Message of the Day: George Bush will say anything to get elected

Shortly after the primary season ended, the Kerry folks used to respond to attacks from the Bush camp by saying that this was evidence of the Bush truth deficit, or an example of Bush's problem with the truth, or another demonstration that Bush was a liar. Essentially challenging the Bush camp veracity. You don't hear much of that these days. Instead the Kerry folks have been strugglking to craft a defining way of characterizing Bush. It seems they have two favorites these days. 1) Bush is living in a world of fantasy spin and 2) Bush, W stands for Wrong!

I have to admit I don't find these last two compelling. Maybe it's the partisan in me but I would prefer a return to a more full-throated defense that essentially reminds people of how often Bush has lied to and misled them in the last 4 years.

The beauty of the Bush message that Kerry is a flip-flopper is that is serves as the foundation from which all of their critiques hang or on which they all rest. This has been nicely pointed out by commentators on blogs and talk radio. If Kerry flip-flops, then he must be weak. If Kerry flip-flops then he has no core values. If Kerry flip-flops... you get the message. But let's take those examples of supposed flip-flops. Bush's accusations reveal more about himself than they do Kerry. If Bush is running on his character - show how sorely lacking in character he really is.

• Bush likes to mock Kerry for saying "I actually voted for it before I voted against it" when talking about the $87 billion. Bush also likes to accuse Kerry of not supporting the troops. In fact, $67 billion was for troops and $20 billion for 'reconstruction.' Kerry voted against the President's version of the bill because he was concerned there weren't adequate safeguards on spending the $20 billion. Thus far less than $1 billion has been spent on reconstruction and much of that money was given to Cheney's Halliburton in no bid contracts. Kerry supported a different version of this package in a vote right before the final vote -- a package Bush opposed. So Bush actually opposed the aid before he supported it. & Kerry clearly did vote to support the troops. It was supporting Halliburton that he objected to.
• Bush says that he watched TV before going into the Florida class room and watched the first plane hit the Tower. In fact, this was only televised much later that day.
• Bush claims that there are more than 100,000 fully trained and equipped Iraqi soldiers and police. In fact, only 36,000 have had minimal training and evidence now shows that many of them are in cahoots with the forces fighting the US.
• Bush told Larry King he did not oppose the 9/11 Commission. That's a hoot!
• Bush claims that Kerry would prefer Saddam were still in power when in fact Kerry only said that we have traded a dictator for chaos in Iraq.
• Bush claims that Kerry has been for the war, then against it, then for it, then against it. In fact Kerry - if you look at his statements, which no reporter ever bothers to do - has consistently said he was right to give Bush authority to use force but that Bush should have gone and gotten the UN to join the effort before starting a war. The San Francisco Chronicle has this story.
• Saddam 'had links' to 9/11 - Cheney still claims this!. Nuff Said
• "I served honorably in the National Guard and was discharged." Nuff said
• The Bush administration has killed reports that it produced that showed the Bush tax cuts were actually job killers and that global warming is demonstrably due to human factors.
• More than 4000 scientists and 48 Nobel prize winners have accused the Bush administration of distorting and suppressing science to suit political goals.
• Bush & Cheney accuse Kerry of opposing major weapons systems, but many of those systems were terminated or opposed by the Pentagon when Cheney ran it.
• Bush ads accuse Kerry of supporting a gas tax he never voted for or supported.
• Bush claimed the average American got $1000 back in tax cuts. In fact, the average of the tax cuts may have been $1000 but this was because the amounts at the top were so large. If Bush had paid attention in school he would know that a group of 9 welfare mothers and Bill Gates would have a whopping average income, but the income of the average member in the group would still be below the poverty line.
• Bush claims that Kerry's promises add up to 1.5 trillion in new spending when analysis of the Bush convention speech shows that his promises there could total $3 trillion.
• Bush ads have claimed Kerry plans to raise taxes by $900 billion when he has no such plans. The repeal of the tax cuts on those making over $200,000 a year raises only $250 billion.
• George Bush told a rally in Missouri that the Taliban is no longer in existence. Nuff said.
• USAID hired a private group to report on the security situation in Iraq, but the Bush administration has sought to squelch the reports after they wrote that security was worsening.
• Bush's White House told Congress that the prescription drug plan would cost about $400 billion when the true cost was greater than $500 billion plus. Then they threatened to fire the Medicare actuary who knew the truth if he told Congress.
• WMD!, nuff said
• Bush has said he has told Congress to be fiscally responsible but the deficit has ballooned to over $400 billion this year under his watch and billions more in total debt since he was elected.
• Bush said he was giving money to first-time responders such as fire and police but his budget actually cuts funding for fire and police.
• Bush said in Poland when asked about WMD, that we found them! Those trucks. Nuff said.
• Bush said the "mission accomplished" banner was put up by the sailors on the aircraft carrier he landed on. Bush later admits it was his advance team.