Spinning 9/11

Standard fair warning: This blog is my opinion, and sometimes things get political here. I respect your opinion if you don't agree.

Last night sadly marked yet another attempt of Bush to sell his failed Iraq policy. Despite the White House claims to the contrary, the "non-political" speech last night was just that, an 18-minute speech of which barely 2 minutes addressed the tragedy and heroes of 9/11 and the rest of which continued and summarized a series of recent speeches in which Bush has tried to bolster the sagging support for his war in Iraq.

I couldn't say it better than MSNBC, so I'll quote them here:

"The power of his rhetoric is in marked decline, and that's no reflection on the quality of what he says, which is still very high," said Max Boot, a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations and a neoconservative scholar who has been sympathetic to Bush's anti-terrorism policies. "There's a desire in the country for more deeds, not more words. . . . We are losing a war right now, and there is no way to get around that."

Three previous times in the past 18 months, as public opinion has slipped, White House officials have announced that Bush would embark on a renewed effort to explain and defend his Iraq and anti-terrorism policies. None produced a lasting positive effect on how Americans view either the president or his policies.

This Administration, worried sick about the upcoming November elections, is trying desperately to connect Iraq to the overall war on terrorism, the only strong point the Republicans have left (unless they drag out flag-burning again). Most of the public wisely isn't buying it. The Administration has demonstrated a stubborn adherence to a failed policy began under false pretenses and their failures are manifest even to the blind or hopelessly partisan at this point. They hope to shape the argument into, as one Republican strategist put it, “do you believe we’re at war?”—but the true question is, “do you approve?” Do you approve of an America in which you are branded unpatriotic for questioning the actions of your government? Do you approve of an America that condones torture, secret prisons, spying on its own people, and a complete lack of oversight? Do you approve of the current conduct of our leaders, the level of honestly versus obfuscation they have displayed, their promises kept, and their demonstrated competence?
Only you can decide that. It is your right, and I’ll not brand you “un-American” regardless of your opinion.

I urge my readers to listen to Keith Olbermann’s special comment in full.

Dick Cheney stated to Tim Russert this past Sunday on Meet the Press that, knowing what he knows now about Iraq, he would do it all again, the same exact way. If that doesn't frighten you, I don't know what will.