Posted on 01/29/2002 10:09:09 PM PST by TLBSHOW
Since that cold, dreary day, January 20, 2001, the day then-Texas governor George W. Bush took the oath of office, the young, affable 43rd President has served up quite a sumptuous banquet of speeches, yet none quite as dazzling, none quite as elegant, none quite as splendid and elavating as the tour de force which shook the halls of the House of Representatives tonight.
Far and away, this was his finest.
From the well of the House, the citadel of freedom, a nation -- a world -- heard the rousing voice of a confident Commander-in-Chief basking in the glow of victory, of triumph -- at least from the first phase of the War on Terrorism. His electrifying words were greeted by ebullient cheer, bubbling over from sea to shining sea with standing ovations by buoyed citizens re-invigorated by a sense of optimism, hope and renewed purpose.
The bubbly poise, the sprightly confidence and indomitable resilience this President exudes have this catchy, almost irresistible power. In only four short months, George W. Bush had achieved nothing short of a miracle. From the smoldering ashes of September 11, he rallied a nation to unity, securing an early military victory in Afghanistan, much to the chagrin of his harshest critics, and against a cacophony of media gloom-and-doom pessimism.
On the home front, he summoned his countrymen to renewed resolve and purpose, vowing defiantly to rebuild from the ruins of 9-11. But even beyond the brick and mortar, that old 'can-do' spirit had been re-kindled, as the American people were called on to dream again. Our revival was another black eye for terrorism.
The President said it best:
"During these last few months, I have been humbled and privileged to see the true character of this country in a time of testing. Our enemies believed America was weak and materialistic, that we would splinter in fear and selfishness. They were as wrong as they are evil. The American people have responded magnificently, with courage and compassion, strength and resolve."
A year into his Presidency, George W. Bush is on top of the world, benefiting from stratospheric poll numbers sheltered by an impervious aura of success. In fact, these surveys don't even begin to adequately reflect the underlying dynamic swaying the numbers: To wit, the impermeable bond this President has forged with the American people. Most stunning to his critics, this chemistry transcends party, race, ethnicity, religion, income, gender.
The people not only approve, they honor him, and, most noteworthy, in a manner usually reserved only for the most esteemed elder statesman. Presidential historians seem flabbergasted, particularly given that most had foolishly underestimated him. In nagivating the aftermath of September 11, the prowess, caliber and firmness -- as well as the love and compassion -- this President had shown earned him the justified plaudits and admiration of a grateful nation. That's the "mysterious force" behind Bush's 'stubborn' polls. Yet, the punsters still don't get it. 'How much longer, O "learned" "analysts", will his polls continue to defy gravity'?, the haters caterwaul in frustration.
Not that they haven't tried to pull him down a notch or two. Indeed, after a three-week long barrage of outlandish innuendo and smear over Enron's alleged "connections" to the Bush administration, the President remains completely unscathed. In fact, rather than Democrats politically reaping the windfall from Enron, the benefits appear to be going in the opposite direction.
The latest USA TODAY/Gallup poll tells the story.
While the Bush-haters had hoped the steady torrent of daily Enron stories would by now have taken its toll on the White House, in fact the President's job approval rating is still glued at a dizzying 84%. The same poll two weeks ago pegged him at 83% approval.
Even worse for Democrats, Americans view this President as so honest and trustworthy that not even huge campaign contributions effect how they see him -- undermining one of the central tenets of the McCain-Feingold bill.
The poll found a majority now suspect that Democats in Congress did something unethical or illegal in return for donations from Enron (Roughly half of Enron's campaign largess in 2000 went to Democrats).
In contrast, fewer than half feel that way about the Bush administration. Moreover, and most ominous for Democrats, a whopping 55% of those polled see Democrats as 'on the take' with Enron -- i.e., pledged to Enron executives as payback for hefty donations. Conversely, people felt the opposite way about the Bush administration: 59% said they didn't think Bush would feel he owed Enron executives any "special treatment" despite their campaign support.
These results are in line with the latest NBC/Wall Street Journal poll, in which the President scored a jaw-dropping 79% personal favorability rating. What these surveys reflect is America's unshakable trust and confidence (and firm belief) in George W. Bush, the man. It's a matter of settled opinion -- a deeply-rooted sentiment.
But to really wrap your mind around the Democrats' predicament, put yourself in their shoes for a moment.
If you're a Terry McAuliffe Democrat these days, your pathetic little world revolves around -- Enron. You wake up in the morning, and what's the first thing on your mind? Enron!
You scurry out the front door, half-naked, grab the morning paper and catch the latest on -- Enron. You rush for the clicker, channel surf the spate of morning shows to see if there's something (anything) on -- Enron. You drive to work, frantically twisting the AM dial back and forth to hear the latest on -- Enron.
Even at work you can't seem to get Enron out of your mind. At coffee breaks, your buddies chit-chat about the Super Bowl this Sunday -- pick the winner, the Pats or the Rams! -- but all you want to talk about is -- Enron.
And on and on it goes, day after day, this is your whole world -- your pathetic, hateful little world, for nearly a month. Now imagine, after three solid weeks of Enron, a nasty reality check comes due. You learn, to your wretched chagrin, it was all in vain, it was all for nought. After three delightful, delectable weeks of lies, calumy, slander, rumor and innuendo; the torrents of tales of document-shredding and shrieks of 'cover-up', the President is still riding high -- higher than ever, thank you very much.
