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"Mission
Accomplished": Anatomy of a Deadly Lie
BUZZFLASH NEWS ANALYSIS
Media
strategists noted afterward that Mr. Sforza and his aides had choreographed
every aspect of the event, even down to the members of
the Lincoln crew arrayed in coordinated shirt colors over Mr. Bush's
right shoulder and the "Mission Accomplished" banner placed
to perfectly capture the president and the celebratory two words in a
single shot. The speech was specifically timed for what image makers
call "magic hour light," which cast a golden glow on Mr. Bush.
(http://edition.cnn.com/2003/US/05/16/nyt.bumiller)
Recent
books by Joe Conason, Al Franken and David Corn have documented how
Bush is a serial liar. When BuzzFlash interviewed Molly Ivins awhile
back, we thought that she was quite fair to Bush. She didn't jump on
the bandwagon of people who claim he is dumb. But she did, almost casually,
state: "What we did was just look at Bush's record in "Shrub." And
consequently, I think we were less surprised than anybody in America
when Bush started governing from lies." (http://www.buzzflash.com/interviews/03/07/10_ivins.html)
The
right wing extremists and "good Christians" tolerate Bush's
lies for different reasons, which we won't get into at this time. And
no doubt, there are some naive Americans who believe that "God's
chosen President" couldn't lie because he was anointed, as Bush
claims, by the Lord Almighty.
But the reality is that Bush can't STOP lying. In fact, he almost never
tells the truth. He has, as we noted in the title of a BuzzFlash editorial,
made presidential lying seem banal (http://www.buzzflash.com/editorial/03/07/18.html)
when it is, in actuality, the betrayal of a nation.
Many of the lies that led us into Iraq have been thoroughly documented
at this point -- and these are only the tip of the iceberg. Yet, the
mainstream media doesn't, in general, believe that these lies -- that
are tantamount to treason -- are worthy of front page news coverage.
And
the culture of deception and prevarication pervades his entire administration.
Just look at the 60 Minutes II story a short time ago, when
an aide to Colin Powell charged that the American Secretary of State
knowingly
lied in his infamous U.N. speech "justifying" the war with
Iraq. That story hardly penetrated even one news cycle.
So,
today, Bush lied about his most grandstanding, insulting, ego-tripping
stunt: his "Mission Accomplished" appearance aboard the U.S.S.
Abraham Lincoln. In his October 28th "news conference," President
Pinocchio claimed:
"The
'Mission Accomplished' sign, of course, was put up by the members of
the USS Abraham Lincoln, saying that their mission was accomplished," Bush
said.
"I
know it was attributed somehow to some ingenious advance man from my
staff — they weren't that ingenious, by the way."
That, of course, was a lie. The people who clean up Bush's lies -- the
ones who would follow an elephant in a circus with brooms and garbage
bags for the droppings -- quickly tried to repair the damage with a parsing
of Bush's statement that was clearly laughable, if the stakes weren't
so high:
"After
the news conference, a White House spokeswoman said the Lincoln's crew
asked the White House to have the sign made. The White
House asked a private vendor to produce the sign, and the crew put it
up, said the spokeswoman. She said she did not know who paid for the
sign." [LINK]
Since
the White House put up the "Mission Accomplished" banner,
217 American soldiers have died in Iraq (http://lunaville.org/warcasualties/Summary.aspx),
many more than died before his hideous Hollywood-theatrical appearance
on
the aircraft carrier. Hundreds of our soldiers have been wounded since
he appeared under that White House conceived and made sign.
The AWOL Chickenhawk, who let other young men die in his place in Vietnam,
pretended he was top gun, but he's always AWOL from the truth.
Here is what some of our BuzzFlash readers have to say about Bush's
latest brazen lie, one that is of deadly symbolic and real importance.
Some of the material will be repetitious, but read it through for the
full documentation of a president who can't tell the truth:
*
* *
Excerpt
from a CNN Story, "Keeper of Bush image lift stagecraft
to new heights," about how every aspect of a Bush media appearance
is stage crafted. Nothing happens by accident:
The
most elaborate — and criticized — White House event so far was Mr.
