General David Petraeus has been good for President Bush. As the public face of Bush's Surge™ in Iraq, Petraeus did his master's bidding and provided a medaled front man behind whom Bush can hide when the going gets tough.
As is happening right now.
Prior to Petraeus' dog-and-pony show before Congress last week, the Washington Post revealed how he manipulated Iraqi casualty figures to make it look like the violence was decreasing when in fact the country remained as bloody as ever. This sometimes took truly ludicrous forms, such as how deaths were counted if victims were shot in the back of the head but not if they were shot in the front. Polls both before and after the PR stunt said a majority of the American people didn't believe a word he said.
Then MoveOn.org put in their two cents with their "Petraeus or Betray Us?" ad and the world exploded.
Well, not literally. The sun continued to rise and the sky remained blue. But from the GOP's temper tantrum, you'd think that's what happened. Republicans took to friendly media outlets (including, to no one's surprise, Fox News) demanding that MoveOn be kicked out of the country and that the New York Times be investigated for running the ad in the first place.
Amid all the brouhaha, one should not lose sight of the simple fact that the ad's assertion - that Petraeus deliberately fudged the numbers so his political bosses in the White House could look good - went entirely unchallenged. Indeed, all the evidence supports it.
Yesterday, the Senate demonstrated its support of freedom by passing a resolution condemning MoveOn for daring to criticize Bush's fig leaf. And in an effort to further milk the righteous outrage, Bush took to the airwaves in a rare press conference.
It cannot be a coincidence that the very last question was a softball from Bill Sammon, a faithful stenographer who writes for the hard-right Washington Examiner:
In other words, shut up and salute. No criticism of the armed forces is allowed, regardless of how richly it's deserved or whether the military is being used for political cover. How easily we forget that Republicans routinely attack military figures - and more harshly than MoveOn did - whenever it suits their purposes to do so.
Bush's handlers obviously realize that hiding behind Petraeus gives him the best chance of keeping his poll numbers from sinking any lower. If that means turning a decorated Army officer into just another political hack - well, that's life.
As is happening right now.
Prior to Petraeus' dog-and-pony show before Congress last week, the Washington Post revealed how he manipulated Iraqi casualty figures to make it look like the violence was decreasing when in fact the country remained as bloody as ever. This sometimes took truly ludicrous forms, such as how deaths were counted if victims were shot in the back of the head but not if they were shot in the front. Polls both before and after the PR stunt said a majority of the American people didn't believe a word he said.
Then MoveOn.org put in their two cents with their "Petraeus or Betray Us?" ad and the world exploded.
Well, not literally. The sun continued to rise and the sky remained blue. But from the GOP's temper tantrum, you'd think that's what happened. Republicans took to friendly media outlets (including, to no one's surprise, Fox News) demanding that MoveOn be kicked out of the country and that the New York Times be investigated for running the ad in the first place.
Amid all the brouhaha, one should not lose sight of the simple fact that the ad's assertion - that Petraeus deliberately fudged the numbers so his political bosses in the White House could look good - went entirely unchallenged. Indeed, all the evidence supports it.
Yesterday, the Senate demonstrated its support of freedom by passing a resolution condemning MoveOn for daring to criticize Bush's fig leaf. And in an effort to further milk the righteous outrage, Bush took to the airwaves in a rare press conference.
It cannot be a coincidence that the very last question was a softball from Bill Sammon, a faithful stenographer who writes for the hard-right Washington Examiner:
What is your reaction to the MoveOn.org ad that mocked General Petraeus as General "Betrayus," and said that he cooked the books on Iraq? And secondly, would you like to see Democrats, including presidential candidates, repudiate that ad?With the planted question phrased in just that manner, Bush had his cue to get into his carefully scripted snit, with no follow-up questioning allowed:
I thought the ad was disgusting. I felt like the ad was an attack not only on General Petraeus, but on the U.S. military. And I was disappointed that not more leaders in the Democrat[ic] Party spoke out strongly against that kind of ad. And that leads me to come to this conclusion: that most Democrats are afraid of irritating a left-wing group like MoveOn.org - or more afraid of irritating them than they are of irritating the United States military. That was a sorry deal. It's one thing to attack me; it's another thing to attack somebody like General Petraeus.The hypocrisy is staggering even by Bush's standards. After firing principled officers for refusing to put a happy face on Iraq, he finds one to be his personal PR flack in selling the Surge™ to a skeptical public. (Not to mention the professional Pentagon brass, which warns that the military is in real danger of breaking due to the war.) And when the Surge™ goes sour, Bush uses Petraeus to deflect disapproval and proclaims that any criticism is an attack on the entire military.
In other words, shut up and salute. No criticism of the armed forces is allowed, regardless of how richly it's deserved or whether the military is being used for political cover. How easily we forget that Republicans routinely attack military figures - and more harshly than MoveOn did - whenever it suits their purposes to do so.
Bush's handlers obviously realize that hiding behind Petraeus gives him the best chance of keeping his poll numbers from sinking any lower. If that means turning a decorated Army officer into just another political hack - well, that's life.
No comments:
Post a Comment