Bush Is A Phony

[Stephanie]

I like this idea. We have evidence galore. We just need to hammer it home.

The poseur in chief
Democrats can't win in '04 by fighting Bush on the issues alone. They have to convince Americans that their warrior president is a phony in a flyboy suit.

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By Jeremy Heimans and Tim Dixon

http://www.salon.com/opinion/feature/2003/08/01/phony/index.html

The question is what communications strategy will wear down the personal appeal of Bush as effectively as the "weak and indecisive" tag slapped on Jimmy Carter, and the "out of touch" tag on Bush's father. What characterization can the Democrats use to undermine Bush's image and his greatest perceived strengths? The one label that will stick and could work to undermine the positive personal perceptions of the president comes from Gephardt's line last week: George Bush is a phony. It works, because it has a ring of truth about it -- on everything from Iraq, to the economy, to tax cuts, to Bush's character and personal history.

<snip>

Bush's image as a regular guy has helped to obscure the fact that he is an insider with close connections to big business and a natural interest in protecting them. To turn this around, Democrats can use the "phony" message as a nexus to explain the contradiction. How can the everyman who stumbles on his words and has a traveling pillow be the same fellow whose tax cuts leave nothing to poor families with kids? How can a champion of personal responsibility and born-again asceticism engineer such unsustainable budget deficits? How can a leader who claims to be the first White House CEO engage in the kind of shoddy handouts to corporate backers in Iraq that shareholders would never tolerate in a business leader? How can a president so determined to wage the war on terrorism be the same president who starves state and local authorities of critical funds for homeland security? How can the commander in chief so concerned about terrorists getting hold of nuclear weapons be the same leader who leaves Iraqi nuclear sites unattended for weeks?

These contradictions make much more sense when seen through the prism of Bush's utter phoniness.<more>

[Gloria]

1. KICK---good read. Makes sense...They turned Gore into a "liar"--

now it's our turn to caricature Bush. Might not have the press' help, but if a Dem candidate brings it up over and over, perhaps it could stick

[Friar]

2. "caricature" Bush?

What are we gonna do? Make him look and sound foolish?

[Octafish]

3. Bush is a crook. And a phony.

And a moron. These ideas I really like. So, to find a pithy way to say the Little Turd from Crawford IS an empty suit... a super-meme. Hmmm. Look at what he does. Listen to what he says. He's as fake as his budget forcast.



Phony? How's "Idiot Gangster Prince" sound?

[Stephanie]

5. Priceless picture! Perfectly illustrates the concept.

There are so many! What about the Made-in-Chinathe-USA boxes.

[PurityOfEssence]

4. That's the word Edwards used; it's also damning without sounding shrill

Other truths about him, like "liar", "fraud" (more or less the same thing as phoney, actually) and "bloodthirsty hate-filled greedmonger" all are far too vindictive to gain too much purchase in the swing voter world.

Maybe this is the way to go. It's a meliflous word, and more important than anything else, it's an IMMATURE WORD, which suits Junior to a T.

A Texas Tea.

You can also say it repeatedly, really fast: phoneyphoneyphoney.

Tee hee hee

[oasis]

6. Bogus POTUS

GWB

[Stephanie]

7. The authors cover AWOL in the next sentence following where I snipped

Please read the article for more - you can view a short ad at Salon to read all premium content for free.

Is there any point in listing all the phony acts of bush and BushCO? There's not an authentic moment to contrast it with. Well, I guess there are a few: "who cares what you think," "it would be easier if I were the dictator," etc.

Current phony act: Bush goes to the "ranch." Who has the documentation to show that the ranch is a front that was only purchased after bush had made the decision to run. It is a set. A backdrop. He moved in after the campaign began (or maybe after the election??). Where did he live before that?