"Bushspeak" (New Yorker) sardonic analysis of style vs. substance

[Lancer]

David Gourevitch watched * on the stump in New Mexico, and hits on all 8 in this piece, IMHO. (It's not just about *'s speaking style, either.)
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While George W. Bush can count on his home state on Election Day, the arithmetic changes twenty minutes out of El Paso, where the interstate slips into New Mexico and twenty minutes later slices through the city of Las Cruces. New Mexico was the most closely divided state in the 2000 election, rejecting Bush in favor of Al Gore by just three hundred and sixty-six votes, and Las Cruces, which has a huge state university and a large Mexican-American population, is predominantly Democratic. So it was to Las Cruces that Bush flew from his ranch on the last Thursday of August, to commence a week-long campaign swing leading up to his speech at the Republican Convention in New York.

>snip

The best sendup of Bushspeak was published by the Washington Post cartoonist Tom Toles this spring. It was a drawing called “George W. Bush Press Conference Refrigerator Magnet Set,” and showed an icebox door arrayed with a patchwork of words and phrases: “I want to say / I mean / clearly / the situation was / a / tough week / tough / dangerous / because the / terror / terrorism / threat was / a nation / that was dangerous / because of / weapons / programs / activities / we’re still looking / but even / though / I was briefed / a lot / steadfast / and strong / about / historical / killer / terrorist / suiciders / who would / fly it into buildings / which was / a gathering threat / in / easy hindsight / that / empty words / would embolden / dangerous people / hidden in a turkey farm / where / I was tired of swatting flies / so / I want to be clear.”

>snip

But, for all his God talk, he is remarkably lacking in humility. No fault, no blame, no regret, no room for shame attends him as he goes about changing the world. Nor does he appear to entertain the possibility that the changes he is imposing could be anything but improvements. To hear him tell it, the economy is terrific, public education is thriving, health care is better than ever, terrorists are on the run, democracy is spreading throughout the Middle East, and everywhere America is living up to what he describes as its “calling from beyond the stars to stand for freedom.” Because Bush does not appear able to recognize his own errors, much less admit them, he is incapable of self-correction. Indeed, he boasts tirelessly of his resolve and steadfastness, making a virtue of rigidity. Like it or lump it.

http://www.newyorker.com/fact/content/?040913fa_fact1

[Catfight]

1. Why doesn't Edwards grab all the major newspapers from 2000

and today and just show the public how the classified ads for employment have diminished to one page if that? It's that simple, people believe what they SEE! Show the public on TV and in ADS that this administration is just plain lying to you and excuses don't absolve leaders from responsibility.

[cliss]

2. There's something else:

he's boring. Really boring. I've listened to him a few times, and he carps endlessly about the same things over and over. The audience's eyes get a glazed look. They tune him out and think about what's for dinner tonight. They look down and wonder when he's going to finally shut up.

Seriously, he's not interesting at all. I know he tries with his used-car salesman pitch to try to whip up concern and interest.

The only thing that might hold a little interest is in case he screws up some pre-canned sentence. I've had plenty of laughs at his expense. Otherwise ---- yawn (stretch) ....snore....

[Keirsey]

3. local paper

From the article cited above:

“I’ll give you some reasons why I think you ought to put me back in. But perhaps the most important one of all’s so Laura’s the first lady for four more years.”


From local paper's coverage:

It is ________'s responsiblity to let readers feel the full effect of the experience (Dubya's campaign speech) themselves.

To wit, some crucial excerpts.

I'm going to give you some reasons to put me back in, but perhaps the most important one of all is so that Laura has four more years as the First Lady.

"Which is an endearing aw-shucksy crowd-warmer, but c'mon. The most important reason to re-elect Bush is so his freakin' wife can stay in the White House? Even Bush couldn't possibly believe this, so from the very beginning he was lying."

Another one:

You know, I like to say this economy is strong and getting stronger.

"He likes to say that, but saying something doesn't make it true, no matter how many time Bush repeats it."

[Lisa]

4. I think Bush himself is bored!

See the repetitive way he trots out the same old anecdotes regardless of how appropriate they are, and even uses the same gesture and rhythms. It's as if he doesn't even care enough to get his explanations straight. The only time he really seems to get genuinely excited is when he's talking about death and destruction.