Bush has become the weak one

[endymion]

One of Bush's only real points in the first debate was that he's the strong one and that Kerry is the weak one. He says that it's critical that we show the world a united and resolute face and that his administration is the only one that could do that. Yet the week after he kept saying that, his own administration exploded in dissent over Iraq and the war on terror and Bush is making weaker and weaker chess moves in the campaign.

Signs of weakness this week:

New justification for Iraq, never heard before
"Saddam was systematically gaming the system" This new argument is that Saddam was messing with the UN food-for-oil program in order to get support from allies so that sanctions could be ended. Desperate and weak man, this is the first time we've heard this new justification. Also, trying to get sanctions against the country you're in charge of is not an evil thing? Hello? This comes right after:

White House admits there were no WMD
Bush: "Iraq did not have the weapons that our intelligence believed were there." Flip-flopper.

Rumsfeld accidentally says 'no evidence of Iraq / al Qaeda link'
Said on Monday that he hadn't seen any "strong, hard evidence". He retracted his statement on Tuesday. Oops, the tight and disciplined Bush Administration PR machine has lost control of Rummy, while he's fighting a war for them in the middle of a campaign? Spectacular sign of weakness and division in the ranks at the top.

Paul Bremer says we didn't have enough troops
On Tuesday, quoted saying that we "never had enough troops on the ground". Bush continues to support Rumsfeld. Rumsfeld continues to support stupid neo-conservative Wolfowitz notion that we really do have enough troops involved right now. Oops another PR fuckup! Man the White House just doesn't have any control over these people at all any more because they are trying to distance themselves from President Head-in-the-sand. Powell already said we didn't have enough troops from the beginning. Bush can't keep his own people on 'the course' because they don't agree that it's the right course. Bremer withdrew his statement not by saying that he was wrong, but by saying that he hadn't intended to be quoted. In other words, sorry for the PR foul but I really do feel what I said.

Spectacular violence and instability in Iraq every day this week
It is obvious to everybody but Bush and Cheney what is going on in Iraq. We are losing. They have their heads in the sand. You can't fix a problem until you admit that there is a problem. "Stay the course!" for no reason other than communicating firmness in the face of an obvious failure in progress is insanity.

Or no, it would be incompetence. It's the sign of a failed leader's grand vision falling apart. Weakness.

[V. Barbarino]

spin spin spin spin

tech, the war is 2 years old, the issue at hand is where do we go from here. The debate on right or wrong is mute at this point. no one is swayed whats so ever to either side by any evidence.

move on, or maybe you want to bring up if clinton lied years ago?

[pod]

I'd rather deal with Bill lying about giving Monica a pearl necklace than GW lying to justify the war.

You know my take, I think he should have just said "Saddam is a jerk, and he's gotta go..." rather than making some spurious story up about WMDs.

Heheh, I said pearl necklace.

[endymion]

Originally Posted by The

tech, the war is 2 years old, the issue at hand is where do we go from here. The debate on right or wrong is mute at this point. no one is swayed whats so ever to either side by any evidence.

Uh no, what I'm saying is: Bush says that we should pick him because he's the strong one and we need to show resolution and determination. He can't hold his own administration together on "the course" that he wants us to stay on.

That was his ONLY point during the whole debate, that he's the strong one, that Kerry would be weak, that he can present a face of clear and decisive leadership.

His own people are disagreeing with him in public. His only point during the debate has evaporated. He has become the weak one and it's looking more obvious to more people.

[slamminshaun]

There's always two wars to each war. The real one, and the public relations one. I think they've done about as well as you can do in Iraq to this point, but the public relations war was an absolute disaster. They should have had another clear reason besides WMD for going in from the beginning. I would supported it, and alot of other people would've too, but obviously not as wide a support.

[V. Barbarino]

tech to quote your guy:

"i voted for it, right after I didn't vote for it"

something like that.. you get my point, kerry is no stronger or weaker on this war than bush.

the question is: where do we go from here....

it's like being lost in the jungle and argueing the whole time, who got the party lost... what you need to argue about is how to get out of the jungle..

[endymion]

You can't get out of the jungle if you're afraid to even admit that you're lost.

[V. Barbarino]

Originally Posted by techjunkie

You can't get out of the jungle if you're afraid to even admit that you're lost.

then tell your boy kerry to shut up already and provide more than monday morning quarterback ideas about iraq. I can do it better bla bla bla isn't going to get him elected.

[JMT]

all kerry has to do is keep spouting empty promises.

[endymion]

"There has been a huge mistake, we need to correct it" is actually exactly what I want to hear. Kerry is the only one saying that, Bush continues to be unable to even admit that anything is wrong.

Back to my point: Bush's big justification for why we should vote for him is only his firmness. He didn't have much to say about his correctness. His administration is falling apart around him, contradicting his primary campaign plank.

If he isn't the strong one then what reason is he giving us to vote for him? All he could come up with last week was that he's the strong and resolute one and that his administration can stay the course. His administration doesn't like the course he's got them on, he's not making sense with that debate point at all?