Bush's speech aboard the Abraham Lincoln announcing the end of major
combat in Iraq. White House officials say that a variety of people, including
the president, came up with the idea, and that Mr. Sforza embedded himself
on the carrier to make preparations days before Mr. Bush's landing in
a flight suit and his early evening speech.Media strategists noted afterward
that Mr. Sforza and his aides had choreographed every aspect of the event,
even down to the members of the Lincoln crew arrayed in coordinated shirt
colors over Mr. Bush's right shoulder and the "Mission Accomplished" banner
placed to perfectly capture the president and the celebratory two words
in a single shot. The speech was specifically timed for what image makers
call "magic hour light," which cast a golden glow on Mr. Bush.
"If you looked at the TV picture, you saw there was flattering
light on his left cheek and slight shadowing on his right," Mr.
King said. "It looked great."
(http://edition.cnn.com/2003/US/05/16/nyt.bumiller)
Today at his press conference, Bush said the following:
THE
PRESIDENT: The "Mission Accomplished" sign, of course,
was put up by the members of the USS Abraham Lincoln, saying that their
mission was accomplished. I know it was attributed some how to some ingenious
advance man from my staff -- they weren't that ingenious, by the way.
*
* *
Buzz,
This
is pretty low, when you stoop to blaming the sailors for the "Mission
Accomplished" sign. This moron has never been accountable for anything
in his life!
Gigi
Original
DU thread: [LINK]
Credit goes to DU's Atomic Cat and Stephanie, not me! I'm just passing
it along with their OK.
=========================================================
Bush's
denial today that the WH placed the banner on the carrier: [LINK]
Q
Mr. President, if I may take you back to May 1st when you stood on
the
USS Lincoln under a huge banner that said, "Mission Accomplished." At
that time you declared major combat operations were over, but since that
time there have been over 1,000 wounded, many of them amputees who are
recovering at Walter Reed, 217 killed in action since that date. Will
you acknowledge now that you were premature in making those remarks?
THE PRESIDENT: Nora, I think you ought to look at my speech. I said,
Iraq is a dangerous place and we've still got hard work to do, there's
still more to be done. And we had just come off a very successful military
operation. I was there to thank the troops.
The "Mission Accomplished" sign,
of course, was put up by the members of the USS Abraham Lincoln, saying
that their mission was
accomplished. I know it was attributed some how to some ingenious advance
man from my staff -- they weren't that ingenious, by the way. But my
statement was a clear statement, basically recognizing that this phase
of the war for Iraq was over and there was a lot of dangerous work. And
it's proved to be right, it is dangerous in Iraq. It's dangerous in Iraq
because there are people who can't stand the thought of a free and peaceful
Iraq. It is dangerous in Iraq because there are some who believe that
we're soft, that the will of the United States can be shaken by suiciders
-- and suiciders who are willing to drive up to a Red Cross center, a
center of international help and aid and comfort, and just kill.
The
Banner, hung (and designed? and produced?) by the USS Lincoln crew,
according to Bush. Looks suspiciously similar to backdrops we see at
every Bush speech: [LINK]
Bush's
speech on the carrier: [LINK]
Bush makes historic speech aboard warship
Thursday, May 1, 2003 Posted: 9:48 PM EDT (0148 GMT)
ABOARD THE USS ABRAHAM LINCOLN (CNN) -- The following is an unedited
transcript of President Bush's historic speech from the flight deck of
the USS Lincoln, during which he declared an end to major combat in Iraq:
Thank you. Thank you all very much.
Admiral Kelly, Captain Card, officers and sailors of the USS Abraham
Lincoln, my fellow Americans, major combat operations in Iraq have ended.
In the battle of Iraq, the United States and our allies have prevailed.
And now our coalition is engaged in securing and reconstructing that
country.
