Friday, September 03, 2004
RNC Day 4
September, 3, 2004
Greetings fellow patriots and blogspotters. Welcome to my final edition of Republican National Convention coverage.
Comparison and contrast were the order of the day this evening. George W. Bush’s acceptance speech and John Kerry’s midnight special will go a long ways toward defining the campaign from now until November 2.
The wonkish, domestic portion of the speech resurrected two icons of Republicanism: Ronald Reagan and “compassionate conservatism”.
Said Bush of Reagan, “His spirit of optimism and goodwill and decency are in this hall, and in our hearts, and will always define our party.” Indeed, Reagan’s ghost has indwelt this entire convention. In addition to the explicit references by several speakers, the themes have been similar: lower taxes, greater opportunity, strong foreign policy, self-deprecating humor, sunny optimism and top-flight production values. We should all thank the Lord for giving us Ronald Reagan!
However, one theme that is missed in the Bush policy prism is the pillar of less government. In its place, Team Bush has substituted “…a compassionate conservative philosophy: that government should help people improve their lives, not try to run their lives.”
Unfortunately, we’ve seen that this “compassionate conservative philosophy” has often been implemented at the expense of expanded government and increased spending. This is my biggest beef with the Bush II presidency. The last three and a half years have seen extensive increases in the size and scope of government. Of course, some is necessary for the War on Terror. Yet, Bush has been subject to the same special interest payoffs that afflict most every other politician. With programs like the expensive agriculture bill, expensive education bill, and massive Medicare prescription drug entitlement, Team Bush has jettisoned one of the key components of Reagan’s economic worldview. And this will come with consequences, as increasing deficits will pressure Bush or another future president to abandon another Reaganite principle: lower taxes. We should never be content with increasing entitlement spending!!!
Thankfully, many of Bush’s other domestic agenda items do offer hope for reduced spending and more power to the people. I like the “ownership society” sound bite, implying that anyone who opposes it wants people to be slaves on the government plantation. He has several good ideas to make people take more responsibility for their lives.
One in particular is health savings accounts (HSA’s). HSA’s are like 401K retirement accounts, except for health care. Coupled with a high-deductible, catastrophic care policy, employees contribute pre-tax money into the account to pay for routine medical expenses and the deductible in case of an emergency. HSA’s encourage people to finally act like consumers of health care, and not defer to HMO or government mandarins.
Even better is that HSA’s are a poison pill against HilaryCare. HSA’s are the diametric opposite of socialized health care, because of the reasons I indicated above. HilaryCare and HSA’s cannot peacefully coexist. As more people get HSA’s, the harder it will be to enact HilaryCare. If Bush is re-elected, he should promote and reform HSA’s so that they reach critical mass …..killing HilaryCare forever!!! If Kerry is elected, he will play the health care Herod, and kill HSA’s in the cradle.
In comparison to the plodding, detailed domestic portion of the speech, the foreign policy emanated much more energy and vision. Bush seemed to warm up to the topic, showed more emotion and passion and even biblical imagery.
The most powerful quote of the night was “We are staying on the offensive striking terrorists abroad so we do not have to face them here at home.”
Dear friend, do not miss the gravity of this statement!
A few hours before writing this, 200 people, were killed in a gun battle caused by Chechen terrorists who held 1500 people, including many children, captive for several days. The US has even greater civil liberties and freedom than those Russia, which should be conducive to such terrorist operations. So, what has prevented these terrifying events from happening in the US since September 11? In addition to the grace of God, I hold that President Bush’s bad-boy ‘you’re either with us or the terrorists’ ultimatums and the application of the Patriot Act have deterred such atrocities.
Bush spent significant time drawing the distinction between himself and Kerry. Here, we must pay close attention and be ready to explain these key distinctions to our undecided friends and conservative friends thinking of not voting:
- Bush understands we must take the fight to the terrorists; Kerry will wait to be attacked
- Bush understands we must financially invest in winning the War on Terror; Kerry doesn’t because he’s voted against necessary military spending
- Bush respects our allies; Kerry thinks they’re “coerced and bribed”. Would you join him in the War on Terror?
- Bush knows a strong, democratic Iraq is the key to changing the rule of the game with terrorists; what does Kerry believe?
Compared with Kerry’s breathless, caffeinated rant at the Democratic convention, Bush was more measured and deliberate. He conveyed the quiet confidence that we need during these perilous times, when terrorists take hundreds of children hostage in school, or send suicide bombers into crowded markets, or kill innocent civilians with old-fashioned airline bombs. Bush made a very clear and compelling case for re-election.
