Playing on Fears
As has been stated before, both presidential campaigns (or both that have some chance of winning) are playing on people's fears. The Bush campaign is playing on the fear of terrorism, while the Kerry campaign is playing on fear of Bush. A recent Associated Press release included this quote:
"He won't tell us what congressional leaders are now saying, that this administration is planning yet another substantial call-up of reservists and Guard units immediately after the election," Kerry said. "Hide it from people through the election, then make the move."
This is, frankly, ridiculous. People should fear terrorism -- we are, after all, at war with it, and Senator Kerry's indecisiveness and his remarks about how that war should be more sensitive do indicate that President Bush is better suited to fight that war. What the Kerry campaign is doing would be like a Republican running in the late thirties/early forties and trying to cause fear among the American people -- fear aimed at Franklin Roosevelt, while Roosevelt points out the threat of Nazism and Japanese aggression. John Kerry's desperation at seeing his poll numbers sink has turned him into a conspiracy theorist. Granted this isn't nearly as crazy as the stuff the UFU stated about Al Qaeada and Osama bin-Laden not existing, but come on. Kerry has made reasonable criticisms about the National Guardsmen in Iraq not having sufficient body armor and that the war in Iraq has diverted attention from the larger war on terror, but statements like this make it appear that he is more afraid of President Bush than he is of Osama bin-Laden, and if I didn't already think that the current president is better suited to fight Al Qaeda than his challenger, this would be enough to convince me.
"He won't tell us what congressional leaders are now saying, that this administration is planning yet another substantial call-up of reservists and Guard units immediately after the election," Kerry said. "Hide it from people through the election, then make the move."
This is, frankly, ridiculous. People should fear terrorism -- we are, after all, at war with it, and Senator Kerry's indecisiveness and his remarks about how that war should be more sensitive do indicate that President Bush is better suited to fight that war. What the Kerry campaign is doing would be like a Republican running in the late thirties/early forties and trying to cause fear among the American people -- fear aimed at Franklin Roosevelt, while Roosevelt points out the threat of Nazism and Japanese aggression. John Kerry's desperation at seeing his poll numbers sink has turned him into a conspiracy theorist. Granted this isn't nearly as crazy as the stuff the UFU stated about Al Qaeada and Osama bin-Laden not existing, but come on. Kerry has made reasonable criticisms about the National Guardsmen in Iraq not having sufficient body armor and that the war in Iraq has diverted attention from the larger war on terror, but statements like this make it appear that he is more afraid of President Bush than he is of Osama bin-Laden, and if I didn't already think that the current president is better suited to fight Al Qaeda than his challenger, this would be enough to convince me.