Video
of the speech linked here: [LINK]
Bush handlers stage manage every aspect of his appearances, including
this one:
Keepers of Bush image lift stagecraft to new heights
By Elisabeth Bumiller
New York Times
Friday, May 16, 2003 Posted: 7:08 AM EDT (1108 GMT)
http://www.cnn.com/2003/US/05/16/nyt.bumiller/
The president's image makers, Mr. Bartlett said, work within a budget
for White House travel and events allotted by Congress, which for fiscal
2003 was $3.7 million. He said he did not know the specific cost of staging
Mr. Bush's Sept. 11 anniversary speech, or what the White House was charged
for the lights. A spokeswoman at the headquarters of Musco Lighting in
Oskaloosa, Iowa, said the company did not disclose the prices it charged
clients.
The most elaborate — and criticized — White House event so far was Mr.
Bush's speech aboard the Abraham Lincoln announcing the end of major
combat in Iraq. White House officials say that a variety of people, including
the president, came up with the idea, and that Mr. Sforza embedded himself
on the carrier to make preparations days before Mr. Bush's landing in
a flight suit and his early evening speech.
Media
strategists noted afterward that Mr. Sforza and his aides had choreographed
every aspect of the event, even down to the members of
the Lincoln crew arrayed in coordinated shirt colors over Mr. Bush's
right shoulder and the "Mission Accomplished" banner placed
to perfectly capture the president and the celebratory two words in a
single shot. The speech was specifically timed for what image makers
call "magic hour light," which cast a golden glow on Mr. Bush.
"If you looked at the TV picture, you saw there was flattering
light on his left cheek and slight shadowing on his right," Mr.
King said. "It looked great."
The trip was attacked by Democrats as an expensive political stunt,
but White House officials said that Democrats needed a better issue for
taking on the president. A New York Times/CBS News nationwide poll conducted
May 9-12 found that the White House may have been right: 59 percent of
those polled said it was appropriate, and not an effort to make political
gain, for Mr. Bush to dress in a flight suit and announce the end of
combat operations on the aircraft carrier.
Bush handlers admit that the event was SO stage-managed that the ship
had to slow down so San Diego would not be visible to the cameras
[LINK]
*
* *
Explanation
for Bush's Carrier Landing Altered
By Dana Milbank
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, May 7, 2003; Page A20
President
Bush chose to make a jet landing on an aircraft carrier last week even
after he was told he could easily reach the ship by helicopter,
the White House said yesterday, changing the explanation it gave for
Bush's "Top Gun" style event.
Bush's
televised landing on the USS Abraham Lincoln, for which the president
wore a flight suit and a helmet and took underwater survival training
in the White House swimming pool, was the dramatic start to a visit to
the carrier that included an air show and a televised speech to the nation.
In his address, the president declared victory in Iraq in front of cheering
sailors and a banner proclaiming "Mission Accomplished."
White House officials had said, both before and after Bush's landing
in a Navy S-3B Viking jet, that he took the plane solely to avoid inconveniencing
the sailors, who were returning home after a deployment of nearly 10
months. The officials said that Bush decided not to wait until the ship
was in helicopter range to avoid delaying the troops' homecoming.
But
instead of the carrier being hundreds of miles offshore, as aides had
said it would be, the Lincoln was only about 30 miles from the coast
when Bush made his "tail-hook" landing, in which the jet was
stopped by cables on deck. Navy officers slowed and turned the ship when
land became visible.
Citing
Fleischer's revised explanation, Rep. Henry A. Waxman (D-Calif.) wrote
to the General Accounting Office to ask for a "full accounting" of
the cost of the trip.
After
Fleischer's remarks, Sen. Robert C. Byrd (D-W.Va.) delivered an impassioned
speech on the Senate floor, saying he was "deeply troubled" by
Bush's actions, which he called "flamboyant showmanship." The
octogenarian lawmaker criticized the White House for using the carrier "as
an advertising backdrop" and the military "as stage props" for
Bush's speech.
