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IT'S THE FEROCITY, STUPID Thu May 8, 7:01 PM ET By Ted Rall
How Democrats Can Beat Bush in 2004
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"I know I can beat George Bush," Lieberman said on May 4th. "Why? Because Al Gore (news - web sites) and I already did it." That's the snotty attitude Democrats need in order to prevail in 2004.
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Forget ideas--voters respond to the personal stuff. Dwell on the two years Bush went AWOL from the Texas Air National Guard. "Brave Americans gave their lives in Vietnam," a 30-second spot should intone as the camera pans over names of the fallen on the black wall in Washington. "Rich kid George W. Bush deserted. This coward snorted coke and drove drunk while other kids died."
Go after Bush's ultimate Achilles' heel: run countless loops of the inarticulate Resident's clashes with the English language. "Too dumb to talk," a sinister voiceover reads. "Too stupid to trust." Use time-proven Republican methods, like name-calling: Extremist. Out of touch. Tax and spender. Hates workers. Racist. Homophobe. Corrupt CEO coddler. Idiot. Drunk. Cut to the post-pretzel-incident photo: "America needs a sober president."
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