As his Iraq adventure disintegrates before his eyes,
and as more and more Americans are unwilling to give
him any benefit of the doubt, George W. Bush is once
again pulling out the "let's scare'em with terrorism"
card.
And while there is no doubt that this despicable ploy
is just that, we should not fall into the trap of only
accusing him of crying wolf. Because, putting aside
the lies that our government dishes out everyday,
there is no question that at this point, there are
indeed terrorists who would love nothing more than to
launch an attack in The United States.
If a successful attack should happen, and all we've been doing is accusing Bush of raising the level of
fear, then we'll immediately find ourselves on the
defensive with many Americans rallying around the
President once again as the only one to "keep us
safe".
Instead, our message should be unequivocal and clear.
There WILL undoubtedly be another terrorist attack,
and if it is successful, it will be because this
President has ignored crucial border security in order
to provide for his military adventure in Iraq.
The Democrats' message is stuck in reaction mode.
Bush makes a grandly idiotic policy decision, or makes
some statement framing the debate just as Karl Rove
has instructed him, and all the Democrats simply
respond by disagreeing in vague and tentative tones,
making sure that they never stray from the very
framework that Bush has articulated.
We need to go after this criminal administration in
the same way that we would go after any public enemy
or scourge. We need to be pointing out relentlessly
that Bush is not keeping America safe; he's creating
enemies faster than we can possibly apprehend them,
and he has neglected this vaunted "Homeland" that he
has suddenly thrust into our lexicon. The only action
that this administration can take to improve our
security is to get out of Iraq and change their
approach to diplomacy in the region. Bush is creating
the conditions for another terror attack by his
policies. This should be our outcry.
If we simply express skepticism about his fear
mongering, we will be rewarded with another terror
event, either through the administration's
incompetence or complicity. Either way, we will once
again find ourselves watching in amazement as
Americans decide that they can't risk going against
the President in a time a crisis.
And the next attack will doubtlessly usher in the new
era of facism for which Bush and Company have been
patiently been laying the groundwork. It must be the
citizens of this nation who say "I told you so" in the
event of anther attack. If George Bush is saying it
instead, then it will be too late for Democracy in
America.