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Mission Accomplished: The Lie

A BUZZFLASH READER COMMENTARY
by Rosamond

Dear Editor:

Bush spokesman Dan Bartlett floated yet another White House lie* by claiming Bush never actually uttered the words "Mission Accomplished" during the infamous Operation Flight Suit spectacular that opened to SRO crowds aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln.

Nobody in the White House complained last May when the media echoed "Mission Accomplished" in their reviews, so it's a bit late in the day to try to convince voters that the gigantic "Mission Accomplished" banner fluttering behind Bush throughout his appearance was completely accidental. Sorry, Dan, but "technically true" just isn't good enough anymore -- people have been made disgusted and weary by Bush's untrue "technical truisms."

The campaign theatrics never stopped when Bush took office, and his PR team are seasoned pros when it comes to taking the show on tour. Their artful set design, kleig lighting, props, banners, costuming, music and convincingly-painted backdrops have enhanced Bush's appearances for years. Yet on their biggest and best-rehearsed technical production extravaganza since the boffo Baghdad statue-toppling performance, we're expected to believe they they totally blew it? If you buy that one, I have some nice Niger yellowcake to sell you.

How funny is it that Bartlett, himself a highly-paid cog in the most ferociously disciplined publicity machine on earth now tells us that these slick and seasoned spinmeisters, old hands at micromanaging every detail of the Bush Road Show, were suddenly seized with an attack of galloping incompetence and stupidly allowed their star player to be dwarfed by a grievously deceitful "off-message" banner hung by the ship's Captain for an entirely unrelated reason?

'Tis a sad, sad day indeed when even the politician's PR flak have gotten so out-of-touch that their fantasy worlds are populated with battleships that come complete with sophisticated printing facilities and a fully stocked complement of publicity materials aboard. Surely Bartlett was savoring a private joke and simultaneously demonstrating the Bushian technique of hiding the truth in plain sight when he said, "Look, perception becomes reality, but the facts don't back it up."

Sincerely,

Rosamond

A BUZZFLASH READER COMMENTARY

* * *

Washington Whispers 09/29/03 [LINK]
By Paul Bedard
'Mission accomplished': Bush brag or Demo fib?

After weeks of Democratic assaults that President Bush was a nitwit for declaring "mission accomplished" in Iraq during his May 1 landing and victory speech on the USS Abraham Lincoln, the White House is bidding to set the story straight. The issue should be a simple one: Bush never uttered those words. "The president," argues communications boss Dan Bartlett, "said exactly the opposite: The mission continues." But Bush stood under a banner declaring "mission accomplished." Why? Bartlett says that the Lincoln's captain had the banner made up to thank his crew for the longest-ever carrier tour, not to declare the war over. "It is something the troops are really proud of," says Bartlett. "Of course they can hang the banner." But the picture was all the Demos needed. "On TV," he says, "they never play the [sound] bite of the president, they just show the image with the banner." Democratic polls show that the public buys their spin, which doesn't really surprise Bartlett. "Look, perception becomes reality," he says. "But the facts don't back it up."