The return of George W. Boi …

David Frum at NRO echoes my long-time argument that President Bush, the leader of a war that is going very badly indeed and which requires him to explain this war to the American people, instead keeps speaking … boilerplate.

Again and again during the Bush presidency—and yesterday most recently—the president will agree to give what is advertised in advance as a major speech. An important venue will be chosen. A crowd of thousands will be gathered. The networks will all be invited. And after these elaborate preparations, the president says … nothing that he has not said a hundred times before.

If a president continues to do that, he is himself teaching the public and the media to ignore him—especially when the words seem (as his speech yesterday to the VFW seemed) utterly to ignore the past three months of real-world events.

Frum also (apparently approvingly) quotes some letters from readers who are appalled at Bush’s failure to give an accounting of the Iraq situation.

Some of my past discussions of George W. Boilerplate can be found here and here and here and here.
Posted by Lawrence Auster at August 23, 2005 10:58 AM | Send