Tue, 10 Apr 2007 18:46:00
Last year’s wishes are this year’s apologies
As I was listening to Fall Out Boy’s “I’m Like A Lawyer With The Way I’m Always Trying To Get You Off,” two lines jumped out and sparked a runaway thought. The lines were the title of this post, “Last year’s wishes are this year’s apologies,” and “We’re the new face of failure.”
The song is in no way about politics, but it occurred to me: both of those things are so very true. Why? Because George W. Bush and his entire hand-picked team, from the Cabinet to the White House Staff, are living life like it’s 1974.
They are playing 70’s public relations games in an instant-on, internet-connected, citizen-journalism, you’d-better-have-a-good-answer-before-the-question-is-even-asked world. It’s like they don’t even understand how fast information travels in today’s world.
Not every decision Bush and Co. has made has been awful. The problem is, not a one of them knows how to market anything they do. Furthermore, when someone starts creating a narrative in the press that is 180 degrees opposite of the truth, - or worse, is designed to do damage to the Bush Administration with no thought to the damage it does to the country as a whole - Bush and Co. have zero skill at fighting back, at getting in front of a story, or of even explaining in basic terms just what they hell it is they’re doing at any given moment.
This is the least media-savvy administration that I can remember in my 36 years on earth...and what’s the ultimate result of this complete and utter inability to sell Americans even on the good ideas?
We are the new face of failure. Ask around - perception is everything, and we are being perceived as a nation of failures. Our government fails us at ever turn. Each party fails itself and the nation on a daily basis. Our president fails us, Congress and the military upon which he so heavily relies. They all fail us on issues of immigration, budgets, civil liberties...I could go on and on.
But what is worse is that regardless of what is going on in Iraq at any given moment, we are perceived to already have lost. I don’t believe it, but then I don’t limit my reading to only those who are beating that drum. If I were the average American reading my local paper and watching the news at 11...what else could I believe? If I am from another country, my God, the once and powerful United States is being beaten by goat herders and dung farmers with homemade bombs and a few AKs! How could I believe anything else?
Every good domestic agenda idea Bush has had stalls and dies because he’s the worst pitchman to ever hold office. he allows the media and his opponents to define the idea, then allows them to destroy it, and never steps up to explain, defend or counter the opposition. Every domestic emergency since 9/11 has been laid at the feet of an administration that in truth, cannot possibly be held accountable for all of it; instead of doing something to explain himself, Bush leaves it to frigging bloggers to uncover and try to disseminate the truth. It’s absolutely ridiculous that the White House is so unbelievably incompetent in this area.
I believe in giving this administration credit when due, defending it from false allegations and most of all, being accurate and honest in my criticisms. This is but one area in which I feel we can all agree - Bush and everyone he has personally chosen are miserable failures at communicating. They’re no Clinton, who could and did charm the pants right the hell off a nation. They’re damn sure no Reagan, who inspired our sworn enemy to change it’s ways.
How I miss the days when, even if you didn’t love the guy, you could at least say that your President was a hell of a speaker and you had to respect the way he put his ideas out there for everyone to talk about.
Today? Perception is everything, and Bush has failed to make his case when necessary. “We’re the new face of failure. Prettier and younger but no better off.”
Posted by JimK at 06:46 PM on April 10, 2007
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#1 Posted by Buzzion
on 04/10 at 09:16 PM -
If only the media and his opponents were opposed to ILLEGAL immigration.