TIME: Bush at the U.N.: Another political masterstroke?

[DeepModem Mom]

Bush at the U.N.: Another Political Masterstroke?
The President's speech was the latest in a campaign to flood the airwaves with tough talk on terror. And it seems to be working
By JAMES CARNEY
Posted Tuesday, Sep. 19, 2006

President Bush has been so busy lately giving speeches and taking questions about terrorism and Iraq and the ideological battle against Islamo-fascism that he's practically owned the airwaves. Which is just what Karl Rove wanted. Bush's address at the United Nations General Assembly today may have been a long-scheduled, annual diplomatic event. But it was also a key piece in an elaborate Labor Day political strategy devised by the man whose job it is to keep Republicans in control of Congress in November and thereby salvage the President's legacy. In the past two and half weeks Bush has given a major address on detainee policy, a series of speeches surrounding the five-year anniversary of the 9/11 attacks and an extensive press conference — all of them covered as Presidential rather than political events by the cable channels and, for the most part, the broadcast networks. ABC even broke into its daytime programming to carry Bush's United Nations speech this morning. The result has been saturation coverage of the President talking tough on terror, just as Rove planned.

Democrats and some observers have argued that the old strategy — that making the election about national security, a traditional G.O.P. strength — wouldn't work this time because voters have gotten wise to it and are generally fed up. But this morning's Gallup Poll numbers in USA Today suggest otherwise; Democrats may have reason to panic. Bush's approval at 44% isn't great, but it's a 12-month high. Still better news for the G.O.P. is the so-called "generic " — in which likely voters say whether they plan to vote Republican or Democratic in congressional races this fall. The result — a 48-48% tie — is potentially catastrophic for the Democrats. Recent polling history suggests the Dems need at least a 5-point advantage in the generic just to break even in the midterms. This is just one poll, and it's just a snapshot. The Democrats' advantage may reappear. But for now, it's clear that Rove's strategy is working.

As politics, the President's United Nations speech was genius. It almost didn't matter what he said as long as he talked tough....

http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1536643,00.html?cnn=yes

[BootinUp]

1. Masterstroke my ass.

Only in a country of fools could that be true. Ooops maybe he's right.

[htuttle]

2. Somebody get me a bucket...

[bullimiami]

3. i wish i had the patience to look up this sycophants record.

[LSparkle]

4. This is what you get with NO FAIRNESS DOCTRINE ...

This has been politics, plain and simple, and yet the Democrats are not given an OPPORTUNITY FOR REBUTTAL on the PUBLIC AIRWAVES!!! It would be one thing if only the cable news outlets focused on this jackass 24/7 but this campaign of propaganda has been waged on the public airwaves as well!

Where is the Democratic outrage? There was talk about a week ago about complaining to the networks and asking for equal time, but that seems to have faded. Maybe this latest poll will goose them into renewing those requests -- if we're REALLY interested in winning against Roverat and his ilk this time.

[Wetzelbill]

5. Me: Time Magazine on Bush: Another status quo blowjob? nt

[madrchsod]

6. ahhhh...jimmy boy was subpoenaed by fitzgerald

http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0609/S00030.htm
Scoop: Jason Leopold: Plame Leak(s)

paragraph of who fitz supoenaed...

[driver8]

7. Sounds to me like Time is doing the "master stroking."

If you are going to do the job, Time...do it right. Put on those golden knee pads and get to work.

[fed-up]

8. another propaganda whore--I don't believe those polls for a second n/t

[Name removed]

9. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[annabanana]

20. the magic 8 ball says

"You Betcha!"

[oncall247]

10. It was a posturing piece of pompus patronizing preaching down to

every nation non-western nation. Another missed opportunity to raise the esteem of the US from the hell hole of international dishonor.

[Ignacio Upton]

11. DEMAND to networks that we get equal time!

For every address Bush makes, our Congressional leaders should be entitled to a rebuttal and the same amount of time given.

[Jim Sagle]

12. Another political suckoff by the "liberal media."

[Jack Rabbit]

13. To Mr. Carney: another coprorate journalist sucks corporate rooster

The masters in the suites of Time-Warner must be pleased with this tripe, Mr. Carney.

Bush's legacy is beyond saving. That true whether the Democrats take control of the both Houses of Congress with majorities that make Bush's richly deserved impeachment and removal a near-certainty or if the GOP wins every every seat up for grabs -- even honestly. He will go down as the leader who stole his office, took advantage of a national tragedy to promote a partisan agenda, tortured POWs in secret gulags, started an unnecessary colonial war that had nothing to do with national security with deliberate lies, made corporate cronyism government policy, assissted in the outing of an undercover agent as part of a political vendetta, cut taxes for the rich, expelled the poor from New Orleans after unmaintained levees flooded them out, discarded the Fourth and Sixth Amendments, and stole his office a second time by allowing his campaign chairman in Ohio, who also happened to be that state's chief elections officer, willfully to undersupply voting precincts with a history of voting for the opposition party. And you people in the Fourth Estate have simply let him get away with it, refusing to challnge him his most obvious faslehoods, his blantent misrepresntations of facts and his ridiculously fallacious reasoning.

Yes, I would be alarmed if his strategy works, Mr. Carney. I'll be very disappointed if his strategy of smear and fear work again.

Instead of calling this a political masterstroke, call it what it really is: steer manure.

[aaronbees]

14. "he's practically owned the airwaves"

Uh, this cabal does pretty much own the airwaves ... literally. Hence, this piece of Bushit spin.

[IndianaGreen]

15. Another shameful performance by the tyrant Bush

Who is Time-Warner trying to kid?

[HuffleClaw]

16. *puke* who are they kidding?

more like masterbation. it was a wretched pathetic speech. the audience was appalled by his performance, his constant smirking and attempts to yet again dictate to the world, and shook their heads in disbelief at his poor attempt to be nice to the 'citizens' of the mideast.

[leesa]

17. On cue, Time produces an article stating the propaganda is WORKING

It's a masterstroke!

TIME is part of the propaganda...no wonder.

[Nimrod2005]

18. No it is not, TIME is full of shit, if you think Iraq, Afghanistan

Lebanon/Israel/Palestine, N. Korea, relations with Russia and China are anything to bragg about, they are fucking morons!!!

All international/foreign policy bullshit we have put out for the past 6 years has been a total disaster...Rice has been the biggest joke in the history of the world. His speech at the UN yesterday was 100% for local consumption, for the TIME magazines of the world, good to see it worked on the simple minded mother fuckers.

Complete bullshit...Fuck you Time.

[radfringe]

19. yeah....right.....