Thank you, Karl Rove

[scrambler]

"The history of the last three years has demonstrated that the Bush strategists will stoop to any level to get their way. They are the masters of the last minute smear campaign. When Republican Senator John McCain posed a threat to George W. Bush's nomination for President in early 2000, dark suggestions were planted in the press that Senator McCain, the highly decorated Vietnam war hero, might have committed treason in the Vietnamese prison (where he languished for five years), and that he had fathered a child with a black prostitute (Senator McCain's adopted daughter, Brigitte, is from Bangladesh.)

 

As the race for Senator from Georgia was tightening, President Bush's political strategist, Karl Rove, ran TV commercials accusing the sitting Democratic Senator Max Cleland of being soft on national security. Interesting, because Senator Cleland is also a much decorated war hero who lost both his legs fighting for his country in Vietnam. President Bush, on the other hand, avoided service in Vietnam through his father's influence, enlisted in Texas Air National Guard, which he left eight months early, and where his attendance was erratic. For Karl Rove, there is no shame in character assassination; the only shame is in losing an election."

 

[willstrickland]

I'm not a Bush supporter, but I am a Georgia native. Max Cleland was a nutjob who rode his disability through a sucession of state politcal offices before becoming a US Senator. I wasn't happy with his replacement - Saxby Chambliss, but nevertheless, whacko Cleland needed to go. The guy seriously had some out of touch views on plenty of issues...take look at his voting record and some of his statements sometime.

 

I don't discount what you're saying about Rove, particularly the dirty press about McCain...who I hoped would pull down the nomination (McCain isn't my ideal candidate by far, but was better than most in that race). Anyway, it's not big news Scrambler, dirty press and backhanded rumour spreading has always been a part of politics...it goes hand in hand with the lust for power.

[catbirdseat]

Enjoying Al Franken's book aren't you? It's a good read and all true. There is a special place waiting in hell for Karl Rove.

[scrambler]

willstrickland said:

I'm not a Bush supporter, but I am a Georgia native. Max Cleland was a nutjob who rode his disability through a sucession of state politcal offices before becoming a US Senator. I wasn't happy with his replacement - Saxby Chambliss, but nevertheless, whacko Cleland needed to go. The guy seriously had some out of touch views on plenty of issues...take look at his voting record and some of his statements sometime.

 

I don't discount what you're saying about Rove, particularly the dirty press about McCain...who I hoped would pull down the nomination (McCain isn't my ideal candidate by far, but was better than most in that race). Anyway, it's not big news Scrambler, dirty press and backhanded rumour spreading has always been a part of politics...it goes hand in hand with the lust for power.

 

Hmm...I'm not familiar with Cleland's voting record. I did notice that Cleland was part of the 911 panel. As part of the panel, Cleland was one of the more outspoken members of the commission, accusing the administration of delaying access to vital documents in an effort to run out the clock on its investigation. Bush recently nominated Cleland to serve on the board of the Import-Export Bank ( New job takes Cleland off 9/11 panel--Washington Times ).

 

I wouldn't be surprised to find the machinations of politics are largely driven by personal vendetta and such, rather than grand visions or ideals.