California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger dazzled the GOP Convention crowd last night with his speech about “immigrant dreams”, national security, and significantly, how naysayers about the (disastrous) state of the American economy are really economic girlymen. BTW, I almost hate myself for kind of liking Laura Bush’s speech, which almost had me convinced that George W. Bush is a human being capable of the same doubts and fears as the rest of us. Of course, one quickly realizes that this is not true: like Schwarzenegger, Bush is a multi-millionaire well-divorced from the reality the rest of us face (though unlike Ahnold, Bush didn’t actually “earn” anything, relying on the kindness of Daddy’s friends to hand it to him along with the presidency). Besides– Arnold is the star.
And if that’s all the Republicans have, then please join with me in congratulating President and Mrs. Kerry, and Vice-President and Mrs. Edwards. As the Unseen Editor notes– there was a possiblity the GOP had NOTHING– and Ahnold just demonstrated that to be the case. Because if mocking the unemployed (and those fearful for their jobs and their families’ futures) by the movie-star-governor is all they have, George W. Bush cannot win Ohio, and if he cannot win Ohio, he cannot win the presidency. I don’t care what the polls say (Senator Kerry can win without Ohio, but it would be by a hair’s breadth at best).
Immigrant dreams? From “socialist” Austria? A country with the same standard of living as our own? Further, Arnold was a well-established body-builder in Europe, before moving here, and it was, after all, his physique (its sure as hell not his acting ability) that made him a movie star. So, plllleeease. (I don’t begrudge Arnold being a Republican, even though he doesn’t believe in anything the party stands for except tax cuts for multi-millionaires, because he is, of course, a multi-millionaire.)
But lookit: it would be one thing just to say “We know the economy could be doing better, but we were due for a fall after the internet bubble, and 9-11 and the war on terror are downers, but a permanently strong America is worth the price of a temporarily weak economy.” But the GOP isn’t doing that. While delegates hold up signs with the word “compaassion”, the delegates go apeshit for a speaker that mocks people out of work and fearing for their families’ futures as “economic girlymen”. (Note to Kerry campaign: just play that line over and over and over again, against a backdrop of factory closings.)
As the UE notes, barring allegations that John Forbes Kerry is a child molestor (“developing”), this is his to lose, and it’s just about over (again).
tdog
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