In a series of speeches this past week, President bush has opened a media offensive to try to stem the hemorrhaging public support indicated in the polls. The most significant changes in this most recent blitz are that he has finally decided to speak to audiences that have not been completely sanitized and screened to prevent any dissenting opinion from marring his staged media appearances, and his acknowledgement of flagging public support. In fact, he even held a news conference for the first time in many months.
The message in these speeches, however, is essentially more of the same. He asserts that he does have a plan for victory Iraq, that the war effort is making progress and he blamed the media for portraying an overly pessimistic view of the situation in Iraq. What is not clear is whether such appearances will help his dismal standing in the polls, or nervousness of GOP representatives facing re-election this fall, when 40% of Republicans believe that the President lacks any coherent strategy for ending US troop involvement in Iraq. That view certainly could not have been helped when Bush stated that removal of troops from Iraq would be for "future presidents" to determine. In effect, he punted on the issue when questioned about providing any specifics of this "plan" that he allegedly has. His vague and repeated assertions about the "progress" in Iraq are in direct conflict with the broad based reports from international media sources on the ground, as well as US military reports.
The Iraqi army readiness level dropped from one unit to none, in terms of units capable of functioning without US leadership and support. Daily bombings and reports of killings and assassination in sectarian or insurgent violence indicate that the 'pacification" goals are more fantasy than fact. It would be a real stretch to suggest that the media of the entire world are conspiring to give Bush and his administration a black eye, especially with what the administration has shown in the way of ability to manufacture and plant positive news stories in the media. More likely, the picture painted by the media actually reflects the situation better than the rose colored view that Bush is selling in his recent speeches.
The most informative aspect of the speeches seems to be their provision of a glimpse into the mind of Bush and an ability to better determine whether Bush is just out of touch with the public, the domestic situation and the Iraq occupation, or whether he is truly delusional and actually believes that the world is as he would describe it. Unfortunately, the canned and repetitive nature of his speeches do not give a clear answer to that quandary. When GOP Congressional leaders have suggested that Bush adjust his message and strategy to take into account both changed circumstances and the deepening distrust of the public in his leadership and competence, he has rebuffed such advice. He has refused calls to bring in "new blood" that have been put forward by nervous GOP strategists for months. Again, the old cliche says that ignorance is curable, but stupidity is a choice to remain ignorant. It seems that the behavior of Bush veers toward the latter
So Bush goes about his media campaign saying nothing new about his strategy or plans, despite a continually worsening situation at home and abroad. Shakespeare spoke of the tales of an idiot "full of sound and fury, signifying nothing." A more recent poet, James Brown, broke it down thusly, "talkin' loud, but ain't sayin' nothing!"
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