Carlos Huertas was billed as a concerned grandfather and hard-working engineer when he sat onstage next to President Bush to talk about retirement accounts in downtown Tampa, Fla., last month.
....
Small wonder that Bush found Huertas so convincing. The Florida granddad is an activist for FreedomWorks, a conservative group founded by former vice presidential nominee Jack Kemp and Dick Armey, the former House GOP leader. FreedomWorks campaigned heavily for Bush's re-election last year and now fights for his plan to overhaul Social Security.
Yep, nobody here but us chickens. But wait, there's more! Call now, and while operators are standing by, for the next twenty minutes we'll throw in this fabulous one-of-a-kind capodimonte figurine! You can't get this kind of offer from any other shopping network!
That means more than the normal run of TV ads and grass-roots campaigning. FreedomWorks officials tell NEWSWEEK they have worked closely with the administration to coordinate the town halls, often suggesting names of the people onstage. At least five of its activists have appeared with Bush, and the group has bused hundreds to eight of his events in recent weeks. By the group's own tally, at least one third of the audience in Tampa were FreedomWorks members.
Again, no surprises, but here is where the Bushies' invented reality parts ways with practicality. They know it's a contentious plan to begin with, and supposedly they just want an opportunity to make the sale. Why pack your audience with any ringers, much less a third of that audience? What are you afraid of here, guys? Do you think some "regular folks" might not be buying this grift?
The president took the show to Westfield, N.J., last week, where he talked with a small business owner, a stay-at-home mom and a recent college graduate. Bush received respectful coverage from the town's newspaper, the Westfield Leader, which said the meeting was simply meant to "gauge opinions of New Jerseyans." In fact, a day before the event, an advance team of White House officials held a dress rehearsal for the participants so they could fine-tune their testimonials. They do this before each show, usually with a stand-in playing Bush. It helps the people "say things clearer," says one FreedomWorks member.
"Helps them say things clearer". Please. It helps the ringers stay on message so Bush can keep his story straight. Again, anything more complicated than the usual bromides about Freedom/Democracy™ or false homilies about him "marrying up", and you can hear the hamsters between his ears furiously working that squeaky wheel.
I don't give a good jack shit what any of his defenders say, there has not been a single moment in Bush's entire political career that you can point to and say that he has a grasp of the minutiae of what he's selling. All bitter sarcasm aside, this is critical. No one questions the man's boldness is pursuing his political goals, but boldness without preparation is just bluster and recklessness.
White House press secretary Scott McClellan says it shouldn't be surprising that the administration would work with a group like FreedomWorks, since the goal is to sell the president's plan. "If they are involved in the issue and understand what's at stake, that's what we're looking for," he says. "We're looking for real-life examples."
Well, Scott's right about the first part -- none of this should be surprising at all, not one damned bit of it. But this "real-life examples" thing is pure unadulterated horseshit. I know I say this all the time, but I truly think that this simple fact cannot be overstated: if it's such a great idea (and this goes for any political idea coming from anybody), if it's such a wonderful synthesis of American policies and Bush's personal principles, then not only should you not have to keep lying and evading scrutiny on the specifics of your Great Plan, but you should be able to openly debate it with your opponents.
Are there really people out there who are stupid enough to buy into this Potemkin town-hall shit? Don't they wonder even for a split-second why Bush won't just talk about the facts and let the resonance of those facts' inimitable rightness take effect? Did they watch this mumbling, stammering sack of shit when he actually had to think and speak extemporaneously in a debate against an intelligent person? Do they really buy this "Parsdent Cooter" shit; would they really hire this goofball to run their ranch for them?
Answer that for me, fake regular guy Carlos Huertas.
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