columbiaenvironmentallaw.org/assets/pdfs/34.2/6._Sovacool_34.2.pdf |archive-date=December 8, 2013 |page=389 |date=July 20, 2009|author1-link=Benjamin K. Sovacool }}</ref>

In 2002, Bush proposed the [[Clear Skies Act of 2003]],<ref name="EXsummary">{{cite web |url=https://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2002/02/clearskies.html |title=Executive Summary – The Clear Skies Initiative |date=February 14, 2002 |via=[[NARA|National Archives]] |publisher=[[White House]] |access-date=September 1, 2008 |archive-date=May 5, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100505065602/http://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2002/02/clearskies.html |url-status=live }}</ref> which aimed at amending the [[Clean Air Act (United States)|Clean Air Act]] to reduce air pollution through the use of [[emissions trading]] programs. Many experts argued that this legislation would have weakened the original legislation by allowing higher emission rates of pollutants than were previously legal.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.sierraclub.org/cleanair/clear_skies.asp |publisher=The [[Sierra Club]] |title=Clear Skies Proposal Weakens the Clean Air Act |access-date=September 1, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080917224422/http://www.sierraclub.org/cleanair/clear_skies.asp |archive-date=September 17, 2008 }}</ref> The initiative was introduced to Congress, but failed to make it out of committee.{{citation needed|date=October 2021}}

Later in 2006, Bush declared the [[Northwestern Hawaiian Islands]] a national monument, creating the largest [[marine reserve]] to date. The [[Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument]] comprises 84 million acres (340,000{{nbs}}km<sup>2</sup>) and is home to 7,000 species of fish, birds, and other marine animals, many of which are specific to only those islands.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/id/13300363|title=Bush creates world's biggest ocean preserve|last=Llanos|first=Miguel|date=June 16, 2006|access-date=November 19, 2019|publisher=NBC News|agency=Associated Press|archive-date=December 2, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191202142001/http://www.nbcnews.com/id/13300363|url-status=live}}</ref> The move was hailed by conservationists for "its foresight and leadership in protecting this incredible area".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nature.org/initiatives/marine/press/press2489.html |title=The Nature Conservancy Applauds President Bush for Creating World's Largest Marine Conservation Area in Hawaii |date=June 16, 2006 |publisher=[[The Nature Conservancy]] |access-date=September 1, 2008 |archive-date=November 28, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081128101124/http://www.nature.org/initiatives/marine/press/press2489.html }}</ref>

Bush has said he believes that [[global warming]] is real<ref>{{cite news |title=Interview with President Bush |work=White House Transcript |date=May 13, 2008 |access-date=May 14, 2008 |quote=Q. Mr. President, for the record, is global warming real? A. Yes, it is real, sure is. |url=http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0508/10316_Page3.html |archive-date=May 17, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080517115554/http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0508/10316_Page3.html |url-status=live }}</ref> and has noted that it is a serious problem, but he asserted there is a "debate over whether it's man-made or naturally caused".<ref>{{cite web |url=https://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2006/06/20060626-2.html |title=Press Conference |date=June 26, 2006 |access-date=September 1, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130502232627/http://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2006/06/20060626-2.html |archive-date=May 2, 2013 |via=[[NARA|National Archives]] |publisher=[[White House]] }}</ref> The Bush Administration's stance on global warming remained controversial in the scientific and environmental communities. Critics have alleged that the administration<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/id/6341451|title=NASA Scientist Rips Bush on Global Warming|date=October 27, 2004|access-date=September 1, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130507053351/http://www.nbcnews.com/id/6341451|archive-date=May 7, 2013|publisher=NBC News|agency=Associated Press}}; {{cite news|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/03/17/60minutes/main1415985_page2.shtml|title=60 Minutes: Rewriting the Science|date=March 19, 2006|access-date=September 1, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130502232627/http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/03/17/60minutes/main1415985_page2.shtml|archive-date=May 2, 2013|publisher=CBS News}}</ref> misinformed the public and did not do enough to reduce [[greenhouse gas#Greenhouse gas emissions from human activities|carbon emissions]] and deter global warming.<ref>{{cite book |title=Hell or High Water |first=Joe |last=Romm |publisher=William Morrow |year=2006 |isbn=978-0-06-117212-0 |oclc=77537768 |url=https://archive.org/details/hellhighwaterglo00romm_0 }}; Romm calls Bush's "don't rush to judgment" and "we need to ask more questions" stance a classic delay tactic. Part 2.</ref>

