The following are television ads I would have liked to have seen, but did not see, during the 2004 Presidential Election:

The Pre-9/11 statements of Colin Powell and Condoleezza Rice that Saddam Hussein was completely contained and posed no threat... juxtaposed against President Bush’s State of the Union Address regarding weapons of mass destruction.

Bush during the 2000 campaign bragging about the Texas Patients Bill of Rights which he had signed as Governor... juxtaposed against the Bush Administration’s opposition to the rights of those patients before the U.S. Supreme Court, after he was elected President.

Kenneth Lay. CEO of Enron. Multi-million-dollar accounting scandal. Indicted....
Bernie Ebbers. CEO of Worldcom. Multi-million-dollar accounting scandal. Indicted....
Dick Cheney. CEO of Halliburton. Multi-million-dollar accounting scandal. George Bush’s two-time selection for vice-president of the United States.

Dick Cheney as Monte Burns from the Simpsons, discussing his plans to exploit energy opportunities in Iraq, with George Bush playing the role of Smithers.

Dick Cheney as Potter, talking about the “garlic eaters”, told off by John Edwards in the role of George Bailey, from It’s a Wonderful Life.

John McCain, during the 2000 primaries, questioning the qualifications of a draft-dodger like George Bush. – Or, in the event that McCain did not want to compromise the Republican position in the general election, and therefore refrained from making such statements during the primaries: John McCain as war hero... linked with John Kerry as war hero... juxtaposed against George Bush as draft dodger.

Georgie Porgie pudding and pie,
Kissed the girls and made them cry.
When the men went off to war,
Georgie Porgie played some more.
Joined the Guard, which wasn’t play,
So Georgie Porgie ran away.

John Kerry, responding to questions about the Swift Boat ads: “Well, I’m not sure exactly where Vietnam ends and Cambodia begins. It’s not like you’re on I-95, and you see a big sign that says Welcome to Cambodia, Rest Area Next Right. But I know that people were shooting at me. And I also know that people were definitely not shooting at George Bush. In Alabama, or Texas, or Kennebunkport, or playing golf, or off drinking with his fraternity brothers, or wherever he claims he was.”

"Everybody Knows About Mississippi, Goddam!"



[Note - The views expressed on this political blog and legal blog are the personal views of Steve Herman and are not intended to represent the views of Herman Herman Katz & Cotlar, LTLA, TLPJ, the Civil Justice Foundation, or any other organization.]

“How long would we have to stay in Bagdad to keep the government in place? What would happen to the government once U.S. forces withdrew? How many casualties should the United States accept in that effort to try to create clarity and stability in a situation that is inherently unstable?”

- Dick Cheney, 1991.


(See Carl Hiaasen, “Guy Walks Into a War” New York Times Book Review, Dec. 4, 2005, p.57; quoting from Al Franken’s The Truth (with jokes), 2005.)