The Orbis

Associate editor

Republicans from across the country convened in New York City last week to officially nominate George Bush as their candidate for president and to release a platform that caters to both the Christian conservatives and the fear-mongers of the party. The event was held a few miles from Ground Zero in Madison Square Garden, a physical sign of the Bush campaign’s calculated efforts to turn the Sept. 11 attacks into a partisan issue over the next two months.

Each day of the convention was orchestrated to present a different theme to the American public, beginning Monday night with an attempt to put a moderate face on an extremist party. Sen. John McCain and former New York mayor Rudolph Giuliani, both of whom are widely popular across party lines, gave keynote speeches.

With a digital banner reading “A Nation of Courage” displayed prominently behind his back, McCain offered a vigorous defense of Bush’s national security efforts, putting aside the animosity the two shared after the President’s smear campaign in the 2000 primary election. However, he gained the most applause from delegates after alluding to “a disingenuous film maker who would have us believe that Saddam’s Iraq was an oasis of peace.”

The focus on national security was bolstered in a shamelessly theatrical exploitation of family members of Sept. 11 victims, who mounted the stage amid dimmed lights and tearfully endorsed the president. An emotional rendition of Amazing Grace followed.

Tuesday featured appearances from California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Laura Bush, who was introduced by her daughters in an absurd debut to national politics.

Schwarzenegger delivered an upbeat and optimistic view of the country, telling critics not to be “economic girlie men” in addition to expounding upon his personal experience as an immigrant living out the American dream. California delegates even dunned "Terminator" style sunglasses.

The tone of the convention changed drastically Wednesday, with Vice President Dick Cheney and Sen. Zell Miller of Georgia ruthlessly attacking John Kerry while spreading the militaristic rhetoric characteristic of the administration.

“He [Kerry] declared at the Democratic Convention that he will forcefully defend America – after we have been attacked,” Mr. Cheney said. “My fellow Americans, we have already been attacked, and faced with an enemy who seeks the deadliest of weapons to use against us, we cannot wait for the next attack. We must do everything we can to prevent it – and that includes the use of military force.”

He continued, “George W. Bush will never seek a permission slip to defend the American people,” mocking Sen. Kerry’s calls for alliance building.

However, it was Miller, a dissatisfied Democrat, who struck fear into the hearts of children across the country with his unnecessarily caustic assault on Kerry and unsurpassed war-mongering. “Senator Kerry has made it clear that he would use military force only if approved by the United Nations. Kerry would let Paris decide when America needs defending. I want Bush to decide. John Kerry, who says he doesn’t like outsourcing, wants to outsource our national security,” asserted Miller in his overly-simplistic view of Kerry’s position on internationalism.

With fiery eyes, he gave a litany of weapons programs that Kerry supposedly opposed, including “the B-1 bomber, [which] dropped 40 percent of the bombs in the first six months of Operation Enduring Freedom.”

On the last night of the convention, President Bush appeared to the raucous cheers of the delegates. Speaking for 62 minutes, Bush vaguely outlined new domestic plans, including rewriting the tax code and adding personal investment accounts to Social Security, but he gave no details about the logistics of these proposals.

He also unabashedly catered to his fundamentalist Christian base: “Because a caring society will value its weakest members, we must make a place for the unborn child. Because religious charities provide a safety net of mercy and compassion, our government must never discriminate against them. Because the union of a man and woman deserves an honored place in our society, I support the protection of marriage against activist judges. And I will continue to appoint federal judges who know the difference between personal opinion and the strict interpretation of the law.”

Bush portrayed his role in the fight against terror in historically sweeping terms. “Generations will know if we seized this moment and used it to build a future of safety and peace. The freedom of many and the future security of our nation, now depend on us.”

Bush also found myriad opportunities to attack his opponent, representing the stark contrast between the tone of the Democratic National Convention and that of the Republicans.

A study from the New York Times presented a quantitative view of both conventions. Over the first three days of the Democratic convention, the words “jobs” and “Bush” were uttered 127 and 19 times, respectively. During the same period in the Republican convention, “jobs” was said 28 times and “Kerry” was said 86 times, incontrovertibly detailing the difference in priorities of each convention.

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