==== Energy policies ====
In his [[2006 State of the Union Address]], Bush declared, "America is addicted to oil" and announced his Advanced Energy Initiative to increase [[energy development]] research.<ref>{{cite news |date=January 31, 2006 |access-date=October 1, 2006 |url=http://legacy.c-span.org/Transcripts/SOTU-2006.aspx |title=President George W. Bush's address before a joint session of the Congress on the State of the Union |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110131222703/http://legacy.c-span.org/Transcripts/SOTU-2006.aspx |archive-date=January 31, 2011 |publisher=[[C-SPAN]]}}</ref>

[[File:20080618 Bush Kempthorne oil exploration speech.jpg|thumb|President Bush delivering a statement on energy, urging Congress to end [[Offshore oil and gas in the United States|offshore oil drill]] ban, June 18, 2008]]
In his [[2007 State of the Union Address]], Bush renewed his pledge to work toward diminished reliance on foreign oil by reducing [[fossil fuel]] consumption and increasing [[alternative fuel]] production.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2007/01/20070123-2.html |title=President Bush Delivers State of the Union Address |date=January 23, 2007 |access-date=June 23, 2009 |archive-date=May 2, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130502232627/http://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2007/01/20070123-2.html |via=[[NARA|National Archives]] |publisher=[[White House]] }}</ref> Amid high gasoline prices in 2008, Bush lifted a ban on [[offshore drilling]].<ref name="drilling-cnn">{{cite news |access-date=August 3, 2008 |date=July 14, 2008 |url=http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/07/14/bush.offshore/ |title=Bush lifts executive ban on offshore oil drilling |publisher=CNN |archive-date=June 28, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130628134931/http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/07/14/bush.offshore/ }}</ref> However, the move was largely symbolic because there was still a federal law banning offshore drilling. Bush said, "This means that the only thing standing between the American people and these vast oil reserves is action from the U.S. Congress."<ref name="drilling-cnn" /> Bush had said in June 2008, "In the long run, the solution is to reduce demand for oil by promoting alternative energy technologies. My administration has worked with Congress to invest in gas-saving technologies like advanced batteries and hydrogen [[fuel cell]]s{{nbs}}... In the short run, the American economy will continue to rely largely on oil. And that means we need to increase supply, especially here at home. So my administration has repeatedly called on Congress to expand domestic oil production."<ref>{{cite web |url=https://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2008/06/20080618.html |title=President Bush Discusses Energy |date=June 18, 2008 |access-date=August 3, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130502232627/http://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2008/06/20080618.html |archive-date=May 2, 2013 |via=[[NARA|National Archives]] |publisher=[[White House]] }}</ref>

In his [[2008 State of the Union Address]], Bush announced that the U.S. would commit $2{{nbs}}billion over the next three years to a new international fund to promote clean energy technologies and fight climate change, saying, "Along with contributions from other countries, this fund will increase and accelerate the deployment of all forms of cleaner, more efficient technologies in developing nations like India and China, and help leverage substantial private-sector capital by making clean energy projects more financially attractive." He also announced plans to reaffirm the United States' commitment to work with major economies, and, through the UN, to complete an international agreement that will slow, stop, and eventually reverse the growth of greenhouse gases; he stated, "This agreement will be effective only if it includes commitments by every major economy and gives none a free ride."<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/stateoftheunion2008.htm |title=George W. Bush: 2008 State of the Union Address |author=American Rhetoric |date=January 28, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130502232627/http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/stateoftheunion2008.htm |archive-date=May 2, 2013 }}</ref>

