George W. Bush used his final State of the Union speech as a political vehicle to poke his grimy finger into the eye of rival Howard Dean. However, timing is everything, and Bush has once again proven himself to be a miserable failure.
For all who love freedom and peace, the world without Saddam Hussein's regime is a better and safer place.
This particular jab at Dean was a no-brainer on paper, and it has only one major flaw - Dean didn't win the Iowa caucus, Kerry did. And as we all know, Kerry never said these words. Sorry, Dubya. Bad timing.
On the issue of the economy, Bush repeated his oft-used, tired talking points.
Manufacturing activity is increasing, inflation is low, interest rates are low, exports are growing, productivity is high, and jobs are on the rise.
Perhaps to Dubya, 1,000 new jobs constitutes 'jobs on the rise'. But to the millions of Americans now either looking for work or who have given up on the job search, these words ring hollow. And as an added bonus, we are now approaching the end of the fiscal quarter. In factories across the country, workers are standing idle, taking voluntary time off, or pushing a broom while managers get their tallies in order. Productivity is not high, in fact for the next few days, it is practically nonexistant. Bad timing again, Mr. President.
Bush then directs his attention to that horrific epidemic sweeping our country. No, not the flu, he speaks of the thriving steroid industry.
The use of performance-enhancing drugs like steroids in baseball, football and other sports is dangerous and it sends the wrong message: that there are shortcuts to accomplishment and that performance is more important than character.
I'm wondering how this particular passage ever made it through the vetting process. In this election year, people will be looking for someone who has not been handed shortcuts to accomplishment, and we are all now keenly aware of the fact that performance is more important than character.
And that, sir, is the reason we will be voting you out of office this November.