Then came Kerry’s unorthodox, midnight, change-the-subject “rebuttal”.
Rambling through several, domestic policy initiatives with a similar lack of detail as Bush, Kerry did not offer anything new or compelling. His planned drop-dead sound bites about Bush and Cheney’s military records, whatever merit they might have, came off as petty and desperate because of the timing and delivery.
Kerry’s open collar smirkiness was a bad comparison to the solemn, gentle strength Bush had shown just a few minute before. In addition to driving up his own negatives by attacking not only his opponent but the opposing Vice Presidential candidate, he’s kept military record finger pointing on the table. Doesn’t Kerry know it’s his running mate’s job to attack the opposing ticket while he looks presidential by staying above the fray? Dredging up the Bush National Guard record non-story and Cheney’s draft deferment insinuations does not make Kerry look presidential. It makes him look like a sniveling, impotent wuss.
The Swift Boat Vets for Truth ads have obviously rattled the Kerry campaign and for good reason. By frontloading their primaries to nominate “anyone but Bush” and making this campaign about Kerry’s 4 month Vietnam record, the Democrats put their eggs in one basket. And now a mere $200,000 in “527” money has done to Kerry what all of George Soros’ millions could not do to Bush: strike a blow that significantly drives down the poll numbers and requires a radical shake up in the campaign. Maybe some former Clinton handlers can help Kerry redefine the campaign at this late date.
However, world events and his own record are working against Kerry. Try as he might to change the subject to domestic problems and old-school, therapeutically liberal solutions, that’s not what this election is about. The best prescription drug program in the world is not going to mean didly squat if we are not successful in the War on Terror. Since the surprise war crimes of September 11, George W. Bush has kept this country safe. No hijackings, suicide bombings, or mass hostage raids have occurred on our soil. We should ask undecided voters:
- What is Kerry’s plan for continuing Bush’s record of safety?
- When he does take action, how can we expect our necessary allies to follow, given his long record of passivity, double talking, and flip-flops?
- How can he be trusted to successfully prosecute the War on Terror given his antipathy towards increasing military spending when it is clearly necessary? “There is nothing complicated about supporting our troops in combat”!
Unless the Kerry campaign can come up with compelling answers to these questions or make the election about something else in the next 2 months, Bush deserves, and will have four more years.
Wednesday, September 01, 2004
September 1, 2004
Greetings fellow patriots and political junkies! Welcome to the third edition of my thoughts on the Republican National Convention.
We were treated to opposite styles in tonight’s prime time segment: Religious revivalism and button-down, bottom-line focus.
First was Democratic Senator Zell Miller, who spoke with the fire and brimstone of an Appalachian Pentecostal revival preacher.
Miller rightly raged against the Democratic machine for its weakness and passivity in recent years. Recounting the many weapons systems John Kerry voted against that currently employed in the War on Terror was particularly effective. And the punch line was hilariously on-target: “This is the man who wants to be the Commander in Chief of our U.S. Armed Forces? U.S. forces armed with what? Spitballs?” That was a hoot!
But seriously, this is a line of questioning we should pursue with our friends and family who are potential swing voters: How can Kerry be trusted to be strong on the War on Terror when his record is so soft? Memorizing the weapons system Miller mentioned will be helpful, but just asking this question frames the debate in terms of weakness versus strength, which is not favorable to Kerry.
The peace-through-strength preacher then presented Kerry’s weaknesses 7 ways to Sunday: “For more than twenty years, on every one of the great issues of freedom and security, John Kerry has been more wrong, more weak and more wobbly than any other national figure. (Or, as Miller drawled: “naishional figure”) As a war protestor, Kerry blamed our military.”
The religious imagery and notions of American manifest destiny at the close could only have been pulled off by the 70-something, soon to be retired Democrat. That makes the inevitable charges of religious pandering and imperialism a little harder to sell. But Miller’s statements at the end ring of truth! The money quote of the speech was: “I have knocked on the door of this man's soul and found someone home, a God-fearing man with a good heart and a spine of tempered steel.” I thought he was also going to say that George W. Bush was a man after God’s own heart! But I’ll settle for a rousing “God Bless George W. Bush”.
