Bush's Acceptance Speech
On Thursday night, in front of a sea of enthusiastically euphoric supporters, George W. Bush attempted to frame the 2004 campaign. To Mr. Bush, the future rests on bringing democracy to the repressed of the world (especially the Middle East) while protecting the United States from terrorists who hate the freedom we represent and seek to destroy us.
The message du jour at the Republican National Convention was “it’s the war, stupid” and Mr. Bush served it up royally. There was a fundamental difference in Bush’s delivery, though. While his predecessors at the podium placed the war in Iraq in the context of protecting America, Bush went on to say that "America is called to lead the cause of freedom in the new century.” “Freedom,” he added, “is not America's gift to the world. It is the Almighty God's gift.” This came moments after New York Governor George Pataki described Bush as God’s gift to the United States. “He is one of those men God and fate somehow lead to the fore in times of challenge,” Pataki declared.
So, for a week we watched speaker after speaker give us the war as the prime reason to vote for Bush. Then, on Thursday night, Bush put a messianic spin on the military action in Iraq. And of course, this was the part that resonated with the choir before him.
Oh, there was more to the speech than the war. For the first part of the speech, he rolled out some new proposals while dusting off some old standbys, such as social security privatization, health savings accounts, tax reform and (as a jab against John Edwards) tort reform. He promised more money for Pell Grants and Perkins loans, even though he slashed funding for those programs for the last three years. He was short on details, of course, although he did direct those interested to check his website.
He spent a few minutes pandering to factions, mentioning unborn children, activist judges and his opposition to gay marriage. He even took a few shots at John Kerry, distorting the senator’s voting record to the roar of the crowd.
Then he got down to business, unleashing his passion on the war in Iraq and the larger crusade.
To Bush, the war is proof that he’ll do anything in his power to protect America. He wants you to know that he is a determined leader with the resolve to rid the world of America’s enemies. “You know where I stand,” he declared. The implication, of course, is that you don’t know where Kerry stands. But then comes the kicker. “This young century,” Bush said, “will be liberty's century. By promoting liberty abroad we will build a safer world....We have a calling from beyond the stars.”
It’s compelling stuff, I gotta admit. National security in the form of destroying al Qaeda, idealism in the form of democratizing the Middle East and faith in the form of obedience to the fundamentalist view of God’s wishes. What a plan.
What Bush is trying to do is take a war that the majority of Americans now believe was a mistake and reframe it as an anointed mission from God. If he succeeds in doing that, then the crusade can expand into Iran and beyond. If not, he will be left with the legacy of directing “Vietnam 2: The Sequel”.
This brings it all back around to the point we always return to with Bush.
George W. Bush is a man of God, on a mission from God, representing the political party of God. It’s a tired old script, but it keeps playing to the masses who don’t mind being lied to as long as there’s a “Christian” in the White House. It doesn't matter to them that Jesus Christ (the founder of Christianity, remember) talked about peace over war by a ratio of at least 100 to 1. It doesn't matter that Jesus Christ (whose teachings are the foundation of Christianity, remember) spoke of forgiveness and loving our neighbor. All that matters is that George W. Bush claims to be a man of God on a mission from God.
The problem is that a man of God on a mission from God is a dangerous thing if he doesn’t obey the teachings of God.
The message du jour at the Republican National Convention was “it’s the war, stupid” and Mr. Bush served it up royally. There was a fundamental difference in Bush’s delivery, though. While his predecessors at the podium placed the war in Iraq in the context of protecting America, Bush went on to say that "America is called to lead the cause of freedom in the new century.” “Freedom,” he added, “is not America's gift to the world. It is the Almighty God's gift.” This came moments after New York Governor George Pataki described Bush as God’s gift to the United States. “He is one of those men God and fate somehow lead to the fore in times of challenge,” Pataki declared.
So, for a week we watched speaker after speaker give us the war as the prime reason to vote for Bush. Then, on Thursday night, Bush put a messianic spin on the military action in Iraq. And of course, this was the part that resonated with the choir before him.
Oh, there was more to the speech than the war. For the first part of the speech, he rolled out some new proposals while dusting off some old standbys, such as social security privatization, health savings accounts, tax reform and (as a jab against John Edwards) tort reform. He promised more money for Pell Grants and Perkins loans, even though he slashed funding for those programs for the last three years. He was short on details, of course, although he did direct those interested to check his website.
He spent a few minutes pandering to factions, mentioning unborn children, activist judges and his opposition to gay marriage. He even took a few shots at John Kerry, distorting the senator’s voting record to the roar of the crowd.
Then he got down to business, unleashing his passion on the war in Iraq and the larger crusade.
To Bush, the war is proof that he’ll do anything in his power to protect America. He wants you to know that he is a determined leader with the resolve to rid the world of America’s enemies. “You know where I stand,” he declared. The implication, of course, is that you don’t know where Kerry stands. But then comes the kicker. “This young century,” Bush said, “will be liberty's century. By promoting liberty abroad we will build a safer world....We have a calling from beyond the stars.”
It’s compelling stuff, I gotta admit. National security in the form of destroying al Qaeda, idealism in the form of democratizing the Middle East and faith in the form of obedience to the fundamentalist view of God’s wishes. What a plan.
What Bush is trying to do is take a war that the majority of Americans now believe was a mistake and reframe it as an anointed mission from God. If he succeeds in doing that, then the crusade can expand into Iran and beyond. If not, he will be left with the legacy of directing “Vietnam 2: The Sequel”.
This brings it all back around to the point we always return to with Bush.
George W. Bush is a man of God, on a mission from God, representing the political party of God. It’s a tired old script, but it keeps playing to the masses who don’t mind being lied to as long as there’s a “Christian” in the White House. It doesn't matter to them that Jesus Christ (the founder of Christianity, remember) talked about peace over war by a ratio of at least 100 to 1. It doesn't matter that Jesus Christ (whose teachings are the foundation of Christianity, remember) spoke of forgiveness and loving our neighbor. All that matters is that George W. Bush claims to be a man of God on a mission from God.
The problem is that a man of God on a mission from God is a dangerous thing if he doesn’t obey the teachings of God.
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