12 September 2003

Exploiting the Atrocity, PAUL KRUGMAN, New York Times, September 12, 2003 Lucianne.com can chew on this a little. Here is another nice article by Paul Krugman that is nothing short of an outstanding "I TOLD YOU SO". I TOLD YOU SO should be ringing from every public venue. And don't let the Republicans start with the "gee, should-of, could-of, would-of" stuff, suggesting that some minor mistakes may have been made, but now it is everybody's patriotic responsiblity to fall in line with Dubya in support of the "troops". Baloney. We all support the troops. We don't support Republican political philosophy, and this Republican administration has demonstrated in spades all of its flaws. Here are some excerpts from Mr. Krugman's article: "In my first column after 9/11, I mentioned something everyone with contacts on Capitol Hill already knew: that just days after the event, the exploitation of the atrocity for partisan political gain had already begun. In response, I received a torrent of outraged mail. At a time when the nation was shocked and terrified, the thought that our leaders might be that cynical was too much to bear. ``How can I say that to my young son?'' asked one furious e-mailer." NOW "The press has become a lot less shy about pointing out the administration's exploitation of 9/11, partly because that exploitation has become so crushingly obvious. As The Washington Post pointed out yesterday, in the past six weeks President Bush has invoked 9/11 not just to defend Iraq policy and argue for oil drilling in the Arctic, but in response to questions about tax cuts, unemployment, budget deficits and even campaign finance. Meanwhile, the crudity of the administration's recent propaganda efforts, from dressing the president up in a flight suit to orchestrating the ludicrously glamorized TV movie about Mr. Bush on 9/11, have set even supporters' teeth on edge."  "Yet it's almost certainly wrong to think that the political exploitation of 9/11 and, more broadly, the administration's campaign to label critics as unpatriotic are past their peak. It may be harder for the administration to wrap itself in the flag, but it has more incentive to do so now than ever before. Where once the administration was motivated by greed, now it's driven by fear. " "In the first months after 9/11, the administration's ruthless exploitation of the atrocity was a choice, not a necessity. The natural instinct of the nation to rally around its leader in times of crisis had pushed Mr. Bush into the polling stratosphere, and his re-election seemed secure. He could have governed as the uniter he claimed to be, and would probably still be wildly popular." "But Mr. Bush's advisers were greedy; they saw 9/11 as an opportunity to get everything they wanted, from another round of tax cuts, to a major weakening of the Clean Air Act, to an invasion of Iraq. And so they wrapped as much as they could in the flag." "Now it has all gone wrong. The deficit is about to go above half a trillion dollars, the economy is still losing jobs, the triumph in Iraq has turned to dust and ashes, and Mr. Bush's poll numbers are at or below their pre-9/11 levels." "Nor can the members of this administration simply lose like gentlemen. For one thing, that's not how they operate. Furthermore, everything suggests that there are major scandals - involving energy policy, environmental policy, Iraq contracts and cooked intelligence - that would burst into the light of day if the current management lost its grip on power. So these people must win, at any cost." " The administration's infallibility complex - its inability to admit ever making a mistake - will get even worse. And I disagree with those who think the administration can claim infallibility even while practicing policy flexibility: on major issues, such as taxes or Iraq, any sensible policy would too obviously be an implicit admission that previous policies had failed." "In other words, if you thought the last two years were bad, just wait: it's about to get worse. A lot worse." Republicans are very predictable. They operate best in the shadows, with the American people not fully understanding their methods or intentions. Now, much of this is coming to light. The press should predict every move, then hound them on it. The Republicans are leaving a long trail of failure in every measurable area. Big bad CEO's are always "results" oriented. Give 'em a good measure of their "results". 4:51:26 PM    comment [] trackback []

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