Say what you will: But, When David Gergen Speaks, I Listen....and

[KoKo]

David did Not like this speech. He said he'd heard it before....and indeed any DU'ers who've been around have heard that speech before....granted maybe more eloquently put.....but we've heard it as David has. And David said that those who gave that speech were not re-elected. And, they weren't. Been a follower of his for years...and on Presidential Speeches he's never let me down in his analysis. (Many DU'ers think he's just a tool of the Repugs or a Tweety "blow which way the wind does). I disagree about David.....

I listened to the speech and the follow-up coverage (I had to choke Tweety down but when I saw Gergen their I know I had to stay with it.)

This was not the speech they thought it would be.....or maybe "hoped" it would be.

This was the speech of a "self-absorbed" drunk with power President who is feeling "the pinch.....and is reacting the way Nixon and Johnson did when they got into trouble. The faces of Norah O'Donnel, Frank Lunz and Howie Slimeman(I can't stand him) were all GRIM............

This was not their guy with the Flight Suit who was landing in full Masculine Glory on the Deck of the Abraham Lincoln......this was a guy who has "over-stepped and over-reached." But, like those before him......he won't go down easy.....but, he's vulnerable now........

The most telling comment was when he said "and new schools for the Iraqi's," as part of what he was going to do in his mission to rebuild Iraq into his version of a "shining city full of Democracy."

And, I wondered what American parent whose kids are in make shift "porta-classrooms or decrepit asbestos filled ageing facilites where there is no money to modernize even the heating systems (NYC) are going to view that and wonder why the Iraqi's deserve better than ordinary Americans to fulfill Shrubby and PNAC's vision of Democracy and Freedom in the Middle East? Who could listen to that speech with that incredible budget request and not wonder if the man has lost his mind... He isn't a President serving the People of America......he is a President of "himself" and his supporters ambitions.

He will go down.....but when he goes down....the rest of them and their corrupt philosophy should go with him and a stake should be driven through their hearts like Vampires so that they don't rise again.......We have had to much of their ilk here.....we don't need to ever see them again.

Edited: Changed name of ship Bush landed on.......Lincoln.

[SharonAnn]

1. Hmmm, I like the way you say that!

[roguevalley]

2. thanks for this, honey. I needed it. :)

*

[jmcgowanjm]

3. Bingo KoKo01 n/t

[Wwagsthedog]

4. Can we get a new congress too?

n/t

[DrBB]

5. Sorry, KoKo--Gergen said what exactly?

Can you fill me in a little? What speeches was he referring to that we've seen before? It's a highly intriguing comment!

[KoKo]

22. Oops...see my reply to mlawson.....below

for Gergen's comment.

[KoKo]

23. BTW......Gergen didn't feel he made the case to International Groups or

the American People about all the money that will be needed to accomplish Bush's goals. He felt that was the important thing which was left out....... How is he going to do this.....

I remember Johnson and Nixon........and their call to sacrifice.........in the very same way....no matter what it took money or troops we must keep the world safe from Communism (the evil at that time.) The body bags were coming home and the economy was suffering.....but it was too important to keep Viet Nam from the Communists to let our will and efforts be deterred.......Same thing.......sacrifice....money.......to create Democracy in a far away place to keep us safe.......

And, it was wrong then.....wrong now.......and Bush gave the same reasons they did.......and they are as hollow in their patriotic call for sacrifice as they are to us tonight.

[Beetwasher]

6. I Didn't Watch. Was it REALLY that awful and pathetic?

I thought it might be, but just couldn't watch it.

[sandnsea]

10. Oh lord, yes it was

In fact, I read there was going to be a repeat, maybe at the half-hour coming up. If so, it's worth watching the downfall.

[mlawson]

7. Wow! And me without a TV here in my office!

KoKo, where did that line about Nixon and LBJ come from??? I had been sitting here hoping that Dumbo's speech would be seen as a Nixon '73 type....

[KoKo]

20. mLawson, Gergen said it: He said: "Chris you and I have watched this

speech before from Nixon through Lyndon Johnson and it reminds of speeches we heard from them and neither of them were re-elected.........." he continued the sentence but I'm quoting the significant part.

That's what he said....And, the reason I posted is that when I heard that speech that was exactly what I was thinking......OMG! I've heard this before......it was too much de ja vue.......

When Gergen verified what I thought....and knowing we'd both watched the same speeches and knew the context ........I knew Chimpy is in trouble. We might not see it tomorrow......but we've seen this before...

Even his father gave a troubling speech........when the economy was imploding ......but this speech was about War and it was so similar in tone to Johnson and Nixon it was creepy. It's the sacrifice.....They always go to sacrifice and high moral principles when they have nothing else to say and they are scared.....when their "handlers" are worried......when they start to see it begin to crumble.

