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| Avery's
Campaign Journal “Hurricane Charley blows. He blows big time,” President Bush is reported to have said upon reaching the ravaged State of Florida. President Bush and his Florida governor brother, “The thing that’s called Jeb,” know the lessons of August 1992, when their daddy, President George H.W. Bush, reacted too slowly with federal aid to help speed recovery after Hurricane Andrew pounded Florida. The president’s infamous response, “Read my lips, I’m going to have a nap,” ultimately summed up George Sr.’s sorry four years running the show. Late Sunday, officials in Florida were focused on the immediate crisis -- providing water and electricity -- not on strategizing for Election Day. Asked on Sunday why he showed up so promptly in Florida to inspect the hurricane’s damage, Bush seemed to hint at the criticism of his father 12 years ago: "Yeah, if I didn't come, they would've said we should have been here more rapidly,” he grumbled while slapping a ‘Vote Bush’ pin on an unconscious man lying on the street. While the focus Sunday was on Florida, next month it could be on floods in Missouri or hailstorms in Iowa. With an election that appears agonizingly close in a dozen or more states, any error in reacting to a natural or man-made disaster could cost Bush the election. “So now I’ve got to go to these disaster sites, when I could be relaxing by my pool,” George moaned. “Boy, are these things depressing. Look at these people. Would it kill them to smile?” And any such event gives Bush an opportunity to do what Kerry can't: display command of the powers of the presidency, make a decisive decision on what to do –- and get free tickets to Disneyland. Aug 15 / 2004 |
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