Politics: Kerry-Edwards filing complaint w/ FEC
Apparently the new Swift Boat Nut-Jobs ad takes Kerry quotes from the 70's entirely out of context and manipulates them into things they really aren't. Imagine that! The complaint alleges that Swift Boat Wankers are coordinating w/ Bush-Cheney, which doesn't seem all that impossible, given that Bush won't even denounce these guys, whom no one of any credibility gives any bit of credence.
Also, the CNN quickvote shows that (at time of linking) 68% of people think the Swift Boat group is not working independently. And CNN polls, though not scientific, tend to reflect the general population fairly consistently.
3 comments:
Um, yeah. If you're going to argue that CNN online polls are representative, you're gonna have to do better than this.
Potamus says:
The whole right wing conspiracy is a little much. Sure Bush isn't going to take them down, because in theory they're helping his campaign. It's like E.coli in the digestive tract, you might not like it, and it's unsightly, but you need it. Plus, as your previous posts show, the guy who is funding them is from Texas. It's entirely possible that said millionaire is a friend of Bush's, and the President isn't eager to jump the gun to tell a friend to stop giving help, however misguided it may or may not be (let's see a cnn poll). Moreover, it could be the work of some 527 group (A tax code that limits campaign donations but basically gives free reign to private groups of either political extremity to start taking potshots on anything, and can be completely undendorsed, sponsored, or condoned by a party or candidate. It's just more free range political polarization.), and Bush saying anything about it in any way would set up a link he doesn't want to see. It's that thing your mother always told you about being above it all. And yes Garrett, it probably came from the secret arcane Grimorie of Electioning that Karl Rove possesses. But at least it gives Bush a shard of dignity.
CNN polls do typically seem to represent public opinion pretty well, from past experiences. If it doesn't this time, I won't be too surprised. I'm not offering this as any sort of absolute evidence, but that doesn't mean it isn't telling concerning public perception. And this poll doesn't say that people necessarily think this is a bad thing--many Bush supporters might think Bush-Cheney is associated with the Swift Boat group, and that this link is in the spirit of truth. CNN polls are often set up this way to not address the important question at hand, i.e. do you think the Bush campaign is guilty of dirty politics, which is a very different question, and a much more important one.
And to Moser: I don't know what sort of shard of dignity you expect me to ascribe to president Bush (I don't ascribe much to Kerry either, so what makes you think I'm going to give Bush any credit?). McCain called for Bush to denounce the Swift Boat group, which is attacking his opponent in very extreme ways. You don't give credence to the Swift Boat guys (I'll give you that much credit), so why shouldn't Bush come out and say something like this:
"I don't need to fabricate lies about John Kerry. Our records speak for themselves. I have been strong and consistent on terrorism, and John Kerry can't make up his mind for more than two weeks *show clips about Kerry changing his time table for bringing troups home from Iraq, etc*. I denounce the lies this organization has fabricated about an American who proudly served his country and showed great valor in combat. However, many men did brave things in Viet Nam, and that doesn't necessarily qualify them to be president of the United States. I have shown over the past four years that I am the man to lead our country for the next four years to press on and continue to make the world a safe place for democracy... yadadada blah blah blah"
This seems like a SMART thing for Bush to do, because it makes him look like he's above so-called dirty politics. By distancing himself from a right-wing nut-job organization that has been shown to widely disseminate misinformation, wouldn't Bush be demonstrating his own dignity, his own fairness? Couldn't this still play to his favor with some well-placed spin? As a point of admiration, the Bush administration is remarkably good at not letting criticism stick and even turning it to its advantage. They're skilled in electioneering. So why doesn't Bush denounce the Swift Boat nuts?
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