==== Stem cell research and first veto ====
Federal funding for medical research involving the creation or destruction of human embryos through the [[Department of Health and Human Services]] and the [[National Institutes of Health]] has been forbidden by law since the passage of the [[Dickey–Wicker Amendment]] in 1995.<ref>{{cite web |access-date=September 1, 2008 |url=http://www.aaas.org/spp/cstc/briefs/stemcells/index.shtml |title=AAAS Policy Brief: Stem Cell Research |publisher=[[American Association for the Advancement of Science]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081005102130/http://www.aaas.org/spp/cstc/briefs/stemcells/index.shtml |archive-date=October 5, 2008 }}</ref> Bush has said he supports adult [[stem cell]] research and has supported federal legislation that finances adult stem cell research. However, Bush did not support [[embryonic stem cell]] research.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2001/08/20010809-2.html |title=President Discusses Stem Cell Research |publisher=Office of the President |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130506144005/http://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2001/08/20010809-2.html |url-status=live |archive-date=May 6, 2013 }}</ref> On August 9, 2001, Bush signed an executive order lifting the ban on federal funding for the 71 existing "lines" of stem cells,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://stemcells.nih.gov/policy/NIHFedPolicy.asp |title=NIH's Role in Federal Policy Stem Cell Research |publisher=[[National Institutes of Health]] |access-date=June 23, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090617221306/http://stemcells.nih.gov/policy/NIHFedPolicy.asp |archive-date=June 17, 2009}}</ref> but the ability of these existing lines to provide an adequate medium for testing has been questioned. Testing can be done on only 12 of the original lines, and all approved lines have been cultured in contact with mouse cells, which creates safety issues that complicate development and approval of therapies from these lines.<ref>{{cite magazine |magazine=Time |date=August 11, 2003 |access-date=September 1, 2008 |url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,472876,00.html |title=Stem Cells in Limbo |first=Michael D. |last=Lemonick |archive-date=May 2, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130502232627/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0%2C9171%2C472876%2C00.html }}</ref> On July 19, 2006, Bush used his veto power for the first time in his presidency to veto the [[Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act]]. The bill would have repealed the Dickey–Wicker Amendment, thereby permitting federal money to be used for research where stem cells are derived from the destruction of an embryo.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.cnn.com/2006/POLITICS/07/19/stemcells.veto/ |title=Bush Vetoes Embryonic Stem Cell Bill |publisher=CNN |date=September 25, 2006 |access-date=June 23, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130502232627/http://www.cnn.com/2006/POLITICS/07/19/stemcells.veto/ |archive-date=May 2, 2013 }}</ref>

==== Immigration ====
[[File:Bush delivers statement at Mexican border.jpg|thumb|President Bush discussing border security with Secretary of Homeland Security [[Michael Chertoff]] near [[El Paso, Texas|El Paso]], November 2005]]

