There is a great deal of difference between Wilson and GW Bush besides degrees. Wilson had Eugene V. Debs arrested, indicted, and sentenced (if I remember correctly) to 20 years in prison. Debs was a former presidential candidate who was against US involvement in World War I. Imagine if Bush had put Dennis Kucinich or Ralph Nader in prison.
Also imagine someone writing a persausive letter to the Kansas City Star and that person ending up in prison. That happened under Wilson.
Imagine wholesale deportations of American citizens to Afghanistan for not supporting our troops. Wilson deported thousands of citizens to the new Soviet Union.
Wilson passed laws creating a cadre of 200,000 men who were trained to make short speeches at the drop of a hat taking the side of the government. This was used to propagandize the American people.
The Creel Commission censored film and radio for content. Imagine if George Clooney or Sean Penn couldn't make a movie that didn't meet standards set by the government. Imagine Bill Mahr being taken off the air for his comments.
Edward Bernays was hired to sell the war to the American people. Bernays invented modern propaganda and wrote a book about what he lied about.
Yes, there is a great deal of difference between what Wilson and Bush did.
Originally Posted by JD Barleycorn
wasn't Wilson starting to become ill around that time? its kinda hard to know who's responsible, him or his wife who manipulated things in the background while he was ill.
I was aware of the putsch against communist sympathizers, just not how it was institutionalized to that degree.