Why I'm voting against Bush Tuesday

He has shown disrespect for the Constitution, including:

• Nominating a running mate from the same state as him. Technically, Cheney's Wyoming citizenship came before he was sworn in, but the concept behind having pres & veep from 2 different states (12th Amendment) is to avoid undue influence of any one region. In other words, to avoid the Big Oil ticket we currently have.
• The sneek & peek provision of the Patriot Act violates the unreasonable search and seizure provision of the 4th Amendment.
• The Free Speech Zones violate the right to peaceably assemble, granted in the 1st Amendment.
• Holding Jose Padilla, an American citizen, captured on U.S. soil, for an indefinite time violates his right to a speedy and public trial, as granted in the 6th Amendment. It also deprives him of his liberty, without due process of law, noted in the 5th.
• The Patriot Act's provision gagging librarians from telling people whether the FBI has requested their library records violates the librarians' free speech rights, granted in the 1st.
  

Now some will point out that Lincoln suspended habeus corpus during a time of constitutional crisis. Ex Parte Milligan, 1866, upholds the right to do so, but only in areas in which martial law has been declared. To date, Bush has not declared martial law as a response to the 9/11 attacks.

Bush also adopted a policy of pre-emptive war, and then said, essentially, that the burden of proof was on the country we invaded.

The strategic goal of re-shaping the Middle East has been hampered, not helped, by the Iraq war. NPR's recent series, "Bordering on Instability", shows that Iraq's neighbors have used the Iraq war to say that now is not the time to implement reforms. Once Iraq settles down, those governments say, then they will revisit planned reforms. Not only that, but Syrians have been radicalized by the notion that they are next on the list.

The execution of the post-combat phase of the war has been abysmal. The dead-enders that Rumsfeld spoke of in the summer of 2003 are still there, with the most recent estimates coming to about 7,000 - 8,000 insurgents with an almost unlimited supply of cash. The Bush administration ignored a great deal of advice from military and state department professionals about how to handle the postwar phase.

Bush not only went the Iraq deal mostly alone, but his administration publicy berated traditional allies in doing so. (Rumsfeld linked Germany to Libya and Cuba, and also knocked Germany and France as "Old Europe".)

Afghanistan has passed Columbia as the world's largest drug producer.

Bin Laden and Zarqawi are still at large.

Bush has been the most fiscally irresponsible president of my lifetime, cutting revenue while increasing spending, both military and non-military.

Instead of fixing the Kyoto treaty, he completely abandoned it.

Bush opposed the creation of the 9/11 Commission.

Anti-Americanism in the Arab world is at an all-time high, somewhere in the 90's, depending on which poll you look at.

Bush has not used America's leverage to push for some resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. That is the foremost issue in the minds of Arabs when it comes to anti-American feelings.

A few years after Clinton declared the Era of Big Government was over, Bush expanded entitlements, despite the fact that the liabilities owed to the Baby Boomers are about due. He also created the Department of Homeland Security, which remarkably does not encompass any intelligence agencies. Actually, I'm not sure exactly what the department does outside of tracking down runaway Texas legislators, telling Americans to buy duct tape, and issuing color alerts, which will never rise to red or drop to green.

A second term would be the end of legalized abortions. I've known people who've had them, and they've never been happy about it. However, I think more people will die if it is outlawed.

Bush scoffed at free markets with his steel tariff.

Russia is by all appearances, further from democracy than 4 years ago.

North Korea has probably gone nuclear.

I am not worried about the spending plans Kerry has proposed. He'll have a Republican Congress, and a huge deficit to keep him from enacting much of those programs. He would have to spend 4 years trying to clean up Bush's mess. And if he screws it up, I'll vote him out in '08. But he deserves a crack at it.

Bad timing

BUSH EVENT IN NEW HAMPSHIRE: Event workers had been told to fire off confetti pods when Bush said, 'God Bless'... his normal closing line. But 5 minutes before the end of his speech, Bush offered a "God Bless" to Arlene Howard, mother of George Howard a Port Authority of New York/New Jersey Police Officer killed in the World Trade Center... BLAM!!!!! Everyone first ducked -- hard -- then looked up to see confetti falling. Bush looked momentarily stunned, then plain unhappy, then just went on with his speech as the confetti rained to the floor of the Verizon Wireless Arena...