Nearly eight million immigrants came to the United States from 2000 to 2005, more than in any other five-year period in the nation's history.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2005-12-12-immigration_x.htm|title=Study: Immigration grows, reaching record numbers|last1=El Nasser|first1=Haya|date=December 12, 2005|newspaper=USA Today|access-date=November 19, 2019|last2=Kiely|first2=Kathy|archive-date=March 14, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120314123156/https://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2005-12-12-immigration_x.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> Almost half entered illegally.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2005/dec/12/20051212-110459-2662r |title=Immigration surge called 'highest ever{{'"}} |newspaper=The Washington Times |date=December 12, 2005 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130502232627/http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2005/dec/12/20051212-110459-2662r |archive-date=May 2, 2013 }}</ref>{{unreliable source?|date=May 2020}} In 2006, Bush urged Congress to allow more than twelve million [[illegal immigration|illegal immigrants]] to work in the United States with the creation of a "temporary guest-worker program". Bush also urged Congress to provide additional funds for border security and committed to deploying 6,000 [[National Guard of the United States|National Guard]] troops to the [[Mexico–United States border]].<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.cnn.com/2005/POLITICS/11/29/bush.immigration/ |title=Bush takes tough talk on immigration to Texas |access-date=September 9, 2006 |publisher=CNN |date=November 29, 2005 |archive-date=June 28, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130628192710/http://www.cnn.com/2005/POLITICS/11/29/bush.immigration/ }}</ref> From May to June 2007, Bush strongly supported the [[Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2007]], which was written by a bipartisan group of Senators with the active participation of the Bush administration.<ref>{{cite press release |title=Fact Sheet: Border Security and Immigration Reform |url=https://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2007/05/20070517-7.html |date=May 17, 2007 |publisher=[[Executive Office of the President of the United States|The White House]] |access-date=February 3, 2012 |archive-date=May 2, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130502232627/http://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2007/05/20070517-7.html }}</ref> The bill envisioned a legalization program for illegal immigrants, with an eventual path to citizenship; establishing a guest worker program; a series of border and worksite enforcement measures; a reform of the [[Permanent residence (United States)|green card]] application process and the introduction of a point-based "merit" system for green cards; elimination of "[[chain migration]]" and of the [[Diversity Immigrant Visa]]; and other measures. Bush argued that the lack of legal status denies the protections of U.S. laws to millions of people who face dangers of poverty and exploitation, and penalizes employers despite a demand for immigrant labor.<ref>{{cite press release |url=https://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2007/06/20070608-10.html |title=Best of the Immigration Fact Check: Top 10 Common Myths |date=June 8, 2007 |publisher=[[Executive Office of the President of the United States|The White House]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070612191009/http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2007/06/20070608-10.html |archive-date=June 12, 2007 |access-date=February 3, 2012 }}</ref> Bush contended that the proposed bill did not amount to amnesty.<ref>{{cite news |publisher=Fox News |date=June 26, 2008 |url=http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,286705,00.html |access-date=May 30, 2008 |title=Senate Votes to Continue Work on Immigration Reform Compromise |author1=Garrett, Major |author2=Trish Turner |archive-date=October 17, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121017113444/http://www.foxnews.com/story/0%2C2933%2C286705%2C00.html }}</ref>

A heated public debate followed, which resulted in a substantial rift within the Republican Party, most conservatives opposed it because of its legalization or amnesty provisions.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0807/5449.html|title=Talk radio helped sink immigration reform|last=Allen|first=Mike|date=August 20, 2007|access-date=November 27, 2019|work=Politico|archive-date=February 25, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150225004138/http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0807/5449.html|url-status=live}}</ref> The bill was eventually defeated in the Senate on June 28, 2007, when a [[cloture]] motion failed on a 46–53 vote.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://thehill.com/leading-the-news/immigration-bill-goes-down-in-defeat-2007-06-28.html|title=46–53, immigration bill goes down in defeat|last=Marre|first=Klaus|date=June 28, 2007|work=The Hill|access-date=November 19, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090104162605/http://thehill.com/leading-the-news/immigration-bill-goes-down-in-defeat-2007-06-28.html|archive-date=January 4, 2009}}</ref> Bush expressed disappointment upon the defeat of one of his signature domestic initiatives.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/06/28/immigration.congress/index.html |title=Senate immigration bill suffers crushing defeat |publisher=CNN |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130502232627/http://www.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/06/28/immigration.congress/index.html |archive-date=May 2, 2013 }}; {{cite web |url=https://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2007/06/20070628-7.html |title=President Bush Disappointed by Congress's Failure to Act on Comprehensive Immigration Reform |date=June 28, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130503024157/http://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2007/06/20070628-7.html |url-status=live |via=[[NARA|National Archives]] |publisher=[[White House]] |archive-date=May 3, 2013 }}</ref> The Bush administration later proposed a series of immigration enforcement measures that do not require a change in law.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2007/08/20070810.html |title=The White House Fact Sheet: Improving Border Security and Immigration Within Existing Law |date=August 10, 2007 |archive-date=May 2, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130502232627/http://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2007/08/20070810.html |via=[[NARA|National Archives]] |publisher=[[White House]] |url-status=live }}</ref>

