Here now is a more detailed analysis by means of comments. I will quote selected parts of the address and then add my comments in between. Click on “Continue reading…” to read the rest of this post.
“(…) thousands of American servicemen and women (…) are making America more secure.”
It is a proven fact that we are no more secure today than we were before 9/11. Al Quaeda still exists, Bin Laden has not been caught and the Taliban are regrouping. What has made this nation unsafe is the Bush and Clinton administrations’ failure to let the FBI do their work.
“The American economy is growing stronger. The tax relief you passed is working.”
As Sen. Kerry stated yesterday: “Last month the goal of this administration was to create 250,000 jobs. They created 1,000 jobs — 249,000 short. A lot of people have even left the market and aren’t measured anymore as the unemployed because they’re not trying to find jobs.”
And we all know that a tax cut resulting in $20 – $200 more dollars per year for the average citizen isn’t going to go far.
“We have faced serious challenges together and now we face a choice. We can go forward with confidence and resolve or we can turn back to the dangerous illusion that terrorists are not plotting and outlaw regimes are no threat to us.”
A common illusion many conservatives suffer from which has no basis in reality. Typical Fox News material.
“For years, we have used similar provisions [similar to those of the Patriot Act] to catch embezzlers and drug traffickers.”
But they did not take away civil liberties and human rights from American citizens. This is a prime example of GOP spin. The statement in itself is true but it ignores reality.
“(…) you need to renew the Patriot Act”
This is something many liberal minded people have been afraid of. Many doubted that the sunshine provisions of the Patriot Act were permanent, and now we know that they indeed are not. It appears that the Bush administration intends to continue to scare the people into believing that moving towards a police state is the right thing to do.
“Last March, Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, a mastermind of September 11th, awoke to find himself in the custody of U.S. and Pakistani authorities.”
“(…) nearly two-thirds of their [Al Quaeda's] known leaders have now been captured or killed”
But he of course conveniently failed to mention Usama Bin Laden who still roams free.
“(…) we are also confronting the regimes that harbor and support terrorists, and could supply them with nuclear, chemical, or biological weapons.”
Again he is of course implying here that Saddam supplied Bin Laden with WMDs which we all know is a complete lie. He furthermore also fails to mention that he and his administration tolerate many tyrants in the middle east.
“Since we last met in this chamber, combat forces of the United States, Great Britain, Australia, Poland and other countries enforced the demands of the United Nations.”
By ignoring weapons inspections, yes, how respectful.
“(…) we face a remnant of violent Saddam supporters”
Here he conveniently ignores the fact that those are guerilla fighters and not Baathist fighters.
“These killers, joined by foreign terrorists (…)”
It has been proven that that is not so. But since everyone who disagrees with Bush can apparently be called a terrorist, that could be interpreted as being accurate.
“We are dealing with these thugs (…)”
There’s that word again. And with his Texan accent it sounds real scary.
“Last January, Iraq’s only law was the whim of one brutal man.”
But the country was not on the brink of a civil war, women were safer and the inspections were working.
“And tonight we are honored to welcome one of Iraq’s most respected leaders”
Respected because he was chosen by Bush.
“Last month, the leader of Libya voluntarily pledged to disclose and dismantle all of his regime’s weapons of mass destruction programs, including a uranium enrichment project for nuclear weapons.”
Here again he is implying that his lie about the Niger uranium issue wasn’t a lie.
“Nine months of intense negotiations involving the United States and Great Britain succeeded with Libya, while 12 years of diplomacy with Iraq did not.”
Again a neoconservative fantasy. The negotiations with Lybia went on for years and Iraq has been WMD free for years.
“For diplomacy to be effective, words must be credible (…)”
I wonder why I don’t believe him on this one.
“Different threats require different strategies. Along with nations in the region, we are insisting that North Korea eliminate its nuclear program.”
Very good excuse for the lack of proper reasons for invading Iraq.
“America is committed to keeping the world’s most dangerous weapons out of the hands of the world’s most dangerous regimes.”
“And this pledge, given by one, has been kept by many.”
One major lie. We are no safer and the enemies are more numerous than they were before Bush was given the White House.
“I have had the honor of meeting our servicemen and women at many posts (…)”
But never at a funeral.
“(…) my administration, and this Congress, will give you the resources you need to fight and win the war on terror.”
And thereby worsen the financial situation of our country considerably.
“I know that some people question if America is really in a war at all. They view terrorism more as a crime, a problem to be solved mainly with law enforcement and indictments. After the World Trade Center was first attacked in 1993, some of the guilty were indicted, tried, convicted, and sent to prison. But the matter was not settled. The terrorists were still training and plotting in other nations, and drawing up more ambitious plans.”
Nothing has changed. By his measures, war is just as ineffective as criminal prosecution, so this argument is null and void.
“already the Kay Report identified dozens of weapons of mass destruction-related program activities and significant amounts of equipment that Iraq concealed from the United Nations.”
If that is so, where is the undeniable and independently verified proof? He also fails to mention the number of US WMD seekers that have been pulled out of Iraq due to a lack of success in finding WMDs.
