One person didn't tank the economy and W warned against the lending practices that led to the burst of the housing bubble. You should look into the real cause- Barney Frank, Franklin Raines and Chris Dodd's circle jerks, AKA Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and the lending practices of companies like Countrywide made the collapse inevitable. Companies like Countrywide didn't care if the borrowers could pay the mortgages because they had PMI, so they wouldn't be left high and dry. The mortgage insurance industry, however, was screwed. When lenders sold the bad notes and investment banks bundled them as an investment vehicle for the global investors, it guaranteed that the scheme would lead to major problems and no, investment bankers are not all Republicans.