On September 19, 2010, former Israeli Prime Minister [[Ehud Olmert]] said that Bush offered to accept 100,000 Palestinian refugees as American citizens if a permanent settlement had been reached between Israel and the Palestinian Authority.<ref>{{cite web |last=Ravid |first=Barak |newspaper=[[Haaretz]] |url=http://www.haaretz.com/news/national/olmert-bush-offered-to-absorb-100-000-palestinian-refugees-if-peace-deal-reached-1.314644?localLinksEnabled=false |title=Olmert: Bush offered to absorb 100,000 Palestinian refugees if peace deal reached |location=Israel |access-date=October 27, 2010 |date=September 17, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080225062850/http://www.haaretz.com/news/national/olmert-bush-offered-to-absorb-100-000-palestinian-refugees-if-peace-deal-reached-1.314644?localLinksEnabled=false |archive-date=February 25, 2008 }}</ref>

==== Hurricane Katrina ====
{{Main|Political effects of Hurricane Katrina}}
[[File:President Bush Biloxi after Katrina.jpg|thumb|left|President Bush with hurricane victims in [[Biloxi]], September 2, 2005]]

[[Hurricane Katrina]] struck early in Bush's second term and was one of the most damaging natural disasters in U.S. history. Katrina formed in late August during the 2005 [[Atlantic Ocean|Atlantic]] hurricane season and devastated much of the north-central [[Gulf Coast of the United States]], particularly New Orleans.<ref>{{cite news |author1=Knabb, Richard D |author2=Rhome, Jamie R. |author3=Brown, Daniel P |date=December 20, 2005 |title=Tropical Cyclone Report: Hurricane Katrina: August 23–30, 2005 |publisher=National Hurricane Center}}</ref>

Bush declared a state of emergency in [[Louisiana]] on August 27<ref>{{cite web |url=https://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2005/08/20050827-1.html |title=Statement on Federal Emergency Assistance for Louisiana |date=August 27, 2005 |archive-date=May 7, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130507075732/http://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2005/08/20050827-1.html |via=[[NARA|National Archives]] |publisher=[[White House]] |url-status=live }}</ref> and in [[Mississippi]] and [[Alabama]] the following day.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2005/08/20050828.html |title=Statement on Federal Emergency Assistance for Mississippi |date=August 28, 2005 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130507035330/http://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2005/08/20050828.html |url-status=live |via=[[NARA|National Archives]] |publisher=[[White House]] |archive-date=May 7, 2013 }}; {{cite web |url=https://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2005/08/20050828-3.html |title=Statement on Federal Emergency Assistance for Alabama |date=August 28, 2005 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130507105626/http://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2005/08/20050828-3.html |url-status=live |via=[[NARA|National Archives]] |publisher=[[White House]] |archive-date=May 7, 2013 }}</ref> The eye of the hurricane made landfall on August 29, and New Orleans began to flood due to [[levee]] breaches; later that day, Bush declared a major disaster in Louisiana,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2005/08/20050829-2.html |title=Statement on Federal Disaster Assistance for Louisiana |date=August 29, 2005 |archive-date=May 7, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130507075411/http://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2005/08/20050829-2.html |via=[[NARA|National Archives]] |publisher=[[White House]] |url-status=live }}</ref> officially authorizing FEMA to start using federal funds to assist in the recovery effort.

