Here's another reason why it's Bush for 4 more years
There's a good reason why the Left fears George W. Bush, and it was on full display Monday in New Jersey, a state long regarded a Kerry stronghold until recent polls showed it wasn't. With two weeks to go until Election Day, the President, buoyed by polls showing him gaining momentum after "losing" the debates, delivered a rousing, hard-charging stemwinder, laying out in crisp, clear terms his vision for American greatness, outlining his plan for victory in the War on Terror, touching on some of the progress so far, while hammering his floundering rival, a renowned expert on Mary Cheney's inner thoughts, for remaining clueless in this time of peril. In the last week alone, Sen. Kerry accused Bush of harboring a plan to bring back the draft, and when that didn't work, he accused Bush of causing the flu vaccine shortage, and when that didn't work, he accused Bush of causing high gas prices, and when that didn't work, he accused Bush of blocking stem cell research, and when that didn't work, he accused Bush of wanting to privatize Social Security, and when that doesn't work, well, there's always Mount St. Helen. (Or Bush's plan to draft the elderly and give them the flu and cancel their Social Security checks.) Before the debates, and before he started channeling Mary Cheney, Kerry focused like a laser on Iraq, hoping to close the Susan Estrich Big-Mouth-wide credibility gulf between him and Bush on the issue. But that didn't work either, so now he promises to get you up out of that wheelchair if he is president.
It was vintage Bush on that stage in Marlton at the Evesham Township Recreation Center on Monday. On the stump, Bush has no equal. On the campaign trail, no one does it quite like he does. From the podium, he projects that reassuring sense of unruffled command and strength, of unflappable resolve, of firmness and steadiness under fire. The delivery, while forceful, casts this warm glow like a sunrise, the buoyant message like an afterglow lingering long after the speech. When W. enters the hall or stadium, the air is infused with energy, the rafters shake, the ground rumbles, the crowd erupts, the cheers of 'Four More Years!' thunder forth with all the fervor and sparkle and energy of the folksy Texas hombre himself, the blunt-talker who lays it to you straight, come hell or high water. No mixed messages, no shilly-shally, no flip-flops, no ducking the tough calls. That's why when Bush speaks, people listen. That's why his withering critiques of flip-flopping Kerry are so withering. By the end of Bush's speech Monday, even Kerry couldn't put Humpty-Dumpty Kerry back together again.
"During the decade of the 1990s our times often seemed peaceful on the surface, yet beneath that surface were currents of danger," noted Bush. "Terrorists were training and planning in distant camps."
"In this period, America's response to terrorism was generally piecemeal and symbolic," he added. As a result, "The terrorists concluded this was a sign of weakness, and their plans became more ambitious and their attacks became more deadly."
Bottom line? "This is the time that my opponent wants to go back to -- a time when danger was real and growing, but we didn't know it; a time when some thought terrorism was only 'a nuisance.' But that very attitude is what blinded America to the war being waged against us."
Bush's speech underscored Kerry's biggest disadvantage: He is not Bush. The warmth, the passion, the charm, the radiance, the ardor and, most importantly, the relentless optimism -- attributes which helped Bush forge a bond with most Americans post-9/11 -- all were there on display. Bush's unrivaled ability to connect with people is why he's in for four more years.
One moving example comes to mind.
During a campaign stop in Ohio several months ago, Bush was greeting supporters when a woman waiting to shake his hand tried to get the President's special attention -- not easy to do amid the noisy throngs of people also waiting in line to shake his hand. "This girl lost her mom in the World Trade Center on 9/11," she said, hoping the President heard. Bush, who had been working the line at his usual campaign pace, suddenly stopped and turned back. He heard. He then turns to the girl, 15-year-old Ashley Faulkner, pulls her close and hugs her, holding her head close to his heart.
"He changed from being leader of the free world to being a father, a husband and a man," noted Lynn Faulkner, Ashley's father, who said he "could hear her say, 'I'm OK'" when the President asked her how she was doing.
"That's more emotion than she has shown in 2 1/2 years," Mr. Faulkner noted.
"I can see you have a father who loves you very much," the President told Ashley.
And I can see a country which loves George W. Bush very much -- and will vote to reelect him on November 2. In fact, this election won't even be close.
Anyway, that's...
My Two Cents...
"JohnHuang2"
