To ALL, check out Bush's interview with NY Times, what kind of reporters do we have when bush said i don't give dictators timelines, hmmm, could we get a follow up question
The Al Franken Show's Blog
Tuesday, August 3: Paul Krugman, Joy Behar, Jehane Noujaim.
NEW THREAD
Smell that new-thread smell.
Ben Wikler
Posted 08.28.2004 · Comments (250)
PIRATE DAY: DOWNLOAD "BARNACLE BILL"
On the first Pirate Day--that is, when we actually did it live--we posted the lyrics to our closing song, Barnacle Bill the Sailor.
This time, we're posting the audio.
(Incidentally: if you're ever trying to figure out how to link to a particular blog entry, search for it using the "search" box on the right-hand side of the page. The results will give you permanent links. Yes, we know--primitive. But for now, it works.)
Ben Wikler
Posted 08.27.2004 · Comments (490)
BACKFIRE
The AP (via DailyKos) reports:
Americans increasingly believe President Bush's re-election campaign is behind the ads attacking Democrat John Kerry's Vietnam experience, a poll found.
Almost half in a poll taken this week say they think the president's campaign is behind the ads that try to undercut Kerry's medals for heroism while just over a third think the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth is an independent group, the National Annenberg Election Survey found.
The Swift boat ads, which ran in three swing states earlier this month, challenged Kerry's wartime service in Vietnam for which he received five medals.
The public's belief that Kerry did not earn his medals grew to 30 percent when the attack ads got widespread publicity on cable news networks. But that number has dropped to 24 percent now.
If Bush actually directly disavows the Swift Liar ads, it will create another huge wave of news coverage of his campaign's links to them, which hurt him. And if he continues to fail to denounce them, which is more likely, the appearance that he's behind them will also continue to grow. This is what happens when you smear someone--and they hit back.
Ben Wikler
Posted 08.27.2004 · Comments (57)
CHOICES
From the guy who got Bush into the National Guard: video; context.
Ben Wikler
Posted 08.27.2004 · Comments (299)
BUSH
From an fantastically clearly-written NYTimes article about an interview with Bush. Read it, read it, read it.
A few highlights:
Mr. Bush ... acknowledged for the first time that he made a "miscalculation of what the conditions would be'' in postwar Iraq.
Great! The first step is admitting that you made a mistake. So, far, so good. But soon...
Mr. Bush deflected efforts to inquire further into what went wrong with the occupation, suggesting that such questions should be left to historians, and insisting, as his father used to, that he would resist going "on the couch'' to rethink decisions.
Ah. See, the next step is usually to learn from your mistakes. Nuts. And then:
On environmental issues, Mr. Bush appeared unfamiliar with an administration report delivered to Congress on Wednesday that indicated that emissions of carbon dioxide and other heat-trapping gases were the only likely explanation for global warming over the last three decades. Previously, Mr. Bush and other officials had emphasized uncertainties in understanding the causes and consequences of global warming.
The new report was signed by Mr. Bush's secretaries of energy and commerce and his science adviser. Asked why the administration had changed its position on what causes global warming, Mr. Bush replied, "Ah, we did? I don't think so."
Um. Comforting. And things get even weirder:
Mr. Bush conducted the interview in an unusual setting: A cinderblock dressing room, outfitted with a conference table and leather reclining chairs, accessible only by walking through a men's room underneath a small stadium here, where he appeared for a campaign rally.
...which is particularly perplexing, given that
The president was joined by one of his closest advisers, Karen P. Hughes, who is now traveling with him; the national security adviser, Condoleezza Rice; former Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani of New York, who was introducing him at rallies across the state; and his press secretary, Scott McClellan.
...meaning that Hughes and Rice must have walked through the men's room. But I guess he is the president, so he can change the rules.
This was also comforting:
Showing none of the alarm about [North Korea's] growing arsenal that he once voiced regularly about Iraq, he opened his palms and shrugged when an interviewer noted that new intelligence reports indicate that the North may now have the fuel to produce six or eight nuclear weapons.
Don't worry--President Bush had an explanation.
He said that in North Korea's case, and in Iran's, he would not be rushed to set deadlines for the countries to disarm, despite his past declaration that he would not "tolerate'' nuclear capability in either nation. He declined to define what he meant by "tolerate.''
"I don't think you give timelines to dictators,'' Mr. Bush said.
Of course not! That would be ridiculous! Nobody would ever do that.
Nobody would ever say something like
Saddam Hussein and his sons must leave Iraq within 48 hours. Their refusal to do so will result in military conflict commenced at a time of our choosing.
Ben Wikler