On August 30, DHS Secretary [[Michael Chertoff]] declared it "an incident of national significance",<ref>{{cite web |url=https://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2005/08/20050831-2.html |title=Press Gaggle with Scott McClellan |date=August 31, 2005 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080225062850/http://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2005/08/20050831-2.html |archive-date=February 25, 2008 |access-date=February 14, 2008 |via=[[NARA|National Archives]] |publisher=[[White House]] }}</ref> triggering the first use of the newly created [[National Response Plan]]. Three days later, on September 2, National Guard troops first entered the city of New Orleans.<ref name="tpm">{{cite web|url=http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/katrina-timeline.php|title=TPM Hurricane Katrina Timeline|date=September 20, 2005|website=Talking Points Memo|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080225062850/http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/katrina-timeline.php|archive-date=February 25, 2008|access-date=June 23, 2009}}</ref> The same day, Bush toured parts of Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama and declared that the success of the recovery effort up to that point was "not enough".<ref name="USAToday-Katrina">{{cite news |title=National Guard descends on New Orleans, giving evacuees hope |agency=Associated Press |url=https://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2005-09-02-katrina_x.htm |newspaper=USA Today |date=September 3, 2005 |access-date=September 1, 2008 |archive-date=April 30, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080430033232/http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2005-09-02-katrina_x.htm |url-status=live }}</ref>

As the disaster in New Orleans intensified, Bush received [[Criticism of the government response to Hurricane Katrina|widespread criticism]] for downplaying his administration's role in the inadequate response. Leaders attacked Bush for having appointed incompetent leaders to positions of power at FEMA, notably [[Michael D. Brown]];<ref>{{cite news |last1=Hsu |first1=Spencer S. |author2=Susan B. Glasser |newspaper=The Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/09/05/AR2005090501590.html |title=FEMA Director Singled Out by Response Critics |date=September 6, 2005 |access-date=August 22, 2017 |archive-date=August 6, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170806034739/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/09/05/AR2005090501590.html |url-status=live }}</ref> federal resources to respond were also limited as a result of being allocated to the [[Iraq War]],<ref>{{cite journal|first1=Ismael|last1=Hossein-zadeh|title=Social vs. Military Spending: How the Escalating Pentagon Budget Crowds out Public Infrastructure and Aggravates Natural Disasters – the Case of Hurricane Katrina|journal=Review of Social Economy|date=June 1, 2009|issn=0034-6764|pages=149–173|volume=67|issue=2|doi=10.1080/00346760801932718|s2cid=153747265}}</ref> and Bush himself did not act upon warnings of floods.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.usatoday.com/news/katrinatranscript-0828.pdf|title=Transcript, Presidential Videoconference Briefing|date=August 28, 2005|newspaper=USA Today|access-date=May 3, 2010|pages=5–6|archive-date=June 24, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090624111057/http://www.usatoday.com/news/katrinatranscript-0828.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>"I don't think anybody anticipated the breach of the levees." George W. Bush to [[Diane Sawyer]], ''[[Good Morning America]]'', September 1, 2005.</ref> Bush responded to mounting criticism by claiming to accept full responsibility for the federal government's failures in its handling of the emergency.<ref name=tpm /> It has been argued that with Katrina, Bush passed a political tipping point from which he would not recover.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2008/12/31/katrina_called_bushs_biggest_blunder/|title=Katrina called Bush's biggest blunder|date=May 31, 2012|newspaper=The Boston Globe|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121104091649/http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2008/12/31/katrina_called_bushs_biggest_blunder/|archive-date=November 4, 2012|agency=Associated Press}}</ref>

==== Midterm dismissal of U.S. attorneys ====
{{Main|Dismissal of U.S. attorneys controversy}}
[[File:George W Bush and Alberto Gonzales.jpg|thumb|President Bush announcing his nomination of Alberto Gonzales as the next U.S. Attorney General, November 10, 2004]]