Then, Vice President Cheney counterbalanced Miller’s soaring preacher’s cadence with the taciturn prose of a no-nonsense CEO.
Most of the speech itself was uninspiring, but rhetorical flourishes are not Cheney’s reason for being attached to Bush. Cheney’s best gift is that he exudes rock solid competence and unwavering determination. His characteristic scowl evokes images of high-pressure, boardroom presentations, demanding the utmost in attention to detail. This is the type of person I want in charge of sticking it to Al Qaeda. Jonathan Edwards may be a fine trial lawyer and effective at playing on the sympathies of captive juries, but he comes off like a blow-dried, air-headed, lightweight next to Cheney.
While Cheney’s speech was not dazzling like Miller's, there were still important questions raised that we should pay close attention to and put to use…..
“In this election, we will decide who leads our country for the next four years. Yet there is more in the balance than that. Moments come along in history when leaders must make fundamental decisions about how to confront a long-term challenge abroad and how best to keep the American people secure….. This nation has reached another of those defining moments.” While not delivered with Churchill’s eloquence, this is a Churchillian theme: it is a time for reckoning. This helps set up the comparison between Bush’s strength and Kerry’s squishiness. Swing voters and conservative voters thinking of staying home must be told that decisions with severe, and far-reaching consequence hang in the balance.
Indeed, world events are currently proving this premise to be painfully true. Last week, terrorist explosives brought down two Russian airliners. And even at this moment, as I am writing, radical Chechen terrorists are holding hundreds of school children hostage in Beslan, Russia. Waging a “sensitive” war and waiting until we are attacked could very well lead to these trials occurring on Main Street USA…..again.
Against this backdrop of ongoing terror, Cheney laid out comparisons between Kerry and Bush with balance sheet precision that we should heed and share.
Kerry -
- Voted against the first Persian Gulf war,
- Doesn’t understand the true nature of the WMD threat
- Panders to passive nations -
- Votes against needed military aid and systems
- Seems to be even at war with himself
Bush
- Has personal strength
- Means what he says
- Has compassion for the afflicted
- Inspires others
- Calls evil by its name
- Puts America on the right side of history
The money quote from Cheney’s speech was “… Senator Kerry's liveliest disagreement is with himself. His back-and-forth reflects a habit of indecision, and sends a message of confusion…. Senator Kerry says he sees two Americas. It makes the whole thing mutual: America sees two John Kerrys.” In addition to being an effective zinger that Bush supporters can readily use to woo undecideds, this statement sums up the Kerry candidacy deal breaker: his lack of integrity puts us all at greater risk.
As Zell Miller might say, “He who has ears, let him hear.”
Tomorrow: The Big Kahuna
August 31, 2004
Greetings fellow patriots! Welcome to my impressions of the second night of the Republican National Convention.
Cinematic machismo, code words, wink-wink asides, and Presidential consanguinity (that means “blood relations” for those of you in South Austin) were all the rage in tonight’s prime time segment of the Republican National Convention.
Ah-nold Schwarzeneggar, the “Governator” from Caleeefornia was welcomed with rousing expectation by the GOP faithful and quickly showed why he is in the Governor’s mansion and Gray Davis is, thankfully, somewhere else.
Opening with some clever and mildly self-deprecating humor (using “True Lies” to describe the Democrat convention was classic!), and sharing some Red Heat from his days under the Communist yoke, the native Austrian immediately trod into potentially dicey territory. Talking about immigration, a hot-button issue amongst many GOP conservatives, the Running Man carefully avoided stepping on the landmine of President Bush’s controversial guest worker program and stuck to basic, mild pabulum on the subject….mainly to show that the Republicans aren’t the meanies everyone makes them out to be then move on to the next topic. Though along the way, he made a brief rhetorical nod to key swing states Ohio, Pennsylvania, and New Mexico. Expect to see and hear subliminal messages containing the words “Colorado”, “Florida”, and “Wisconsin” in the next two days.
The “How to know if you are a Republican” section was the money sound bite of the night. I was cheering out loud myself as the fiscally conservative Commando gunned down shibboleths of the left with on-target sound bites about smaller government and less UN involvement. Sadly, the “economic girly men” line was a bit anti-climatic, since the Wall Street Journal ran a story this morning talking about that very topic with almost the same phraseology. But it is still true!
