Go on Offense, President Bush

By Jonathan Tallman

I have been an avid supporter of President George W. Bush since he ran for president in 1999. This country had been through a lot under President Bush, and I have supported the president from 9/11, to Afghanistan, Iraq, Social Security and many other issues minus immigration. President Bush has a leadership style that has been unmatched in the Oval Office since the days of President Lincoln. President Bush does what he swore to do, and that was to protect the American people and the Constitution of the United States. President Bush has gone from a post- 9/11 approval rating to a dismal 35- 42%, depending which poll you look at. Even with all the negative publicity President Bush has gotten from the liberal media, the Hollywood elite, and the national Democratic Party, he has stood firm on all of those issues which he has fought for, namely Iraq. I think that the President should use his approval ratings to his advantage, and here is how.First off, President Bush has strong support among conservative Republicans according to most polls. Immigration hurt him slightly, but his continuation of the Iraq policy has put him in good standing with many hawkish conservatives. From what we can tell from the approval polls, the president is not very popular among average American circles, and there is a way he can easily use this to his advantage; he needs to go on the offensive with Democrats and all other people who attack him on a daily basis. As long as President Bush stands where he does with the attorney firings, the commutation of Scooter Libby, and the War in Iraq (War on Terror), conservatives, that 35- 42% voting bloc that still support him, will continue to follow him and trust him. As long as this Administration puts aside the immigration debate, their poll numbers will go no lower. Therefore, go after defeatist majority leader Senator Harry Reid for claiming we have lost a war we are still fighting, and attack Congressman John Conyers for investigating a reprieve that is 100% constitutional. At this point, Mr. President, you have absolutely nothing to lose.On Iraq, the Democrats are winning the debate. President Bush should not be happy about this, and he should go on to claim that their words and actions represent exactly what al Qaeda wants, which is quite correct. Karl Rove said it best when he said that al Jazeera puts Senator Dick Durbin's words on their airwaves showing that America is ready for defeat. Although many Americans hate the partisanship that occurs in the Nation's Capitol, they may just buy into some of what the President says. Republicans won both the 2002 and 2004 Elections in large part because Americans believed Democrats did not have what it takes to win the War on Terror. Americans no longer believe this, although it still remains to be the truth, mainly because the Democrats have been taking the fight to Americans warning them of the failures of Republicans. This has put Republicans on the defensive, which is not the way it should be. The president needs to get on the offensive going after the liberal elite in Congress who wish to make President Bush look so bad, that they are willing to cost us a victory in the greatest struggle of our time.When Democrats threaten to end the War in Iraq by withdrawing troops, the president should suggest they take a look at the Constitution. It is designated in the constitution that the president deals with foreign policy. The only constitutional way Democrats can go about ending the War in Iraq is by either cutting the funding to our troops on the ground, or rescinding the vote they took to allow the president to use force against the tyrannical Saddam Hussein. Either they threaten the lives of our men and women in uniform who bravely fight for our freedom, or they go back on something they originally supported. That would be quite similar to the gift that kept on giving in 2004, "I actually did vote for it, before I voted against it." Either way, the president and Republicans have the upper hand in the debate. They have simply failed to sell this to the American people, yet they have a great case to present.Lastly, go after the Democrats as mere politicians who would do whatever is popular at the time but have no gall to stand up for a policy that appears to be losing ground with the American electorate. Quote President Bill Clinton, Senator John Kerry, and Senator Hillary Clinton on what they said before we invaded Iraq and it appeared to be popular with the American people. Attack the Democrats for telling Americans they would lower gas prices, when they have only increased since the Democrats took control of both the House and Senate. Criticize the fact that they have yet to send a minimum wage bill to President Bush's desk for approval. Lastly, attack them for not getting rid of the corruption in government. Last week, Congress voted on a bill that would increase their pay by $4,400 per year. William Jefferson is in trouble with the law after investigators found tens of thousands of dollars in his freezer, while the Democrats have not demanded he resign. Other congressman like Paul Kanjorski of Pennsylvania have funneled money to a business run by his family, yet he maintains his position of chairman on a powerful funding committee. The corruption continues, and the president must point this out to the American people.President Bush's approval rating most likely would not increase significantly because of him going through with this, but seeing their beloved president taking on the Democrats would bring strong unity to a GOP that is falling apart since the 2006 Elections. Democrats are quite vulnerable, and they have failed the American people. President Bush needs to fight the last eighteen months of his presidency for his policies, or else we will have a lot more liberal policies within the country come 2009.