[Romberry]

42. Well, Nixon WAS re-elected...

...so I don't quite get the Nixon reference. And of course LBJ didn't run for re-election...

[morningglory]

21. I was hoping

that he would announce that he would not run nor would he seek reelection, or failing that, announce the resignation of the whole cabal and then shove his press secretary going out the door. Too much to hope.

[diplomats]

8. Excellent post, KoKo

I, too, like David Gergen. He's a Republican, but he's thoughtful and worth listening to. BTW, I was thrilled to read what you said about Frank Luntz.

[Frances]

9. Thanks for the great post

I agree that when Bush goes down we need to take back our country for good. I remember when Nixon went out in disgrace that I assumed that our country was safe for my lifetime. Wrong.

[Flying_Pig]

11. Right you are Koko...

:hi:

[Cha]

12. Thanks KoKo!

Glad you're able to sit there and watch all of that and come through it with an analysis like that.

I can't believe the speech writer is so dense as to bring up all the money bush needs for Iraq to build "new schools" and they don't even have electricity yet as far as I know.

And to have our education system in our Country deteriorating to the point that it is and have bush get up there and say he needs $$$87Billion $$$ More for Iraq!

Did bush mention going to help for the UN?

[BeFree]

18. We can thank

A bunch of Democratic Senators who have been hounding the WH about coming clean on the financing of the Iraqi occupation. This speech tonight was the WH response to those probes by our Senators.

$87B...and no end in sight. We coulda bought all the terrorist in the world for this kind of money.

[meti57b]

19. a letter to the editor in the Los Angeles Times last week ...

someone was talking about being in line at Office Depot behind a woman who was purchasing a huge amount of stuff. He asked her about it and it turned out she was a first grade teacher in the Los Angeles Unified School District and purchasing school supplies for her first grade class out of her own paycheck. She said they all do it all that time.

[JPace]

13. "When David Gergen Speaks, I Listen"

he is one of the few republicans I like.
I respect his point of view also.

[NewYorkerfromMass]

26. hey!...Gergen worked in the Clinton White House!

he's not a true Republican. But anyway, all of what Dave says is true, but that was before Diebold.

[roughsatori]

14. Excellent Koko

:)

[newsguyatl]

15. nice post!!

:bounce:

[peacetalksforall]

16. NO on Gergen

He's a journalist from before the heavy propaganda age who tries to pretend he still is a journalist, imo, he's just another thrower for the right - does nothing for the little Americans. He throws it at the Dems in a very serious face and droll voice instead of screaming like Hannity or O'Reilly or putting on a drama show like Brown or delivering perfect talking points like Snow.

[I Lean Left]

30. And I miss that...

"He throws it at the Dems in a very serious face and droll voice instead of screaming like Hannity or O'Reilly"

God I miss civil discourse in this country. I can deal with an opposing viewpoint, it's the vitriol and animosity that sickens me.

[bahrbearian]

17. We broke it ,,We bought it.....

[Jacobin]

35. Only problem is : they don't want us there.

They get to vote, too ya know...but with guns and bombs.

[liberalmuse]

24. EXCELLENT!

I especially like the vampire/stake analogy. It fits so well. I didn't hear the speech, but as I'm reading these comments on the speech, I'm wondering why I want to cry. Very strange. I KNOW Bush for what he and his entire administration are, but part of me wants to hear a president say the right thing. That's just it--we do not have leadership in this country, not even from our own party, except for a couple of exceptions, and it feels weird and sad, all of a sudden. It appears as if this speech was for the sole benefit of the Iraqi people, and as usual, 'FUCK YOU, AMERICA!' I'm tired of feeling spit on. I'm tired of their contempt for the country and people I love. I want these fuckers out of our house!

Thank you for saying what I needed to hear (and for helping to stop my threatened sobfest).

[frank frankly]

25. Their long-sought apocalypse is here, but its just for them

Great post.

I've been screaming ever since I read Palast's book that the last pharoahs were trying to bury us in the tomb with them.

The slave owners, the earth raping lootocrats, the moron-creating fundamentals, the racists...they all created a cluster-fuck known as the Bush Administration. And they are falling now, finally, finally, and I swear there has been an evolution of individual thought, created out of defense against this facism.

[grasswire]

31. Gergen is a Yalie with a daughter at Yale with Barbara

And so he sometimes is too soft on Bush. I thought Tweety's after-speech panel was weak. It seemed that Tweety wanted to get to a party or something; he was off after just a few minutes. CNN spent the whole of Larry King Live analyzing. Christine Amanpour from London, Nic Robertson in Baghdad, another correspondent in the ME, Senators Kyl and Graham, and Congresscritters. It was a better review of the speech.