Taking the rhetorical baton from Rudy Giuliani last night, the Governor again drove home the point that Bush will not flinch, waiver, and back down. And in another instance of code word parsing, the speechwriters mentioned that it’s the US sending “missionaries and doctors to heal the sick” in foreign lands. This is a subtle sop to conservative Christians, who are very active in sending missionaries overseas. By way of comparison, who in the Kerry camp would even think about Christian missionaries as anything other than latter day Crusaders, seeking to impose Christianity by force on unsophisticated, 3rd world natives? This sound bite clearly had the intent to warm the cockles of core constituency hearts.
Another, more electorally loaded comment was “From the Great State of California”. Of course, I’m sure Schwarzeneggar is sincere when he says his adopted home state is great. And it, in fact, is great, in spite of nearly a decade of Democratic mismanagement. But what has slipped under the radar with all the talk of terrorism, Swift Boats, and who was where on Christmas of 1968 is that polls in California are getting surprisingly close. A Survey USA poll on August 18 only had Kerry up by 3 points and the August 26 Rasmussen poll has him up by 9. This, after leading the Golden State by double digits in most polls since February.
Closing strong, the “I’ll be back” to Iraq line not only garnered huge audience response, but also firmly set the capstone on Schwarzenegger’s introduction to the party faithful. Schwarzeneggar has commanding stage presence, self-deprecating humor, genuine boosterism of the American Dream, and a never-ending supply of film-inspired sound bites. Again, as with Rudy Giuliani last night, we are treated to another heir to the throne of Reagan. Again, we are also faced with a social “moderate” (which really means social liberal) that will be unacceptable to the great mass of Republican voters unless he truly “moderates” his Big Abortion and gay lobby genuflections.
Moderation is also what was needed with the Bush daughters’ introduction of their mother for the night’s final address. Not moderation in political views, but moderation in screen time. In this case, a moderate amount would have been about 90% less. Words cannot express how lame this segment was compared to the somber and compelling interlude given by the 9/11 widows last night.
Given a pumped up audience from Ah-nold, the Bush daughters segment quickly deflated the audience goodwill and fell flatter than sorority pledge after a night at Chuy’s (Chuy’s is the South Austin restaurant where Jenna Bush was busted for using a fake ID to buy alcohol). You can’t totally blame the twins, as someone else scripted their teleprompted address. Whose idea was it to disrespectfully jibe grandma Bush and Ma & Pa? Whose idea was it to even mention “Sex in the City”? The last thing this convention needs is images of the sex-crazed, hard-core liberal Democrat, Sarah Jessica Parker, coursing through the viewers’ collective consciousness. We got enough of ultra-leftist interlopers when we saw Michael Moore last night.
Tonight could have been a rousing introduction to the world for one or both twins and set the stage for campaigns to come. They could have been cute, clever, conservative, and charming. Instead, they were clammy, clunky, catty, and churning. Who scripted this segment and what was its true purpose?
Their one, on-target statement was when they said mom and dad “cheered when we scored a goal, even for the wrong team.” Well mom and dad are cheering tonight, if you know what I mean.
Thankfully, Ma Bush came a-riding to the rescue. After W’s folksy intro from a down-home little league game (remember, he was owner of the Texas Rangers for a spell), the First Lady graced the stage with capable and genuine self-possession. Her acknowledgements of family and close friends, necessary to create the requisite sense of bonhomie, were dutifully delivered.
At first, her style almost seems ceremonial and superficial, like the Queen of England. But do not be deceived, dear reader. The First Lady’s soothing style belies a hidden ability to drop key code words and deliver effective, rhetorical daggers.
- She said “I could talk about the small-business owners and entrepreneurs who are now creating most of the new jobs in our country, women like Carmella Chaifos, the only woman to own a tow truck company in all of Iowa.” In one swift stroke, she affirmed the important constituencies of small business owners, women, and (wink, wink) a key swing state.
- She gently mollified pro-lifers with key code words, saying W handled the stem cell issue “in a principled way, allowing science to explore its potential while respecting the dignity of human life” (emphasis added)
- She graciously lauded the Crane family from Colorado….which coincidentally happens to be another hotly contested swing state (nudge nudge)
- She delivered a clear attack with reassuring calm. Describing W she said: “And you've come to know many of the same things that I know about him. He'll always tell you what he really thinks. You can count on him, especially in a crisis.” In other words, her husband is not a flip-flopping, “nuanced” opportunist like you-know-who.
