Ohio Talking Points

LATEST MEDIA CORPS ASSIGNMENT:

See http://www.johnkerry.com/mediacorps for details.

Monday John Kerry slammed George Bush for his "colossal failures of judgment" in the war in Iraq: In Iraq, this administration has consistently over promised and underperformed. This policy has been plagued by a lack of planning, an absence of candor, arrogance, and outright incompetence. And the president has held no one accountable, not even himself.

What are the consequences of Bush's misjudgments? What does Bush's Iraq look like now, months after Bush's declaration of "Mission Accomplished"?

• Americans are dying, and the number is increasing. Forty-two Americans died in Iraq in June -- the month before the handover. Fifty-four died in July, 66 died in August, and 54 soldiers have already died in September.


• More than 1,100 Americans were wounded in Iraq in August -- more than in any other month since invasion.


• Our soldiers are fighting a growing insurgency in an ever widening war zone. In March, insurgents attacked American forces in 700 separate assaults. In August, they initiated 2,700 attacks -- a 400% increase.


• Falluja, Ramadi, Samarra, and even parts of Baghdad, are now "no go zones" and breeding grounds for terrorists who plot and launch attacks against American soldiers.


• Violence against Iraqi civilians is on the rise from bombings to kidnappings to intimidations.
  Unemployment in Iraq is more than 50 percent.


• Basic living conditions are deteriorating. Residents of Baghdad are suffering electricity blackouts lasting up to 14 hours a day. Raw sewage fills the streets.


• The world is a much more dangerous place today because the president was wrong in the way he prepared for and waged war in Iraq.

George Bush has finally agreed to debate John Kerry on foreign policy next Thursday, September 30. We need you to prepare independents and swing voters in key states by making them aware of the real situation on the ground in Iraq. Bring those up to date who haven't been following the news so that they'll make the right decision on November 2.

Please write letters to the editor of local and state newspapers describing the increasing dangers facing American soldiers and Iraqi citizens.

Here's the one I just sent (and which the Cleveland Plain-Dealer is considering):

Bush Not Facing Reality

To the Editor:

The laughably optimistic Iraqi minister of (dis)information is back. But now he’s in the White House.

Months ago, the CIA projected three futures for Iraq: bad, awful, and worst. Things have only gone downhill since then. In August, our troops faced 87 attacks per day, the worst monthly average since “Mission Accomplished.” The death toll is steadily rising, augmented by daily beheadings of kidnapped civilians.

Our troops know how bad things have gotten. One Marine told the Christian Science Monitor recently “We shouldn’t be here.” Another said he was “thinking about throwing his medals over the White House wall.”

Congress knows what’s happening. As Republican Senator Chuck Hagel said “Right now, we are not winning. Things are getting worse.”

But George W. Bush remains in his own little make-believe world where Iraq and Afghanistan are “on the path to democracy and freedom,” as he told the U.N. Never mind that Iraq could easily erupt into civil war and the Taliban are back in power outside of Kabul.

Bush was on the pep squad at Andover and Yale. But it’s time he put away his pom-poms. The U.S. doesn’t need a cheerleader. We need a real leader. We need John Kerry.

Sincerely,

J.B. Lawton III