At least three more US Marines died in Iraq this
weekend. For what? The neo-con wet dream of a Three
Stooges Reich? Yes, certainly. Anything else? If you
recall, in the weeks and months immediately after the
Supreme Injustice decision in Bush vs. Gore, we
referred to *him* as the _resident, and as the devastation
that his economic misdeeds and national security
blunders have visited on this country became so
painfully evident that it even seeped through into the
"US mainstream news media," and his facade started to
crumble, we began to refer to him as the incredibly
shrinking _resident, and then, as the disintegration
of his political base started to take a psychological
toll on him and his own smirking demeanour became
disturbed, we began to refer to him as the
increasingly unhinged and incredibly shrinking
_resident...Here is an extraordinary story from Agence
France Press...How embarrassing...not just for the
man, or for his political party but, more importantly,
for the Republic that he has so deeply wronged...Read
this story, please, and and share it with your friends
and colleagues...and ask yourselves: Is this the
America that those three young US Marines (and almost
one thousand other men and women of the US military)
died for? Is this man fit to be their
commander-in-chief?
Agence France Press: Billed as informal
question-and-answer opportunities for curious voters
to quiz the most powerful man in the world, the
carefully choreographed campaign events usually
recycle the central points from his stump speech...
At an "Ask President Bush" in Oregon Friday, he was
asked to appoint conservative judges; heard that his
tax cuts promote growth; and received an emotional
tribute from the sister-in-law of an Iraq-bound US
soldier.
While he has yet to face a hostile questioner, angry
attacks on Democratic White House hopeful John Kerry
(news - web sites) abound.
In Beaverton, Bush supporters accused the
Massachusetts senator of having a "fuzzy memory," of
winning two of his five Vietnam war medals for
"self-inflicted scratches."
But would-be Bush hecklers face daunting obstacles:
Loyalists handle giving out tickets to the event;
home-made signs and banners are often forbidden; and
in some cases access hinges on signing a loyalty oath.
Save the US Constitution, Show Up for Democracy in
2004: Defeat Bush (again!)
Never a hostile question for campaigning Bush
Sun Aug 15, 6:56 PM ET
SIOUX CITY, United States (AFP) - President George W.
Bush (news - web sites) famously dislikes press
conferences but has embraced "Ask President Bush (news
- web sites)" sessions packed with supporters at least
as eager to pay tribute to him as get an answer.
"Mr President, I don't have a question. I've got three
'thank-yous'," one man told him at such an event in
Ohio.
Billed as informal question-and-answer opportunities
for curious voters to quiz the most powerful man in
the world, the carefully choreographed campaign events
usually recycle the central points from his stump
speech.
"We're going to call on some of your citizens to help
me make some points," he said at the Ohio event.
Bush's well-honed address includes a vow to appoint
conservative judges, a defense of his tax cuts as
promoting growth, and an emotional argument that going
to war with Iraq (news - web sites) was the right
decision.
At an "Ask President Bush" in Oregon Friday, he was
asked to appoint conservative judges; heard that his
tax cuts promote growth; and received an emotional
tribute from the sister-in-law of an Iraq-bound US
soldier.
While he has yet to face a hostile questioner, angry
attacks on Democratic White House hopeful John Kerry
(news - web sites) abound.
In Beaverton, Bush supporters accused the
Massachusetts senator of having a "fuzzy memory," of
winning two of his five Vietnam war medals for
"self-inflicted scratches."
But would-be Bush hecklers face daunting obstacles:
Loyalists handle giving out tickets to the event;
home-made signs and banners are often forbidden; and
in some cases access hinges on signing a loyalty oath.
"First priority goes to volunteers and supporters and
then we reach out to people who are undecided and want
to hear what the president has to say," according Bush
campaign spokesman Scott Stanzel.
The result is a friendly crowd eager to see the
candidate they hope will win the November 2 election,
while authorities banish protesters to heavily policed
sidewalks blocks away.
In fact, the only question that left Bush briefly at a
loss for words in Oregon came from a child who stumped
him by asking why a school superintendent who "makes
200,000 dollars" would fire the school librarian.
"I can't answer your question why. But (First Lady)
Laura (Bush) was a librarian, so maybe the
superintendent ought to talk to the librarian, Laura.
But, no, I don't know," the president said.
Another child, however, had a more campaign-friendly
question -- "Mr president, as a child how can I help
you get votes?" -- and received a more confident
answer.
"First, you can put signs up in people's yards who
want the signs in their yards," said Bush, who urged
the tot to find a friend with a sibling over the
minimum voting age of 18.
"Say to them, register to vote, and then please do me
a favor, vote on my behalf for George W. Bush," said
the president, who won laughter from his hand-picked
audience.