- Skillfully anointing her husband with the ghost of Reagan, Mrs. Bush adjured us “Many of my generation remember growing up at the height of the Cold War, hiding under desks during civil defense drills in case the Communists attacked us…. because of strong American leadership in the past we don't hide under our desks anymore. …And because of President Bush's leadership … I believe our children will grow up in a world where today's terror threats have also become a thing of the past.”
This is not the Laura Bush of the 2000 election, who actually admitted at that convention that she would let W. run for office only if she did not have to speak to political audiences. Then, she was terse and forced, not quite comfortable in her skin. Now, after 4 years of baptism by media spotlight and stern sifting by world events, the First Lady possesses a simple, reassuring grace…refined by the fire as it were.
After stories this week and last of the First Lady taking umbrage with some of the oppositions’ comments about her husband, I was half expecting Mrs. Bush to play the Tammy Wynette and stand by her man, rolling pin in hand. But except for the carefully understated digs at ol’ what’s-his-name, Mrs. Bush spent her airtime highlighting the great things about this country and, more importantly for this purpose, her husband.
Not flashy like Jackie O, not domineering like Nancy, not hostile like Hilary, Laura shows humble strength and grace. She seems to be a spiritual ballast for the President as he steers our ship of state through the storms of our distracted, tormented world. I am glad Laura Bush is our First Lady.
Tomorrow: Will the Cheney’s explain their same sex marriage backsliding? Will Zell Miller say the Democratic Party is actually possessed by the anti-Christ?
Stay tuned…..
Tuesday, August 31, 2004
August 30, 2004
Greetings fellow patriots and blog spotters! Welcome to my impressions of the first night of the Republican National Convention.
Like all conventions in the television era, this one was heavy on scripting, light on controversy and actual debate: clearly a confection of risk-adverse party hacks. But that doesn’t mean the party hacks have nothing to say. In fact, this convention, purportedly carefully controlled by the White House, went to great, repetitive extremes to lay the thematic ground work for the rest of the week and the rest of the campaign: unequivocal strength in the War on Terror.
You see, the timing and locale of this convention are clearly no accident. Holding the convention in New York City, close to the baleful anniversary of September 11 gives the George W. Bush of 2004, in a statistical dead heat for re-election, an opportunity to stand on the shoulders of the George W. Bush of late 2001, who had over a 90% approval rating in those heroic days and remind voters of his leadership and strength.
The scripting and media machinations seemed to have worked so far, as this evening’s events drove home the image of W, the decisive warrior president versus Kerry, the flip-flopping, limp-wristed, effete, Euro-appeaser.
I started watching when Sen. Lindsay Graham introduced Sen. McCain, which was mainly an amalgamation of conventioneering platitudes. But it did have a cleverly concealed rhetorical dagger when Graham referenced McCain’s “respected comrades in arms”, a sly allusion to Kerry’s tormentors from the Swift Boat Vets for Truth (click this link to contribute: https://www.swiftvets.com/swift/ccdonation.php?op=donate&site=SwiftVets)
Sen. McCain sounded the “unity” theme early on, foreshadowing a likely return to the 2000 Bush claim of being a “uniter, not a divider”
Opined McCain, after September 11, “…we were not different races. We were not poor or rich. We were not Democrat or Republican, liberal or conservative. We were not two countries. We were Americans.” Take that Jonathan Edwards!
McCain also nicely scourged our “partners” in the War on Terror, the French and Germans:
“And, thanks to his efforts we have received valuable assistance from many good friends around the globe, even if we have, at times, been disappointed with the reactions of some.” Disappointed? With Jacques Chirac? Not at all! Why, I was expecting him to sidle up to dictators with whom he’s illegally been doing business.
And I was also expecting hidden attacks on Michael Moore and other, well-heeled lefties shilling for Kerry, but I did not expect Michael Moore to actually show up at the RNC. That explains why McCain’s best line about a certain-unnamed-hmmmm-who-could-that-be “disingenuous filmmaker” went over so well and stood in stark contrast to the rest of his ho-hum delivery. And what is Michael Moore doing showing up at the RNC anyway? I suppose he feels he needs to show his constituency that he’s standing up to da’ Man. But shouldn’t someone in Kerry’s campaign tell Moore that his puerile, in-your-face tactics aren’t playing too well with soccer moms in Ohio?
The Senator for Arizona concluded in terse staccato:
“We fight for love of freedom and justice, a love that is invincible. Keep that faith. Keep your courage. Stick together. Stay strong. Do not yield. Do not flinch. Stand up. Stand up with our President and fight. We're Americans. We're Americans, and we'll never surrender. They will.”
