WP: Gore Takes Aim at Bush

[JaneQPublic]

Former Vice President Assails Administration's Iraq Policy

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A28932-2003Aug7.html

NEW YORK -- Former Vice President Al Gore, assailing U.S. policies in Iraq and at home, on Thursday argued that the Bush administration "routinely shows disrespect" for the "honest and open debate" that produces the truth.

"I think it's partly because they feel they already know the truth, and aren't very curious to learn about any facts that might contradict it," Gore said in a 35-minute speech at New York University.

---snip

"The direction in which our nation is being led is deeply troubling to me, not only in Iraq but also at home, on economic policy, social policy and environmental policy," Gore said.

---snip

Gore argued that the administration used false pretenses to launch the war against Saddam Hussein, including claims that the Iraqi leader was involved in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and was on the verge of providing terrorists with chemical, biological and nuclear weapons.

"As a result, too many of our soldiers are paying the highest price for the strategic miscalculations, serious misjudgments and historic mistakes that have put them and our nation in harm's way," Gore said.

MORE...

[JaneQPublic]

1. Coverage on other news sources:

Bloomberg: Gore Says Bush Created `False Impressions' on Iraq, Economy
http://quote.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000103&sid=aqtPg9vcGEIw&refer=us

ABCNews: Gore Assails Bush Policies in U.S., Iraq
http://abcnews.go.com/wire/Politics/ap20030807_933.html

CNN:
Gore vows endorsement on presidential race
http://www.cnn.com/2003/ALLPOLITICS/08/07/gore.speech/

[robbedvoter]

2. From the speech - the 9.11 commission part:

"Along with other members of the previous administration, I certainly
want the commission to have access to any and all documents sent to the
White House while we were there that have any bearing on this issue. And
President Bush should let the commission see the ones that he read too.
After all, this President has claimed the right for his executive branch
to send his assistants into every public library in America and secretly
monitor what the rest of us are reading. That's been the law ever since
the Patriot Act was enacted. If we have to put up with such a broad and
extreme invasion of our privacy rights in the name of terrorism
prevention, surely he can find a way to let this National Commission
know how he and his staff handled a highly specific warning of terrorism
just 36 days before 9/11."

[Kurovski]

22. Didn't Ashcroft handle the "highly specific warning"

by refusing to fly on commercial airlines, or is this just a rumour?

[robbob]

25. No rumour!

The story about Ashcroft not flying on commercial airlines was reported before 9-11. The reason given at the time was "unspecified threats". This story quickly disappeared after 9-11 and was never mentioned again (as far as I know) in the US media.

Sorry I don't have a link for you.

[Mike Niendorff]

26. link : "Ashcroft Flying High" (CBS News, 7/26/01)

Ashcroft Flying High
CBSNews.com, 7/26/01
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2001/07/26/national/main303601.shtml


Fishing rod in hand, Attorney General John Ashcroft left on a weekend trip to Missouri Thursday afternoon aboard a chartered government jet, reports CBS News Correspondent Jim Stewart.

In response to inquiries from CBS News over why Ashcroft was traveling exclusively by leased jet aircraft instead of commercial airlines, the Justice Department cited what it called a "threat assessment" by the FBI, and said Ashcroft has been advised to travel only by private jet for the remainder of his term.

"There was a threat assessment and there are guidelines. He is acting under the guidelines," an FBI spokesman said. Neither the FBI nor the Justice Department, however, would identify what the threat was, when it was detected or who made it.

A senior official at the CIA said he was unaware of specific threats against any Cabinet member ...

...

Asked if he knew anything about the threat or who might have made it, the attorney general replied, "Frankly, I don't. That's the answer."


(more)


-----


MDN

[MasonJar]

3. Gore is tops

Every time I remember that Gore should be our president, I feel like doing something rash. What a guy to ask to give a talk at the liberal Move-on. I'd hope that might quiet some of the DLC. He needs to continue to give Shrub another licking. There are the Dean ads in Texas, Kerry speaking out at neighborhood forums in New Hampshire, Gore telling it like it is in New York. This should raise Jr.'s temperature down there on the former pig farm.

[Redleg]

4. Gore smoked Bush like a cheap cigar!

I read the speech transcript and wish I had a chance to hear it. It read very well, seemed very persuasive and well constructed.

[blm]

10. Best I've ever seen him

outside his acceptance speech. This was Gore at his best. And he LOOKED mah-velous.

[Redleg]

24. Yes, indeed.

Gore was great. I still don't get how people think the current abortion in the Oval Office is presidential timber. He has the oratorical skills of a 10-year old kid with a mouthful of marbles.

[glitch]

27. you can still see it if you use realplayer

It's online at http://moveon.org/

[DagmarK]

5. There was one factual error in Gore's speech.......

"Two years ago yesterday, for example, according to the Wall Street Journal, the President was apparently advised in specific language that Al Qaeda was going to hijack some airplanes to conduct a terrorist strike inside the U.S.

I understand his concern about people knowing exactly what he read in the privacy of the Oval Office...."


****Bush was at his private brush ranch in Texas when he got that memo on his ANNAUL month long vacation!

Just a minor thing.....but eventually someone has to say something about Bush's chronic absenteeism from his "job" and excessive use of leave with pay.

[w13rd0]

6. He leaves that open ended...

...see: "I understand his concern about people knowing exactly what he read in the privacy of the Oval Office..."

But he wasn't IN the Oval Office, many have speculated that this is so he and his cronies can carry on their criminal activities with less oversight...Gore is actually HIGHLIGHTING this with the statements about Ashcroft...Bush can't claim executive priveledge covers all that goes on at the ranch...

[DagmarK]

9. hmmmmmmmm...........I did not know that...

Well...... we will see.

