Swiftboats sink under waves of truth (WorldNetDaily)

[struggle4progress]

Bill Press

Posted: August 27, 2004
1:00 a.m. Eastern
© 2004 Tribune Media Services, Inc.

When George W. Bush loses this election, his primary regret may be unleashing his attack dogs to slime John Kerry's combat record in Vietnam. Americans don't like smear campaigns. This one will backfire bigtime.

After two weeks of freewheeling, unanswered attacks on cable television and right-wing talk radio, the so-called Swift Boat Veterans for Truth suddenly ran aground when Americans learned they weren't telling the truth. Every single charge made against John Kerry has been discredited. Even worse, Kerry's attackers have been exposed as nothing but a front group for the Bush campaign.
<snip>

... Until he suddenly resigned, Ben Ginsburg, chief attorney for the Bush campaign, was legal adviser to the Swift Boat gang. The ads were paid for by Bob Perry, big Bush contributor and buddy of Karl Rove. They were produced and marketed by the same production and advertising companies that prepared Bush's attack ads against John McCain in 2000. And, until he resigned, one veteran who appeared in the swiftboat ads also served on Bush's campaign advisery committee.
<snip>

Bush is behind these ads for an obvious reason. He can't defend the war in Iraq, so he must focus on Vietnam. He can't defend his own military record, so he must try to destroy John Kerry's. It's the same reason he attacked John McCain in 2000 and Max Cleland in 2004. He can't stand running against a war hero.
<snip>

http://worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=40169

[joefree1]

1. glug, glug, glug

Are they getting that sinking feeling?


Download the free poster/sign here:
http://ediablo.com/eDiabloGallery.html

[Tandalayo_Scheisskopf]

2. WND??!!

Is Joe Farah on the verge of a cerebral anurysm?

[struggle4progress]

3. I'm having the same "WTF!" reaction, given WND's general outlook. Maybe ..

... conservatives have simply decided its best to put as much daylight as possible between themselves and SBVT, as quickly as possible.

Could be some sleazeball Rovian trade-off here? The first few weeks of SBVT hurt Kerry, but later further weeks would hurt Bush? So the wingnuts suddenly attempt to claim the high road on this issue?

[iconoclastic cat]

4. Confused...can't...understand...motives...or...type...without...elipses...

What IS it, man?

[muriel_volestrangler]

5. what are you wittering on about? (n/t)

[iconoclastic cat]

6. Just being frivolous, my friend.

:hi:

[Miss Authoritiva]

7. Not only crap, but bogus crap as well.

So Bill Press boldly declares:

"When George W. Bush loses this election, his primary regret may be unleashing his attack dogs to slime John Kerry's combat record in Vietnam. Americans don't like smear campaigns."

BOGUS -- In the first place, George W. Bush regrets nothing. And if he did miraculously gain the capacity to feel regret, the first twinge of remorse he felt would not be over unleashing political attack dogs against anybody, but especially not against John Kerry in general and John Kerry's combat records in Vietnam in particular.

CRAP -- In the second place, Americans love smear campaigns. Smear campaigns represent a harmonic convergence of our culture, our media, our national persona, and our political system. We relish them -- as long as we personally are not getting splatter with any collateral sh*t.

Americans say they don't like smear campaigns, but only because it's not nice to say otherwise. Rather like discussing one's scorching case of genital herpes at grandma's birthday party. Also accepted as a given is that it is unpatriotic to admit that Americans place enough faith in smears -- even ones that have been thoroughly discredited -- to alter their votes. But I don't know why.

[struggle4progress]

8. Perhaps there's a larger cultural chasm here than I notice, but ...

... when I read the article in its entirety, it looks to me like the author knocks the SBVT flat.

I'm inclined to agree that * completely lacks the capacity to feel regret.

I disagree about smear campaigns. Sure, partisan diehards love trashing their enemies. But the vast majority of people I've ever met really rather dislike political games; attacks may indeed sway them, but they resent being played for fools, and their view of the attacker will change if they are convinced the attacks are unfair. (An above-the-belt fight, of course, without ear-biting and eye-gouging, is an entirely different story. Since nobody respects anybody who just gets sucker-punched without fighting back, Kerry's only option is to fight back.)

On the other hand, only a small fraction of the electorate is still undecided, and it's not at all clear to me what statistical rules govern the evolution of political opinion in this strange subpopulation. Perhaps, in this subpopulation, your remarks are correct: maybe they love nothing better than dishonest cheap shots.

[WyLoochka]

9. Pretty Strange. Bill Press

in an exclusive for World Net Daily AND they are pushing his book.

"Special Offer!

Bill Press' latest book is now available from ShopNetDaily! Get your copy of "Bush Must Go: The Top Ten Reasons Why George Bush Doesn't Deserve a Second Term" before you vote."

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