…but tomorrow is ours to win or lose. – Lyndon B. Johnson
Yesterday is done. And today, 39 days before the election, George W. Bush and the GOP are already on the offensive, painting the Democratic Party as soft on terror. From the Torturer-in-Chief:
Five years after 9/11, the worst attack on American homeland in our history, the Democrats offer nothing but criticism and obstruction, and endless second-guessing. The party of FDR and the party of Harry Truman has become the party of cut-and-run. – George W. Bush
During the past 12 hours, this excerpt has been playing on every news station both locally and nationally. And our response?
Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., responded by calling on Bush to release the entire National Intelligence Estimate…in a written statement.
Let’s compare. A video of a “tough talking” President seen over and over, versus a written statement, it’s existence buried at the bottom of an AP story…
And from House Majority Leader Boehner?
The Democrats’ irrational opposition to strong national security policies that help keep our nation secure should be of great concern to the American people.
To always have reasons why you just can’t vote ‘yes,’ I think speaks volumes when it comes to which party is better able and more willing to take on the terrorists and defeat them.
Our response?
Democrats shot back that the war on terrorism shouldn’t be fought at the expense of civil and human rights. The bill approved by the House, they argued, gives the president too much power and leaves the law vulnerable to being overturned by a court.
Are you sensing a pattern here? Picture Joe & Jane Sixpack, getting 99% of their news from 30 second soundbites on their local evening news…what do you think their reaction is going to be? My guess? Something along the lines of…
The Democrats voted against a new national security measure? Because they’re worried about lawsuits?
Don’t get me wrong. I know that we’re absolutely right on this issue, but we’re not selling our product. Instead of issuing a statement calling for the release of a report that most Americans haven’t even heard of, we need our most high-profile Democrats giving press conferences and hitting every news show they can. Instead of talking about principles, we need to break out some tough talking rhetoric of our own. Consider the possibilities…the clip of Bush calling us cowards is played and is followed with Feingold or Leahy saying something like:
Five years after the worst terrorist attack in our history, the man responsible, Osama bin Laden, still hasn’t been caught. Our troops are bogged down in the middle of a civil war because George Bush didn’t bother to plan for the peace. More than 2700 have died and continue to die everyday. George Bush insists that he’s made America safer, yet his own intelligence agencies say his war has made terrorism worse. The only thing the Democratic Party wants to cut-and-run from is George Bush’s failed policies. America deserves better and God knows, our soldiers deserve better.
The American people know that Iraq is a disaster. They want our troops to come home. It’s time to stop pussyfooting around and to call this administration out.
And what about Boehner’s remarks? Instead of talking about civil rights and vulnerable laws, we should be responding:
The only thing the Democratic Party has an irrational fear of is two more years of the GOP not doing their job. For more than three years this Republican controlled Congress has ignored the incompetence of this administration while our soldiers are dying. They’ve wasted time on flag-burning amendments instead of making sure our soldiers had the equipment they needed to fight this war. And the reason we can’t just vote yes is because we’ve seen the disastrous results of this Congress marching in lockstep with this administration. Perhaps Mr. Boehner needs to read the Constitution and learn that the role of Congress isn’t to rubberstamp the failed policies of George Bush.
You get the idea. Nuance and reasoned debate isn’t going to do it. It’s time for the gloves to come off. And another thing, “my friend” or “my respected colleague” are phrases that should never be used…they aren’t our friends and respect is a two-way street.