His embittered enemies, more divided and irrelevant than ever, are mired in disarray. Democrats are split; hardliners, led by Sen. Daschle, feud bitterly with party moderates, led by Sen. Breaux. The media is deep, deep in denial, chasing Enron ghosts, pell-mell -- I know there must be a 'smoking gun' in here somewhere, damn it! -- only to find the Bush administration is cleaner than a whistle.
Even Democrat strategists are climbing the walls with worry, sensing a backlash sparked by their party's obsession with bringing down the President (during his zenith in popularity, and in the midst of a popular war, to boot). For Democrats, the implications from Bush's sustained level of support could augur disaster in the fall.
And after last night's State of the Union Address, Democrat strategists won't be sleeping any easier.
Roiling the Democrats especially is how this President has aggressively seized on domestic issues -- with smashing success. While Democrats sputter in different directions, a hard-charging Bush has been on the offensive, rolling out proposals on issues from taxes, to homeland security and national defense.
Bush does rings around Democrats in Congress on a whole smorgasbord of kitchen table concerns.
On the economy? Despite all the huffing and puffing in the media over the recession, this President garners a 64% approval rating
Asked whom they trust more on economic issues, Bush or the Democrats, Americans easily prefer the President, 55%-36%.
On job creation? Notwithstanding the torrent of corporate layoffs, the President's the winner here as well, beating the Democrats 47%-39%.
On education, whom does the public trust more, Bush or the Democrats? The President by a mile, 58%-31%. This result is all the more notworthy given that Democrats, prior to Bush, had own this issue, lock, stock and barrel.
What about taxes? No contest: Bush, 58%, Democrats, 34%. But what about the federal budget (and, implicitly, the issue of fiscal responsibility?) Here too, the President trounces his opponents by eleven points, 49%-38%.
Even on the staple of traditional Democrat electioneering, namely, Social Security, the President holds the edge, 45%-40%.
Of course, I could mention the issue of terrorism -- the President holds a mind-boggling 65%-point advantage there; or National Defense, where he enjoys a commanding, 59%-point lead over Dems. The same for foreign affairs, Bush 70%, Democrats 21%.
Tonight, the President unveiled his blueprint for more, with an eye on preparing for the next chapter in the War on Terrorism.
His lines on Iraq make it clear where the next big military campaign is likely to take us.
""Iraq continues to flaunt its hostility toward America and to support terror. This is a regime that has something to hide from the civilized world."
For those who suggest this President will postpone a war on Iraq till after the midterm elections, the Commander-in-Chief will have disabused them of that notion tonight.
"We will be deliberate, yet time is not on our side. I will not wait on events, while dangers gather. I will not stand by, as peril draws closer and closer. The United States of America will not permit the world's most dangerous regimes to threaten us with the world's most destructive weapons."
"The state of our Union has never been stronger", the President declared tonight.
He's right.
Great job, Mr President.
Old Slick ? A boss Tweed , who will will remembered for corruption, immorality, and stupidity.
Unless the Dems regain control, and have EVERY bit of video tapes burned, every scrap of paper burned, and REAL history incinerated, we all know what Slick's legacy is ! A chance of Hitlery! beating President Bush ? Not now. : - )
When you have backed your adversary into a corner, and he has no way out... he is at his most dangerous. It is not the time to slacken.
Always sage advice.
the rats be damned........
Statesmanship is in vogue these days. Smarmy politics is definitely out!
I wish so much you would just write things EVERYDAY for us ! You say it better then I ever could!!!!
Did you see Bob Woodword on Larry King tonight? Even he was singing Bushes praises. Amazing.
I missed the show, but I have to agree that is truly an amazing development..hehe.
I believe the media will be buzzing about this for a while. When I watched it for a second time I caught a few things I missed. Like the veiled criticism of the Saudi's for being "timid in their response to terrorism".
I had time to reflect on the "Freedom corps." The idea I had a while back was that the draft may be needed again. Not for the military,(It would not work with the modern military)but for the border security and homeland defense. I pondered how we could do it without the draft? Now I know.
What a enlightening and thought provoking monster of a home run speech!
Not only out of the park, but into orbit.
KING: Do you agree, Bob, with those guests tonight who said that this was more a commander in chief than a president? WOODWARD: Well, it was a war speech, and if you look at Bush and know Bush and observe him at all, there was one thing on his mind. It was 15 minutes into the speech. Then he finally mentioned something else, the economy, and that was only in passing. He is obsessed with this. Dan Balz and I who are doing this series for "The Post" about the first 10 days after 9/11 -- Dan and I went to interview Bush last month in the Oval Office, and it was supposed to be an hour. He was so interested in it, he postponed the speaker of the House coming so we could talk to him another half-hour. And this idea of Bush as somebody who doesn't do his homework or doesn't know what's going on was totally erased. He had NSC -- National Security Council minutes there. He read some of them to answer our questions. He went through specific meetings, specific moments, and decision points, and there was a kind of total commitment and energy on his part that you saw in the speech tonight.
I knew one paragraph into this that it was John's. Sir, you are blessed with special insight. I am SO glad you are on 'our' side.
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