During Bush's second term, a controversy arose over the [[United States Department of Justice|Justice Department's]] midterm dismissal of seven [[United States Attorney]]s.<ref>{{cite web |date=March 22, 2007 |publisher=[[About.com]] |url=http://uspolitics.about.com/od/electionissues/i/attorney_firing.htm |title=The Firing Of US Attorneys – Nefarious Or Business As Usual? |access-date=September 1, 2008 |last=Gill |first=Kathy |archive-date=December 19, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071219225126/http://uspolitics.about.com/od/electionissues/i/attorney_firing.htm }}</ref> The White House maintained that they were fired for poor performance.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.usatoday.com/printedition/news/20070307/oppose07.art.htm|title=They lost my confidence|last=Gonzales|first=Alberto R.|date=March 7, 2007|work=USA Today|access-date=September 1, 2008|archive-date=May 22, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080522080308/http://www.usatoday.com/printedition/news/20070307/oppose07.art.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> Attorney General [[Alberto Gonzales]] later resigned over the issue, along with other senior members of the Justice Department.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Eggen |first1=Dan |author2=Michael Fletcher |title=Embattled Gonzales Resigns |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/08/27/AR2007082700372.html |access-date=September 1, 2008 |date=August 28, 2007 |newspaper=The Washington Post |archive-date=August 30, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080830073910/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/08/27/AR2007082700372.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Gonzales' Resignation Letter |author=Alberto Gonzales |date=August 26, 2007 |publisher=United States Department of Justice |quote=Please accept my resignation as Attorney General of the United States, effective September 17, 2007 |title-link=s:Gonzales' Resignation Letter |author-link=Alberto Gonzales}}</ref> The [[United States House Committee on the Judiciary|House Judiciary Committee]] issued subpoenas for advisers [[Harriet Miers]] and [[Joshua Bolten|Josh Bolten]] to testify regarding this matter, but Bush directed Miers and Bolten to not comply with those subpoenas, invoking his right of [[executive privilege]]. Bush maintained that all his advisers were covered under a broad executive privilege protection to receive candid advice. The Justice Department determined that the President's order was legal.<ref>{{cite news |work=Reuters |date=March 1, 2008 |url=http://in.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idINIndia-32236820080301 |title=Mukasey won't pursue contempt probe of Bush aides |archive-date=February 25, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080225062850/http://in.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idINIndia-32236820080301 }}</ref>

Although Congressional investigations focused on whether the Justice Department and the White House were using the U.S. Attorney positions for political advantage, no official findings have been released. On March 10, 2008, the Congress filed a federal lawsuit to enforce their issued subpoenas.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://jurist.law.pitt.edu/paperchase/2008/03/house-judiciary-panel-files-civil.php |title=House judiciary panel files civil lawsuit to enforce Miers, Bolten subpoenas |access-date=May 30, 2008 |date=March 10, 2008 |last=Porter |first=Patrick |publisher=[[JURIST|Jurist Legal News and Research]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080311204421/http://jurist.law.pitt.edu/paperchase/2008/03/house-judiciary-panel-files-civil.php |archive-date=March 11, 2008 }}</ref> On July 31, 2008, a [[United States district court]] judge ruled that Bush's top advisers were not immune from Congressional subpoenas.<ref>{{cite news |last=Apuzzo |first=Matt |url=https://www.usatoday.com/news/topstories/2008-07-31-2444639400_x.htm |title=Federal judge rules Bush's aides can be subpoenaed |work=USA Today |date=July 31, 2008 |access-date=April 20, 2010 |archive-date=April 23, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090423203149/http://www.usatoday.com/news/topstories/2008-07-31-2444639400_x.htm |url-status=live }}</ref>

