Friday, August 06, 2004
Responding to Bush's Columbus appearance
Bush's show yesterday at the Aladdin Shrine Temple offers a couple of useful opportunities for letters to Ohio editors. For instance, in the letter(s) I sent today (and reprinted below), I brought up today's woeful employment numbers.
Another approach is to bring up the Bush's talk about "comp time" and "flex time." As the Center for American Progress points out in excruciating detail, these innocuous terms camouflage eliminating overtime for millions of Americans. Check out the report for a variety of devastating talking points. (And, as noted below, those points are known to be persuasive with those oh-so-important swing voters.)
Here's my letter. Write one of your own.
To the Editor:
It's no wonder George W. Bush only talked to pre-selected Republicans when he held his "Ask the President" forum yesterday in Columbus.
Days before Bush got here, Techneglas laid off nearly 400 employees.
The day after he left, the Labor Department reported that payroll growth slowed dramatically in July with only 32,000 jobs being added nationwide. As the Associated Press noted, that's "the smallest gain in hiring since December." It's also barely 10 percent of the 300,000 monthly new jobs Bush promised if he got his tax cuts.
Adding to the woes, the payroll figures for May and June were both revised downward. At this rate, Bush is well on his way to becoming the first President since Herbert Hoover to leave office with fewer people employed than when he started.
We better get ready for more articles about local Bush supporters getting their teenage daughters to steal Kerry yard signs. After all, they can't win on Bush's economic record.
JB Lawton III
Another approach is to bring up the Bush's talk about "comp time" and "flex time." As the Center for American Progress points out in excruciating detail, these innocuous terms camouflage eliminating overtime for millions of Americans. Check out the report for a variety of devastating talking points. (And, as noted below, those points are known to be persuasive with those oh-so-important swing voters.)
Here's my letter. Write one of your own.
To the Editor:
It's no wonder George W. Bush only talked to pre-selected Republicans when he held his "Ask the President" forum yesterday in Columbus.
Days before Bush got here, Techneglas laid off nearly 400 employees.
The day after he left, the Labor Department reported that payroll growth slowed dramatically in July with only 32,000 jobs being added nationwide. As the Associated Press noted, that's "the smallest gain in hiring since December." It's also barely 10 percent of the 300,000 monthly new jobs Bush promised if he got his tax cuts.
Adding to the woes, the payroll figures for May and June were both revised downward. At this rate, Bush is well on his way to becoming the first President since Herbert Hoover to leave office with fewer people employed than when he started.
We better get ready for more articles about local Bush supporters getting their teenage daughters to steal Kerry yard signs. After all, they can't win on Bush's economic record.
JB Lawton III
