The New York Times has a story today on terror alerts and the campaign:
“I am concerned that every time something happens that’s not good for President Bush, he plays this trump card, which is terrorism,” Howard Dean, a former rival of Mr. Kerry for the Democratic nomination, told Wolf Blitzer on CNN on Sunday.
“His whole campaign is based on the notion that ‘I can keep you safe, therefore at times of difficulty for America stick with me,’ and then out comes Tom Ridge,” Mr. Dean, the former Vermont governor, added, referring to the homeland security secretary. “It’s just impossible to know how much of this is real and how much of this is politics, and I suspect there’s some of both in it.”
White House officials denied that suggestion, and other Democrats and Mr. Kerry’s advisers would not embrace it. “I certainly hope not,” Steve Elmendorf, Mr. Kerry’s deputy campaign manager, said. “You have to take them at their word.”
But aides on both sides say they are thinking about how the elevated alert level affects the election and about the possibility of an actual terrorist attack as they try to discuss the political repercussions of terrorism without being accused of doing anything as crass as discussing the political repercussions of terrorism…
There were signs of concern and confusion in both the Kerry and Bush campaigns on Sunday over how, or whether, to talk about the latest turn of events. Mr. Bush’s aides did not respond to requests for comments, while Mr. Kerry’s generally resisted talking on the record.
With apologies to my sweet goddaughter and her ‘rents – I must post this or bust.
From a post on Table Talk and as always, says exactly what is on my mind:
“And of course, California happens to be a solidly Blue state.
Notice that the terror warnings are NEVER for red states. I guess the terrorists aren’t interested in Dallas or Jackson Hole or Tucson.
I’m sorry, but as far as I’m concerned I think this latest alert is just more bullshit. The fact that they went as far as to add a campaign commercial at the end of it was the clincher.
These people have no plans to keep us safe; they have made the world more dangerous; they WANT us to live in fear. As long as we are scared it’s easier for them to keeping shitting all over the Constitution and slowly turn the United States into a fascist dicatorship.
And would the Bushits mind if a bunch of voters in a blue state bought it? Nope, not at all.
This is also the reason they floated the idea of postponing the elections. Does anyone really believe they would do this except in blue states, which apparently contain cities–according to them–more likely to be struck by Al Qaeda?
These people are TRANSPARENT, and they are evil, to boot. And no, I’m not talking about the terrorists in the Middle East, but the terrorists occupying the White House. The only difference between Karl Rove and Osama bin Laden, as far as I’m concerned, is that Rove gets others to do his dirty work, and there’s no way to prove the Bushits have actually killed anyone. But the theology, the driving ambitions are the same: to terrorize the world and remake it into an image THEY want”
Wow I am impressed … a completely political blog entry. What’s next: seeing you at Democracy for America meetups? Whatever you are on I want some of it!!
Did you see the Daily Show last night? Jon Stewart slammed the Congressman for peddling more beaurocratic b.s.! Loved it! Can anyone just tell us what they stand for and how they intend to get there? I loved the “turning the corner” bit too.