In all, twelve Justice Department officials resigned rather than testify under oath before Congress. They included Attorney General [[Alberto Gonzales]]<ref>{{cite news |last=Jordan |first=Lara Jakes |agency=Associated Press |date=September 15, 2007 |title=Attorney general bids farewell to Justice: Praises work of department |url=https://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2007/09/15/attorney_general_bids_farewell_to_justice/ |newspaper=The Boston Globe |access-date=September 19, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100620225904/http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2007/09/15/attorney_general_bids_farewell_to_justice/ |archive-date=June 20, 2010 }}</ref> and his chief of staff [[Kyle Sampson]],<ref>{{cite news |title=Bush's Law: The Remaking of American Justice After 9/11 |author=Lichtblau |year=2008 |page=[https://archive.org/details/bushslawremaking00lich/page/293 293] |publisher=Pantheon Books |isbn=978-0-375-42492-2 |url=https://archive.org/details/bushslawremaking00lich/page/293 }}</ref> Gonzales' liaison to the White House [[Monica Goodling]],<ref>{{cite news |date=April 6, 2007 |title=Gonzales aide Goodling resigns |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/id/17986525/ns/politics/t/gonzales-aide-firings-controversy-resigns/ |agency=Associated Press |first=Lara Jakes |last=Jordan |access-date=April 7, 2007 |publisher=[[NBC News]] |archive-date=December 3, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131203144946/http://www.nbcnews.com/id/17986525/ns/politics/t/gonzales-aide-firings-controversy-resigns/ }}</ref> aide to the president [[Karl Rove]]<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.foxnews.com/story/2007/08/13/bush-adviser-karl-rove-to-resign-at-end-month/|title=Bush Advisor Karl Rove to Resign at End of Month|last=Emanuel|first=Mike|date=August 13, 2007|access-date=July 31, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131002095204/http://www.foxnews.com/story/2007/08/13/bush-adviser-karl-rove-to-resign-at-end-month/|archive-date=October 2, 2013|publisher=Fox News|agency=Associated Press}}</ref> and his senior aide [[Sara Taylor]].<ref name="washingtonpost2007">{{cite news |first=Michael A. |last=Fletcher |date=May 28, 2007 |title=Another Top Bush Aide Makes an Exit |newspaper=The Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/27/AR2007052700896.html |access-date=August 22, 2017 |archive-date=October 26, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121026144835/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/27/AR2007052700896.html |url-status=live }}</ref> In addition, legal counsel to the president [[Harriet Miers]]<ref name="twssffwe">{{cite news |title=Panel Holds Two Bush Aides in Contempt |newspaper=The New York Times |quote=The House Judiciary Committee voted today to seek contempt of Congress citations against a top aide to President Bush and a former presidential aide over their refusal to cooperate in an inquiry about the firing of federal prosecutors{{nbs}}... president's chief of staff, and Harriet E. Miers |date=July 25, 2007 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/25/washington/25cnd-contempt.html |access-date=September 22, 2010 |first=David |last=Stout |archive-date=April 17, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140417111153/http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/25/washington/25cnd-contempt.html }}</ref> and deputy chief of staff to the president [[Joshua Bolten]]<ref>{{cite news |last=Stout |first=David |title=Panel Holds Two Bush Aides in Contempt |work=The New York Times |date=July 25, 2007 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/25/washington/25cnd-contempt.html |access-date=July 26, 2007 |archive-date=April 17, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140417111153/http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/25/washington/25cnd-contempt.html |url-status=live }}</ref> were both found in [[contempt of Congress]].<ref name=washingtonpost2007 />

In 2010, the Justice Department investigator concluded that though political considerations did play a part in as many as four of the attorney firings,<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/george-bush-adviser-karl-rove-role-firing-u-s-attorney-detailed-newly-released-transcripts-article-1.400512|title=George Bush adviser Karl Rove's role in firing U.S. attorney detailed in newly released transcripts|date=August 12, 2009|work=Daily News|access-date=April 12, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080225062850/http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/george-bush-adviser-karl-rove-role-firing-u-s-attorney-detailed-newly-released-transcripts-article-1.400512|archive-date=February 25, 2008|agency=Associated Press|location=New York|page=2}}</ref> the firings were "inappropriately political" but not criminal. According to the prosecutors, there was insufficient evidence to pursue prosecution for any criminal offense.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.boston.com/news/local/connecticut/articles/2010/07/21/doj_prosecutor_firing_was_politics_not_crime/|title=DOJ: Prosecutor firing was politics, not crime|last1=Apuzzo|first1=Matt|date=July 21, 2010|newspaper=The Boston Globe|access-date=July 31, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100723130805/http://www.boston.com/news/local/connecticut/articles/2010/07/21/doj_prosecutor_firing_was_politics_not_crime/|archive-date=July 23, 2010|agency=Associated Press|last2=Yost|first2=Pete}}</ref>