“Had we failed to act, the dictator’s weapons of mass destruction programs would continue to this day.”
Yeah, in Bush’s head. I wonder what those imaginary programs look like.
“Some critics have said our duties in Iraq must be internationalized.”
Doing so does not mean reciting a list of dozens of countries, it means giving them a part in the decision making process by relinquishing the form of control the US has in Iraq right now.
“America will never seek a permission slip to defend the security of our people.”
A.k.a. Imperialism = good.
“I believe that G*d has planted in every heart the desire to live in freedom.”
And what if they’re not Christian as is the case with most of the people in the middle east?
“As long as the Middle East remains a place of tyranny, despair, and anger, it will continue to produce men and movements that threaten the safety of America and our friends.”
Then why are you encouraging them?
“To cut through the barriers of hateful propaganda, the Voice of America and other broadcast services are expanding their programming in Arabic and Persian (…)”
A.k.a. those people need more US propaganda and cannot have free speech as far as their media are concerned.
“(…) we will finish the historic work of democracy in Afghanistan and Iraq, so those nations can light the way for others”
I’m sure there are many nations who can’t wait to submit to Bush’s will.
“We have no desire to dominate, no ambitions of empire.”
Another gigantic lie.
“These numbers [regarding the effects of the tax cuts] confirm that the American people are using their money far better than government would have and you were right to return it.”
Again, small amounts of money go very far, oh yes.
“By passing the No Child Left Behind Act, you have made the expectation of literacy the law of our country.”
From TomPaine.com‘s SOTU scorecard: “No Child Left Behind law $7 billion short. Public schools laying off teachers, closing schools and shortening academic year.”
“Job training is important, and so is job creation.”
Now if he could follow up his words with actions he might just save himself from suffering the same fate his father did in 1992.
“For the sake of job growth, the tax cuts you passed should be permanent.”
Another big one. pResident Bush does not seem to care about the gigantic national deficit but more about his financial backers from the top 1%.
“(…) make America less dependent on foreign sources of energy.”
A.k.a. We’d like to get going in Alaska while remaining in the middle east.
“We should make the Social Security system a source of ownership for the American people. “
Again, the average citizen appears to be of no concern to him.
“By doing so, we can cut the deficit in half over the next five years.”
I’d be willing to bet that that’s yet another big lie as this does not make sense mathematically.
“I propose a new temporary worker program to match willing foreign workers with willing employers, when no Americans can be found to fill the job.”
Bush’s endorsement of quasi-slave labor.
“Amazing medical technologies are improving and saving lives. This dramatic progress has brought its own challenge, in the rising costs of medical care and health insurance. Members of Congress, we must work together to help control those costs (…)”
On this issue too, actions speak louder than this type of empty rhethoric.
“On the critical issue of health care, our goal is to ensure that Americans can choose and afford private health care coverage that best fits their individual needs.”
I.e. poor people don’t need it. To quote TomPaine.com again: “44 million Americans, 15% of the population (…) don’t have health insurance”.
“To protect the doctor-patient relationship, and keep good doctors doing good work, we must eliminate wasteful and frivolous medical lawsuits.”
The dollars of the pharmaceutical industry at work.
“(…) some things endure: courage and compassion; reverence and integrity; respect for differences of faith and race.”
Again, Bush has none of those and the camera showing minority citizens dueing this part is an insult.
“Each year, about 3 million teenagers contract sexually transmitted diseases that can harm them, or kill them, or prevent them from ever becoming parents. In my budget, I propose a grassroots campaign to help inform families about these medical risks. We will double federal funding for abstinence programs, so schools can teach this fact of life: Abstinence for young people is the only certain way to avoid sexually transmitted diseases.”
The dollars of Pat Robertson & company at work. In the paragraph quoted above there are several lies, of which his ignoring protected intercourse is the worse.
“I believe we should respect individuals as we take a principled stand for one of the most fundamental, enduring institutions of our civilization. Congress has already taken a stand on this issue by passing the Defense of Marriage Act, signed in 1996 by President Clinton. That statute protects marriage under federal law as the union of a man and a woman, and declares that one state may not redefine marriage for other states.”
This is probably the only passage I fully agree with pResident Bush on. I strongly favor effeorts to protect marriage as it is.
I do however disagree with him on the idea that same sex couples should not get anything. I believe they should recieve the right to enter into a civil union in any state after where they will recieve the same rights and privileges that married couples do.
Bush’s fundamental flaw is that he does not seem to realize that sexual orientation is something as basic as a soul, i.e. no matter how much you try to get rid of it, it will not fade away.
“The same moral tradition that defines marriage also teaches that each individual has dignity and value in G*d’s sight.”
Again he fails to realize that there is a reason for the separation of church and state.
“By executive order, I have opened billions of dollars in grant money to competition that includes faith-based charities. Tonight I ask you to codify this into law, so people of faith can know that the law will never discriminate against them again.”
If this goes through he has commited an even greater offense against the most supreme laws of this country.
“In victory, we have shown the noble aims and good heart of America.”
Another big lie. No more comment needed.
“All of us have been partners in a great enterprise.”
Except if you’re not rich, then you don’t matter.