*
* *
An eerily similar backdrop:
http://www.pixelred.com/images/bush4.jpg
Mission Accomplished:
http://www.pixelred.com/images/bushmission.jpg
Another flag backdrop:
http://www.pixelred.com/images/bush5.jpg
One more:
http://www.pixelred.com/images/bush2.jpg
They used the SAME flag graphic:
This...
http://www.pixelred.com/images/bush6.jpg
Makes this:
http://www.pixelred.com/images/bushmission.jpg
*
* *
Guys -- Dean isn't the only Democrat who's holding Bush's feet to the
fire. How about giving credit where credit is due? Gen. Wesley Clark
made the following statement today:
"Today,
President Bush backtracked on his May 1 political photo op on the
U.S.S. Abraham Lincoln by blaming the troops on the aircraft
carrier for the declaration of 'mission accomplished' in Iraq. This
is wrong, this is irresponsible and this is not leadership. Politicizing
the mission of those troops in the first place was bad theater, and
diminished
the office of Commander in Chief -- but to now turn his comments
on those very troops is outrageous. Instead of trying to blame the
sailors and
soldiers, the President owes our troops in harm's way and the American
people a plan to bring peace to Iraq and stability to the region." http://clark04.com/press/release/047/
This
was also noted at http://www.mediawhoresonline, which also reports
that Bush lied when he said the Navy was responsible for the "Mission
Accomplished" banner. Seems the White House did, in fact, produce
it.
Clark's statement and the truth about the banner both need your attention!
Thanks!
Mary Mason
*
* *
Governor Dean's Statement on President Bush's Press Conference
DENVER -- Democratic Presidential Candidate Governor Howard Dean, M.D.,
issued this statement following President Bush's press conference today.
"Yesterday,
the President claimed that the wave of attacks that left dozens dead
and scores injured proved that the US was winning the
peace in Iraq. At this point, nothing he says really surprises me anymore.
"Today,
we heard him try to walk away from the USS Abraham 'End of Major Combat
Operations' announcement, absurdly claiming that the
White House was not responsible for the 'Mission Accomplished' banner
that decorated the flight deck. He tried to argue that our actions are
supported by the Iraqi people, when poll after poll suggests that more
and more Iraqis are becoming fed up with the American occupation. And
he was adamant that the US will remain in Iraq, but failed to offer any
insight as to what he would do to address the increasingly dire situation."
*
* *
Response
of John Kerry to Bush Blaming American Troops on U.S.S. Abraham Lincoln
for his Stunt:
President Needs to Take Responsibility, Come Up With Plan for Post-War
Iraq
October 28, 2003
"George
Bush has replaced Harry Truman’s ‘The Buck Stops Here’ with ‘Don’t
blame me, I only work here.’ The President refuses to take
responsibility not just for his taxpayer-funded landing on an aircraft
carrier, but for the betrayal of our troops that his lack of post-war
planning represented. Ask our troops in Iraq whether the mission has
been accomplished. Ask our troops in Iraq whether they’d rather have
had a fancy aircraft landing from the President or a responsible post-war
plan to keep them safe. It’s not our troops’ fault that the White House
turned over to media strategists and advance staff an occasion that should
have been used to bring other countries to our side and begin the multilateral
rebuilding of Iraq and the end of an American occupation.”
A
BUZZFLASH NEWS ANALYSIS
*
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BuzzFlash
Note:
At
the time of posting, we couldn't find any official comments on the
Kucinich, Edwards, Moseley Braun, Gephardt and Sharpton campaign
websites,
but would be glad to post them. Remember that BuzzFlash has not endorsed any Democratic candidate for
President. We believe that our readers should make that choice, without
our irreverent two cents tossed in.
As for Lieberman, we were only looking for the responses to the latest
Bush lie from Democrats.
There we go, being nasty again. We just can't help ourselves.
*
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Also,
read "Whose Banner is It Anyway?" from the Air Force
Times at http://www.airforcetimes.com/story.php?f=1-292925-2346349.php
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