Amen.
What is remarkable is that the 9/11 widows generated far more genuine sympathy, gravitas, and emotional capital with their momentary testimonies than McCains’ whole 20 minute spiel.
Flight 93 widow Deena Burnett had the money quote of the whole night saying the flight 93 heroics were the result of virtues practiced over a lifetime and that the most fitting memorial would be a living memorial by all of us to make decisions based on faith, courage, and integrity. I was seriously getting a bit choked up listening to the quiet strength of these women resonate through Madison Square Garden.
That courageous interlude and a haunting rendition of “Amazing Grace” by former NYC policeman Daniel Rodriguez gave former NYC mayor Rudy Guiliani a platinum lead in. And from there, Guiliani did not disappoint.
Guliani was funny, warm and animated, yet crisp in attacks on the Dems. McCain was robotically on message, but uninspired; adroitly covering the right sound bites, but with the dull thud of rotten eggs hitting the floor.
But Guiliani hit the ground running. He delivered the Rove-inspired messages with aplomb, ably comparing Bush II to George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Winston Churchill, and Ronald Reagan. Also, recounting Bush’s rock-solid leadership in the punch-drunk days following September 11, the former Mayor said “President Bush's response in keeping us unified and in turning the ship of state around from being solely on defense against terrorism to being on offense as well and for his holding us together.” Thus, he deftly re-spun the unity theme, while transitioning to the theme of strength against the bad guys.
The “going on offense” line could be particularly damaging to Kerry. What I took away from Kerry’s acceptance speech was that he would sit back and let the US be attacked again before taking action, and then only after consulting with France and Germany. While these weren’t his exact words, and probably not his exact thoughts, he left himself open for this attack through his refusal to clearly adhere to the Bush Doctrine of pre-emption, numerous flip-flops, and very dovish voting record.
And hear this attack we will….again and again. Rudy set the table for this line of attack with this very compelling statement:“President Bush will make certain that we are combating terrorism at the source, beyond our shores, so we can reduce the risk of having to confront it in the streets of New York.” It should be a theme for the rest of the convention. Then, when September 11 rolls around, amid the memorials and teary rememberances, expect swing state TV ads from shadowy “527” groups oh-so-sublty reminding voters that President Kerry could let it happen again…with international terrorist attacks like the recent airliner bombings in Russia serving as a backdrop.
Rudy dazzled, he cajoled, he sympathized, he even improvised! Getting off the script at the RNC could be risky business for a potential 2008 presidential candidate. However, it was the funniest joke of the night. Describing President Bush’s conversation with Manhattan construction workers, the scripted line was “They were advising him in their own words on exactly what he should do with the terrorists. Of course I can't repeat their exact language.”
To which Rudy added “at least not at this party’s convention”. After reading several stories of raunchy Democrat fundraisers featuring foulmouthed comics, then hearing Rudy spontaneously deliver this zinger– whoa Nellie, I was rolling!!!!
It should also be noted that Guiliani included a subtle rhetorical bow to conservative Christians by referencing the plight of African Christians in the Sudan. I subscribe to Voice of the Martyrs (click here to subscribe: http://www.persecution.com), a monthly magazine that chronicles oppression of Christians in other countries and am sadly aware of what Muslims do to Christians there. Keep your ears open for subtle references and “code words” in these speeches. Even though the speakers may be considered “social moderates”, the scriptwriters often throw code words and phrases into their texts to appeal to certain core constituencies that will likely go unnoticed by the broader viewing audience.
The Mayor concluded with – dare we say it? – Reaganesque optimism at the power of freedom and free peoples versus tyranny. Guiliani has come a long way since his abortive Senatorial campaign in 2000. Soiled with stories of infidelity and related misdeeds, the Mayor ignominiously withdrew from the race late, putting challenger Rick Lazio at a decided fundraising and mind share disadvantage against the carpet bagging Hillary Clinton. Rudy, on September 11, 2001, you showed us your steely strength. Tonight, you showed us your zest, good humor, and vision. Drop the pro-abortion and anti-family positions, and you just might get another shot at Lady Hillary.
Tomorrow: First Lady Laura Bush stands by her man and the “Govornator”, Arnold Schwartzenegger, kicks sand in the faces of skinny little girly men. Don’t miss it!
