By Stephen Sears
George W. Bush’s re-election campaign began with his State of the Union Address last Tuesday. He grabbed for votes with his toothless, meaningless, out-of-right field admonition of steroids in sports. He offered no program or course of action, but it sure sounded nice. He also had Tom Brady! You have to vote for him now.
Also mentioned in the speech was a plea to enact the second Patriot Act, an action to protect the “sanctity of marriage.” So it starts. The Democratic primaries are coming and Bush is campaigning. Lucky for the President, he has the national media on his side, which should make the job a bit easier.
Flashback to 2000. Al Gore was the liar. He was the man who had trouble with the truth. George W. Bush, though the son of a former president, was the outsider who would unite and not divide. That was the major spin. The press did not like Gore. He was not exciting enough, so they made sure he became the liar they wanted him to be. “Wait,” you say. “Gore said he created the Internet. How outrageous!” You would be right, unless of course Gore never made such a claim. Here is the actual quote from an interview the VP gave to CNN’s Wolf Blitzer in March of 1999:
“During my service in the United States Congress, I took the initiative in creating the Internet. I took the initiative in moving forward a whole range of initiatives that have proven to be important to our country’s economic growth, environmental protection, improvements in our educational system.”
A chest-thumping statement to be sure, but where in there does he claim to be the “Father of the Internet” or its creator? Even the real “Father of the Internet,” Vinton Cerf, told the Washington Post that year that the Internet would not be where it was without Gore’s support.
Four years later, the trend is beginning to surface again. I had to scoff when I heard Peter Jennings pose the following question to Wesley Clark in the Democratic debate at Saint Anselm College. Jennings noted that filmmaker Michael Moore called Bush a deserter at one of Clark’s rallies.
“Now that’s a reckless charge not supported by the facts,” he claimed. “So I was curious to know why you didn’t contradict him and whether or not you think it would have been a better example of ethical behavior to have done so.”
Well, Mr. Jennings, if you want the facts, just check the Boston Globe from May 23, 2000. The article claims, with sources and documents to back it up, that Bush did not fly at all in his final 18 months of service in 1972-73. The Washington Post and the Dallas Morning News also jumped on the story. Now, Bush was never charged as a “deserter,” making Moore’s comments technically misleading. However, he failed to show up for his drills. This we know is a fact. And if George’s last name were O’Malley or Smith, it most likely would have been a different story.
According to Jennings and a bevy of other media sources, Clark should have immediately admonished Moore. In his next question, Jennings asked Clark if he felt uncomfortable that Moore was calling the President a deserter.
I guess he forgot that Clinton was levied with the same accusation and much more, like he had murdered White House aide Vincent Foster. Far from scoffing at these accusations, the media built them up.
Now that Clark is feeling the pressure, I only hope the President begins to feel likewise. They want to get tough on Clark? Fine, just spread it across party lines. There is plenty of ammunition.
* “25,000 liters of anthrax” and “38,000 liters of botulinum toxin” have turned into “weapons of mass destruction related activities.”
* Bush has continuously linked Iraq to Al Qaeda despite no factual support.
* He announced, “No President has done more for human rights than I have.”
* His administration sold out CIA employee Valeria Plame because her husband openly questioned the White House claim that Iraq attempted to buy yellowcake from Niger.
* He justified the invasion of Iraq as a means to democratize the nation and free its people only to oppose any free elections.
Clark’s mistake was not playing schoolteacher to a misguided student. Bush’s errors and deceptions threaten lives.
Where is the outrage? Where is the “gotcha!” journalism for the President? When will he have to answer the questions the Democrats are facing now? Granted, there is plenty of time for rectification of this matter, but Bush has made it known he does not like answering questions. The last time he faced a non-scripted question, I was a senior in high school.
National media, take the kiddy gloves off and let’s get rolling! Clark will not defend his opponent. Dean is too angry. Kerry’s shoelaces are too long. I am glad you uncovered these bombshells. Now take a look at the White House and do some serious journalism.
— Stephen Sears can be reached at [email protected].
