September 09, 2004

Bill Maher on Bush

Yeah I understand he's a comedian, and it's not like I think most people should turn to him or Bernie Mac or Chris Rock to get their political information. But it does continue to surprise me that thoughts like these aren't more frequently expressed:

You can't run on a mistake. Franklin Roosevelt didn't run for re-election claiming Pearl Harbor was his finest hour. Abe Lincoln was a great president, but the high point of his second term wasn't theater security. 9/11 wasn't a triumph of the human spirit. It was a fuck-up by a guy on vacation. Now, don't get me wrong, Mr. President. I'm not blaming you for 9/11. We have blue-ribbon commissions to do that. And I'm not saying there was anything improper about your immediate response to the attacks. Someone had to stay in that classroom and protect those kids from Chechen rebels. But by the looks of your convention, you'd think that the worst thing that ever happened to us was the best thing that ever happened to you. You just can't keep celebrating the deadliest attack ever as if it's your personal rendezvous with greatness.

And of course as a general matter this relates to what I find one of the oddest things about what Republicans are willing to accept from Mr. Bush - the complete lack of accountability for any sort of governmental mistake or error. No one ever says they're sorry, and no one is expected to. And no one ever gets fired for anything, other than publicly questioning Karl Rove's talking points. The degree to which the party has united behind the my-president-right-or-wrong line is truly startling.

Posted by armand at September 9, 2004 01:04 PM | TrackBack | Posted to Politics


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