I wish Gore had specifically noted the executive orders that have come from the boy king. Esp the one closing the records for the Reagan/Bush 1 regime.

Lord......I bet Poppy is about to have a coronary over this speech! AT LEAST Poppy has the intellectual capacity to know that Gore is speaking the truth. The boy king.......who knows how that pathological dunce 'hears' such a thing???

[wryter2000]

7. Wow

I wish I could vote for that guy...again.

[OldCurmudgeon]

20. hey, I *have*!

here in repug-infested PA, there's often races where a repug is running
unopposed.

Am I going to vote for the repug? NO!
Am I going to skip voting for that office? NO!

What I do is vote for a write-in: AL GORE.

Okay, maybe it doesn't accomplish that much, but it sure makes me feel better.

[DagmarK]

8. I wish the PRESS would report the spirit of the message!!!!

Uggh!

Gore was making a plea to the people to "breath new life" into our democratic process:

"America has a compelling need to quickly breathe new life into our founders' system of checks and balances -- because some extremely important choices about our future are going to be made shortly, and it is imperative that we avoid basing them on more false impressions."

The falase impressions given to justify the invasion of Iraq was just one of MANY examples Gore gave. I just wish the press would report on the overall MESSAGE instead of turning it into rhetoric. The Sheeple will conclude: "Oh, of course Gore is against Bush...just another guy in line to bash bush."

**But I have to say. That speech was fantastic!! Gore totally nailed it......the whole evil scenario. I see this speech as a historical document that we will look back on and say one of two things: (1) the people heeded it and averted a totalitarian take-over; or (2) the people did not heed the call.....and well...I guess the totalitarian regime will make sure a copy of the speech doesn't show up in the Library of Congress -- if we get to keep a Lib. of Congress, that is.

BREATHE NEW LIFE......and QUICKLY!!

The only thing Gore didn't touch was the election fraud.....but there is time for that later.

BRAVO PRESIDENT GORE! BRAVO!

[study_war_no_more]

14. each person that says the king is naked

gives the others pause to reconsider what they are doing looking at Bush's smirking dindaling.

[NoKingGeorge]

11. Democratic support missing.

Why would Kerry choose to throw up a distraction like the Rove talk? Why is Dean announcing a new manager the same day this eloquent indictment is delivered. I guess Mr.Gore did not give them advance notice? They knew that the last legaley elected President was going to carry the banner today (for them). If they could not say these things ,for whatever reason, they should let them be heard.
Also, Kerrys' 'outrage' seems petty when compared to the current issue of War.

[DagmarK]

13. I totally agree........

Kerry's litte battle against Rove is like out of left field or something. It's literally WATER under the bridge. yeah, it needs attention...but why not call the whole cabal on their entire systematic dismantling of our country? IE, just like Gore did. And Kerry isn't even from Oregon. Senator Wyden and the Calif Senators should be carrying that torch..... baffling. It's like the WH gave Kerry a poster issue that he could safely use in his campaign against Bush. >????

Dean is getting a new manager????? I hadn't heard that. Will have to go find the 10 threads on that one! LOL

[KoKo]

16. No, not a New Manager.......he's adding a Deputy Manager...from Mosely

Braun's campaign.....That's all.

[KoKo]

17. No, not a New Manager.......he's adding a Deputy Manager...from Mosely

Braun's campaign.....That's all.

[Emillereid]

12. Would anthing persuade Gore to run again?

If he believed that only he could dislodge Bush, would he do it, for the sake of the country. Why did he decide not to run in the first place? If he decided to run, would he choose Lieberman for VP again -- that would turn me off big time.

If he should decide to run, I would hope that he would embrace the accomplishments of the Clinton/Gore years this time and invite not only Clinton, but everyone in the party to pull out all stops to rid our country of this fascist regime.

[diamond14]

15. Media Censors Al Gore AGAIN, please help take action (link)

Media Censors Al Gore AGAIN

At AlGore04.com, you can read (and soon watch) Al Gore's entire speech. But once again, the cable news networks censored Al Gore's important speech. Only MSNBC covered any of it, and they cut away quickly to let Republican hatchetman Rich Galen attack Gore. C-Span has a tape but won't schedule it for broadcast. Express your outrage! Call/e-mail CNN 404-827-1500 [e-mail], FOX 212-301-3000 [e-mail], and MSNBC 201-583-5000 [e-mail], and [e-mail] and call during talk shows: Democrats [phone], Others [phone].

http://www.democrats.com/

[mbee]

18. When MSNBC showed the clip they mentioned that Al Gore

was very interested in Move-On's ability to raise large amounts of money over the internet in small periods of time. That make me sit up and take notice! Wonder what he has in mind - I wonder!

[pfitz59]

19. What a fantastic speech!

Al has the right stuff! When Democracy returns to America I hope a commission is established to track down and recover the wealth the BFEE has stolen from this nation. Al quoted the Nobel Prize-winning Economist who equated Bush*'s economic policy with "looting the nation"! We want our country back!

[VolcanoJen]

21. MODERATOR MESSAGE: 1 of 2 Official Al Gore Threads!

We're all very excited about President Gore's speech today, but in order to keep LBN neat and tidy, it's time to lock some of the duplicate threads on this topic.

Let's consolidate our discussion into the following two threads:

Khephra's thread early this morning, alerting DUers to the speech:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=102&topic_id=55249&mesg_id=55249

JaneQPublic's thread (this thread!) this afternoon, for media reaction to the speech:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=102&topic_id=55584&mesg_id=55584

Thanks!
VolcanoJen
DU Moderator

[Boreas]

23. Damn that was good!

I saw it on C-Span last night and I'm still in a good mood. Big Al never sounded better; he was kicking butt and taking names.