Is this some sort of elaborate October surprise?

No wonder sensitive parts of Iraq looked cleaner than a licked pussycat.

This Washington Times piece popped up as the Drudge lead today. If half of it is true, then it nullifies Kerry’s core arguments…I mean complaints…against Bush’s strategy and tactics. First, it destroys Kerry’s credibility when it comes to getting “allies” on board when you consider that while we were diplomizin’ with them, they were plotting with Hussein, aiding him to cover their own interests. That we wrangled 1441 out of them is proof of some good steadfast diplomacy on the part of Bush and Powell. That Russia never threatened a veto is remarkable. But expecting them to join in on the liberation was folly. Lesson for Kerry: countries have national interests. That is why his global test nonplussed so many folks. All politics is local.

I also think this incident shows Bush as a deft, cautious and able diplomat. In three years of war, he has done a good job maintaining the public face of diplomacy – he’s been bold, defiant and even demanding, but he’s also shown respect to every leader within the community of nations. When Chirac was mouthing off and telling other leaders and nations that they missed an opportunity to shut up, etc. – Bush consistently showed respect – acknowledging differences in a vague sense, but keeping the atmosphere positive. Some things need greasing. But in the same way that you can’t get blood from a stone, you can’t get the French government to support liberty. That we cooperate with main four antagonistic powers at all is a testament to Bush’s efforts. He’s been professional, courteous and aggressive, – I would dare say like a cowboy. And even when he knows that the antagonist powers are corrupt and double dealing, he likewise knows when to keep his mouth shut. No simple task for a gaffe prone simpleton, right? Meanwhile, Kerry has fallen into Chiracs trap. Kerry can’t make his point about allies until he insults our allies. He can be overheard calling the president a liar and a cheat & he lashes out at veterans that contest his Vietnam record. And he’s supposed to be the smart one! That’s just bad public diplomacy. His private diplomay? I haven’t the slightest clue. He apparently thinks we are so dumb he needn’t bother explaining them to us.

As for the October surprise bit…consider: The NYTimes breaks the missing weapons story ahead of CBS, who wanted to sit on it until right before the election; the story directly says that the explosives were taken since the occupation; Kerry seizes on the story and blasts angrily at Bush for not doing more to safeguard these sites; somewhere in between, NBC says that they were embedded with the 101st when they got to the facility and there was nothing there then, which is at odds with the NYTimes version; Bush does not counter-attack for a whole campaigning day. Rope-a-dope? How did the NYTimes or CBS get the story? Why was this suddenly a story? Kerry continues the attack the next day; Bush retaliates, telling Kerry he doesn’t know what he’s talking about and that is under investigation; now this story. If it has legs and can make it way to the kitchen table in homes everywhere, it could be devastating for Kerry. The play books might call it judo surprise. I’m not really a Rove conspiracy theorist – but the above thought crossed my mind.

Tag

Bush goes after Kerry for recklessly embracing the missing weapons cache story:

from Drudge

"After repeatedly calling Iraq the wrong war, and a diversion, Senator Kerry this week seemed shocked to learn that Iraq is a dangerous place, full of dangerous weapons..."

"If Senator Kerry had his way... Saddam Hussein would still be in power. He would control those all of those weapons and explosives and could share them with his terrorist friends. Now the senator is making wild charges about missing explosives, when his top foreign policy adviser admits, quote, 'We do not know the facts.' Think about that: The senator is denigrating the actions of our troops and commanders in the field without knowing the facts..."

"Our military is now investigating a number of possible scenarios, including that the explosives may have been moved before our troops even arrived at the site. This investigation is important and it's ongoing. And a political candidate who jumps to conclusions without knowing the facts is not a person you want as your commander in chief."

