Politics Blog

I don’t normally like to resort to name calling, but Ron Reagan is a crybaby weenie. He is whining about how Rudy was so mean to Kerry, and how at the Democrat convention there was a “no Bush bashing” rule, and they stuck to it. He thinks it isn’t fair that Kerry was criticized by name. When Ron Silver embarrassed him by immediately quoting the “misled into war” and other attacks from the Democrat convention, Reagan’s defense was that they didn’t call Bush by name. Hey, Ron, the reason they had a ban on Bush bashing is because they had done nothing but that for 18 months and it was starting to backfire. Remember the AWOL deserter charges by the head of the DNC and the candidate himself? Remember the “Coalition of the Wild-eyed” ad?

I could go on to list some more of the childish things Reagan went on to say, but why bother? He is doing the same thing he did at the Democrat convention – attacking Republicans at every opportunity with such thinly veiled anger and hatred that it is uncomfortable to watch. Joe Scarborough had to step in a couple of times just to keep the guy from embarrassing himself too badly. MSNBC should at least identify Reagan as a Democrat spokesman, rather than a journalist. What a joke.

UPDATE: Okay, I am a glutton for punishment. I am still watching Ron Reagan because I cannot believe his weird behavior. He is on a mission to convince everyone he talks to tonight that Bush decided to abort all efforts to capture Bin Laden so that he could go into Iraq. He is actually giving a lecture disguised as a question to a woman in the crowd that he is supposed to be interviewing, about how Bush 41 failed by not going into Iraq after Kuwait was liberated. Joe Scarborough had to rescue the poor woman who was beginning to look a little threatened. In the same night, he has also suggested that we are responsible for Saddam’s actions because we supported him against Iran. He continually makes catty little remarks that are so nakedly partisan and childish that I find it hard to believe that MSNBC allows him to continue, but there he is – still on the air.

Now that John Kerry’s $87-billion flip-flop is such a staple of Republican rhetoric, I hope you’ll recall that one of the first web sites to call attention to it was this site, PoliPundit.com, in a Quote of the Day.

“Thank God that George Bush is our president.”

– Rudy Giuliani on 9/11/2001.

His speech is not even over and I am so upset that Rudy’s speech was not run on the networks. What an incredible lesson in how the terrorists have gained such power. Rudy even castigated Europe for their accommodation, appeasement and compromise to the terrorists, and used the example of Arafat getting the Nobel Peace Prize to illustrate how wrong the international community’s response to terrorism has been.

Now Rudy is doing a great job ridiculing John Kerry’s flip-flopping ways in good natured, but hilarious fashion. I hope the network morning shows run plenty of excerpts. This speech will be tough to beat.

For all the talk I have done about the need to remember 9/11, I had forgotten what it felt like that day until three women reminded me tonight. I have read Debra Burlingame’s moving story before, but tonight she, Deena Burnett and the wife of a New York firefighter whose son is now headed for Iraq, did not bring me to tears. They had me sobbing out loud. It is one thing to say that we remember what happened and are committed to “do something” (as Burnett said)to prevent it from happening again. It is quite another thing to put the viewer back in the state of mind the country was in immediately following 9/11. That is what the 9/11 tribute tonight did for me. It is a shame that the rest of the country, at least those watching the networks, were not able to experience that, too. We should never forget.

UPDATE: The third woman who spoke was Tara Stackpole, the wife of Capt. Timothy Stackpole. I missed her name and did not find it listed at the RNC site. Thanks to a Polipundit reader, and to Mike Barnicle on MSNBC for supplying it. Mike Barnicle said he watched the speech on television in a NY bar and that patrons were standing in tears at the womens’ speech.

I wouldn’t vote for John McCain for dog catcher, given that he’s the darling of the liberal press corps. But his neutralizing of Michael Moore by calling him a “disingenuous film-maker” brought even me to my feet!

It will be tough for anyone, including President Bush, to top John McCain’s speech.

If you missed Ron Silver’s speech just now (it wasn’t covered on CNN or Fox News) watch the replay on MSNBC or C-Span. It was excellent. Please, Mr. Rove, let me see that speech excerpted in a Bush/Cheney ad. I was incredibly impressed by Ron Silver. I have a feeling the 9/11 Democrats are going to defeat John Kerry in a big way because they share George Bush’s strong and serious approach to the war against terrorism and they understand that this issue trumps all others.

September 1 is when Viking Pundit predicts Kerry will disintegrate. He makes a powerful argument that I find hard to disagree with, but I do believe the debates will still be huge. Whether Kerry is far behind or far ahead or if things are still neck and neck, the debates do pose the opportunity for movement. I think the President will look great in the debates, especially in comparison to Kerry, and will perform much better than expected, as always. The debates will, at least, keep hope alive for whichever candidate is trailing at the time. Read the entire Viking Pundit post to find out why he thinks September 1 is the day.

I loved the Saturday Night Live opening clip. So far, so good.

8:45 Update: The Bush girls look great – no tongues sticking out or anything controversial. They just look really grown up and lovely. When the Cheneys entered the covention hall I thought the choice of music was odd – “You’re All I Need To Get By.” Am I missing something there?

9:00 Update: Ron Silver’s speech was really moving, but was not covered by Fox or CNN. Please tune in to watch the replay on MSNBC or C-Span if you missed it. I would love to see Silver and Koch in an ad for Bush/Cheney. What an excellent and powerful speech!!