Your Thoughts Exactly

It would only be fair for me to spend some time analyzing the speeches that come out of the GOP’s convention. And a credit to the GOP and their website, where I was able to read transcripts of all speeches given on the first day, no matter how short. Interestingly, the domestic issue most brought up was ending the “death tax.” Now I am not sure if I am for or against the death tax, I’ll try and do a little investigative work, but once again kudos to the GOP for putting into political jargon a colloquialism that inherently biases the opinions of the ignorant. Really who wants to say they support the death tax, no matter what it actually concerns?
One thing I noticed, there appears to be a little editing of inflammatory comments on the GOP’s website. In his report from the floor, the Slate’s Chris Sullentrop reports U.S. rep Clinton LeSueur forgot to take his “moderate” pills before speaking, letting lose this gem: “The very foundation of this country is faith… the very foundation of this country is Christianity and faith in Jesus Christ." Yet on the GOP’s convention site, the second line is mysteriously missing. I’m sure it was an innocent mistake. (Oh yea, the second person Sullentrop mentions as going on a conservative rant, Rep Ted Poe, doesn’t have his speech on the website. Another webmaster error I am sure.)

Ok before I start ranting, time to look at the message of primetime speakers John McCain and Rudy Giuliani. Before we get into this, let me say that even before he was anointed a hero for doing nothing, Giuliani was one of my least favorite people on the planet, so it’s going to be impossible for me to stay objective about what he is saying.

McCain and Giuliani’s speeches were similar in content, but different in delivery, from the reading of them. Neither spent one second discussing domestic policy, but rather concentrated on the foreign policy achievements of our current presidente. More importantly, McCain and Giuliani spent the night framing the Bush Presidency, 9/11, and the War on Terror as a story; the next “great fight against evil,” after World War II and the Cold War. The beginning of the story was 9/11, where a sleepy America was woken up, by attacks on a “clear September day.” Suddenly, our hero George was “faced with the worst crisis in our history!” according to Giuliani. But as he heroically stood at ground zero three days later (both McCain and Giuliani,) where he was in danger of buildings collapsing on him at any minute, (Giuliani,) or getting squeezed to death by hugs from New York’s uber-strong construction workers (Giuliani again…) he declared to the enemy “they will hear from us.” (Giuliani and McCain both.)

Thus, as Giuliani and McCain both say, we were drawn into a war we HAD to fight. Just as we had to fight the evil of Hitler and the evil of Communism, we must fight an enemy who “fights to express a hatred for all that is good in humanity.” (McCain.)

As you can see, the Republicans are trying to sell the War on Terror as the next Great Conflict that is central to the United States’ survival. If we do not finish out “The Bush Doctrine,” rounding up and disbanding every global terrorist organization, they could topple us at any time.

When you frame the war like that, according to Giuliani and McCain, the choice between Bush and Kerry becomes easy. With Bush you have a man who has committed to fighting this war to the finish, (which, presumably, would end with the installation of Liberal Democracies in every country in the world, or at least the Middle East. This is the logical end to the war on Terror if you study the articles published by Bush policy wonks like Paul Wolfowitz. But that is another story for another time.) who has laid out a foreign policy ideology from which he will not deviate, no matter the criticism from the left, the media, or foreign nations. On the other hand, according to Rudy, you have Kerry, who has no ideology, has no plan, and wavers and deviates from his original stances all the time. Which person would you want leading your country in this War?

I must give tons of credit to Rudy and McCain, because they did a great job of framing the last four years and the next four years as part of a story that people who don’t pay attention to politics can not only understand, but want to believe. We are good. They are bad. We are at war. Bush has a plan to lead us to victory. Kerry can’t make up his mind about anything and will listen too much to negative voices from Europe. If you really think it’s that simple, and you believe the world exists as these two have framed it, you’ll probably end up voting for Bush.