The newspaper endorsement breakdown

Kerry has picked up more papers than Bush, totaling a circulation of 17.5 million represented by newspapers endorsing Kerry, versus the 11.5 million endorsed by Bush. Kerry, to date, has more switches, too - papers that picked Bush in 2000, versus the switches of papers who endorsed Gore last time but are endorsing Bush this time.

It's not votes delivered, but some people may be swayed.

Anti-Americanism

Can we really be eliminating more terrorists than are being created when the situation in Iraq has come to this:

"They call American soldiers 'The Jews,' as in, 'Don't go down that street, the Jews set up a roadblock.' " - Scott Pelley of CBS News's "60 Minutes"

Republican women against Bush

From The Observer. Interestingly, one of the women is Mary Lou Halliburton, of the family who founded the oil company. She also worked in the Nixon White House.

Also in the story:
"Judith Allen, another lifelong Republican, has no reticence. This former Superior Court clerk is a member of Republicans for Kerry, which contributes funds to the Democrats.

'I just do not have the sense that Bush is bright. And I'm embarrassed to say that about our President,' she said."

New Yorker Magazine endorses candidate for president for the first time in 80 years.

They endorsed Kerry.

"The damage visited upon America, and upon America’s standing in the world, by the Bush Administration’s reckless mishandling of the public trust will not easily be undone. And for many voters the desire to see the damage arrested is reason enough to vote for John Kerry. "

Round up the usual suspects

What's a scandal these days with out CBS involved? Apparently 60 Minutes had planned to run the weapons cache story on Halloween. Meanwhile, as of today, Kerry is still using it on the stump.

More on the NYTimes weapons cache story

I thought the biggest story the blogosphere would gnaw on this week was going to be the Kerry claim to have met with the whole security council in Cambodia. But it now seems like they are feeding on the NYTimes weapons cache story.

At least we had enough troops

to keep this from happening. Oh, wait. Nevermind.

But hey, freedom is winning.

What did Mrs. Edwards mean?

From a recent event covered on C-SPAN

Supporter: Kerry's going to take PA.

Liz Edwards: I know that.

Supporter: I'm just worried there's going to be riots afterwards.

Liz Edwards: Uh.....well...not if we win.

Apparently she's picking up on the same desperation of the left that RCP comments on. (Make sure to click on the "LIAR" link as it epitomizes the Democrat response to the Swiftvets) Do we want a hysterical party in power?

The Guardian Apologizes

The Guardian is apologizing for a recent Bush bashing column calling for the assassination of our leader. When will they apologize for their Bush bashing interview with Jimmy Carter?

Bunker Busting Nukes & Kerry's Opposition to Them

After reading this excellent story my main complaint about Bush was: he's only spending how much on them? Kerry can say he is strong on national security, but he simply isn't.

Kerry is a dangerous alternative

Wrong on the cold war, wrong in Central America & wrong on terrorism. An interesting split in the Wilsonian worldview is discussed in this article.

Just how soon are those Iraqi security forces supposed to come online?

If there are 100,000 trained, cut that number by 50, give or take. Not to mention the deterrent message this sends. But hey, freedom is winning.

Orlando Sentinel endorses Kerry

First Democrat they've endorsed in 40 years.

"Four years ago, the Orlando Sentinel endorsed Republican George W. Bush for president based on our trust in him to unite America. We expected him to forge bipartisan solutions to problems while keeping this nation secure and fiscally sound.

This president has utterly failed to fulfill our expectations."

Hayes on the Levin Report

Apparently it was piss poor.

The New Republic endorses Kerry

From their latest issue:

"The president's war on terrorism, which initially offered a striking
contrast to his special interest-driven domestic agenda, has come to resemble
it. The common thread is ideological certainty untroubled by empirical evidence,
intellectual curiosity, or open debate. The ideology that guides this
president's war on terrorism is more appealing than the corporate cronyism that
guides his domestic policy. But it has been pursued with the same sectarian,
thuggish, and ultimately self-defeating spirit. You cannot lead the world
without listening to it. You cannot make the Middle East more democratic while
making it more anti-American."

Curious article about bin Laden

from the Arizona Daily Star (hat time to the Kerry Spot)