[TacticalPeek]

38. Welcome to DU, frank frankly!

"lootocrats" :toast:

Lootocracy. Looting of the people, by the BFEE, for the BFEE.

Evolutionary adaption? Time to cull this herd!

[KoKo]

27. BTW, ALL...Some follow up analysis/focusing on Iraq better than Americans.

Had to squeeze this in the subject line.......but surfing for follow up analysis....some folks are pointing out that Bush has asked for more for Iraq than is in our budget for road repairs, schools, and medical benefits for our own citizens.

This is going to be talked about. I've not seen so many folks posing questions before tonigh when Bush put a dollar amount on his request to congress....about why the Iraqi's should have a totally new infrastructure, electrical plants, schools and hospitals......while our "electric grids" are in need of updating, our seniors and children need adequate health and prescription benefits and our roads and bridges for years have needed major repairs. But, now that he has put that huge amount on the table...........Bush's budget request will blow alot of minds. And, I think even the Freepers are maybe going to have some problems with this......We blew up Iraq to give them new....while we suffer with old, tired, malfunctioning and outdated.

And, he doesn't say how it will be paid for except by "Sacrifice of the American People."

Unbelievable.....

[Warren Stuart]

28. I agree with one minor correction

Bush landed on the USS Abraham Lincoln (I believe).

You are so right about Gergen, when I first watched the McNeil Lehrer News Hour back in 1992. The political wrap was done by Gergen and Shields (Mark). At the time I thought Gergen was the liberal, because Shields kept trashing the Dems.

Shields has done more to disappoint me over the years than Gergen has, did a lousy job during the debates, brought up Kathleen Willey 8 days after Ray exonerated Clinton in this matter.

While I don't agree with Gergen a lot of the time, at least he's honest.

[KoKo]

36. yes....the Abraham Lincoln......

thanks!

[diplomats]

29. KoKo

someone on another thread said Gergen, Luntz, Tweety, et al liked the speech. (???)

[grasswire]

32. oh, and Judith Miller was on CNN too

...and her remarks were all over the place and very odd.

Tweety, Gergen and Luntz and O'Donnell all said the speech was very strong and sober. Luntz said it should have been given four weeks ago.

[KoKo]

34. Yes....Luntz said it would have "prepared the American People better if it

had been given four weeks ago." ROFL! Norah O'Donnel was very hard hitting against Bush......and very fair in her presentation....but somber.

[KoKo]

33. Well, that's their opinion......but..........I go with what I've seen of

them for years when I was a news junkie on cable/networks.......:shrug: I've seen alot of Presidential Speeches and follow ups by some of these same guys.......kind of get the nuances......and the expressions......and remember the Clinton days...

Try to see a replay tonight on MSNBC and judge for yourself. I bet they will replay it late tonight.

[DrBB]

37. SOME "American people" aren't being asked to "sacrifice"

Rather the opposite, in fact. Namely the top 1% of incomes, whose only "sacrifice" is a whopping mammoth tax cut to fatten their bloated bank accounts and more on the way. While WE'RE asked to pay for massive infrastructure improvements in a country with the second largest oil reserves in the world, while our own infrastructure--health, education, power, transportation--goes to hell. Hey, gotta pay for them tax cuts somehow. We all gotta make "sacrifices" right?

"Sacrifice" in BushSpeak = privatizing the profits and socializing the cost.

[kskiska]

39. Gergen can't be all bad

if Bar Bush is about to trash him in her coming book next month. I guess he got in their way at some point. Maybe when he went to work for Clinton.

[WilliamPitt]

40. Damn, Koko

This is, by far and away, the best thing I've ever read of yours. Damned well said.

P.S. Gergen and I patronize the same laundromat. :)

[salin]

41. earlier in the evening he said Bush's speech was "courageous"... BUT

as I was about to gag on the statement - he explained it was courageous, according to Gergen, because it tied Bush's entire reputation to what happens in Iraq. He wasn't doing the "bush is like FDR" thing - he was spelling out the risk for a political leader to tie his entire career and reputation to such a risky endeavor. I am glad that I resisted the gag reflex and the response to want to quickly turn the channel - until after I heard his explanation.

[opihimoimoi]

43. So Bush played John Wayne and bet the whole enchilada

on one play???? I guess he did sleep in Econ 101, Biz Phil 101, and Common sense 101.

That makes him a perfect puppet. He just don't know better. The perfect FOOL for the Pub Masters to control and use.