Bush's television gamble pays off

BALTIMORE SUN/The Toronto Star ^ | 02-09-04 | DAVID L. GREENE

[veronica]

U.S. President George W. Bush had seen enough.

The Democrats vying for his job had stolen the spotlight for weeks. Their high-decibel attacks over his decision to go to war in Iraq were being beamed into Americans' living rooms.

They hounded Bush over the report from the administration's own weapons inspector, David Kay, who said Iraq likely had no weapons of mass destruction. All the while, Bush's poll numbers were slipping. Fast.

Full story ...

[veronica]

FYI.

[smith288]

I have began to think Bush interviews very badly. I missed the interview because of church but from some of the reactions was that Russert could have been Terry Mac of the DNC asking the Democrat party lines.

[amordei]

Don't fret. I watched it. Bush need this sort of exposure to prepare for what will be a very hard-fought election. If he hunkers down, he will surely lose.

[linn37]

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/wn_report/story/162674p-142628c.html heres another mans opinion

[ShandaLear]

I thought the interview had some good moments but that Bush himself didn't look good. Could have been the lighting, it was very bad.

[jigsaw]

His critics, though, saw a man who appeared willful and defiant to a point of arrogance.

Democrats can't deal with reality.

[Moby Grape]

MTP is NOT watched by the mushy middle...NONE of these type of programs are watched by a vast majority of the public. Bush and the GOP need to go DIRECT to the people via ads...and NOT wait until weeks before the elections.

[dead]

Bush did OK, but at times, it appeared that his mind was elsewhere.

I was disappointed by his occassional temerity in the interview. And he should have responded with a little more fire when Russert read Kerry's incredibly insulting statements about him.

I would have called him an effing Herman Munster looking rich widow chaser, but I'm not really presidential material.

[steve50]

I have began to think Bush interviews very badly. I missed the interview because of church but from some of the reactions was that Russert could have been Terry Mac of the DNC asking the Democrat party lines.

I thought Russert went pretty easy on him. No effort to get beyond the party line talking points that I could see,

[Redbob]

"What happened to Howard Dean is evidence of how one embarrassing moment can trigger a political implosion."

"One embarrassing moment"?
ONE?

It sure doesn't take hsitorical revisionism long to pop up, does it?

[Keith]

You know, I felt that he didn't do so well, like many of you had said. Then I watched the replay on CNBC last night, and completely changed my mind.

He's gonna be fine...and people like the way he said, "I'm gonna win."

[el_texicano]

From the article you cited in the NY Post.

"Democrats want a gladiator, they'll have to nominate one. And when they do, a fully armed George W. Bush will be in the arena, waiting."

Hehehehe...Good ole "Bring it on" George. These DemocRATS are out-matched, out-classed, out-gunned, and out-maneuvered. This cowboy is gonna send them down...HARD in November. Just my opinion anyway.

[sirshackleton]

I heard a portion of it on the radio (didn't see the television version) and it didn't sound bad. Bush is not a great interview, but everyone has known that for years now. This wasn't some new, eye-opening experience.

Lately, it seems like it's 2000 all over again. Bush isn't a great interview. Bush was "AWOL". Blah blah blah blah. What this says to me is that the Dems are A) scared to go after the economy, because it looks likes it more likely to get better than worse B) go after the war on Iraq because that's beginning to look better, and Kerry voted for it anyway and C) they're a little trigger shy on the deficit because it won't be long before someone asks them "If you're so big on cutting the deficit, why aren't you cutting spending?"

[Eric in the Ozarks]

I thought W did a good job. He needs to do this more often so he'll loosen up a bit.

[biblewonk]

I only saw some exerpts of the interview but he seemed too defensive to me. On his military record, why isn't anyone talking about the elephant in the room?

[Wright is right!]

"MTP is NOT watched by the mushy middle...NONE of these type of programs are watched by a vast majority of the public."

Press The Meat has long ago jumped the shark. It now exists solely as a machanism to give the NYTimes, WashComPost, and the Boston Glob quotes on which to hang their editorials. In fact, all of the Sunday Screaming Face Shows are simply quote mills watched only by news organizations and political insiders. No one else is paying attention.

Originally, Press The Meat was created because there were no interview shows, no live press conferences, no other way for people in the public light to be questioned. Today, with the proliferation of talk shows, every dog catcher from every congressional district has an ample opportunity to go on TV and have his say. Russert is, today, presiding over closed-circuit irrelevance.

Michael

[ZULU]

I saw the interview. On the whole, I thought BUsh handled himself wwell, but he isn't a good off the cuff speaker.

But you ARE right, he should have come back harder at a few of the statements that Russert, the Democratic Pimp, threw at him.

Kerry speaks better but he has a sligh handicap also. He's a liar and a flip-flopper.

[Semper Paratus]

On the political calendar it's Spring Training and W is just getting warmed up.

Nobody but us wonks are paying attention yet.

[unixfox]

The only thing I heard in this interview was WMD's, blah blah, WMD's, blah blah, but what about WMD's, blah blah blah, those WMD's, blah blah, but we haven't found WMD's,...

It sounded like a broken record, errrr I mean a scratched CD.