I've been nervous, pre-convention, of attacking Bush on the Bin Laden deal because I always felt they scheduled the convention in NY because they knew where Bin Laden was. Now I'm coming to the realization that it could be irrelevant if we make it so. I think Kerry needs to go on the attack on Bin Laden and he needs to do it right after the convention. Let's go for broke.
Here's the way I see it play...No bin laden found by election, it will cripple Bush going into the election as the guy who let bin laden slip away. Repeat stories of Tora Bora, etc., until it kills them. Dead or Alive becomes "Alive and, uh, We Ain't Got Em"...hit em where it hurts...Can't win a War on Terror if you don't get bin Laden. We say that every day until the election. Combine it with their "unwinnable" comment, it is a huge open door.
Some of you argue, well, if Bush finds bin Laden, we lose right? Probably the case anyway. But in the attack senario, Kerry can actually take credit for "re-focusing" Bush on the task at hand...take credit for forcing Bush to finally go get him after Bush's 1,000 lives lost war in Iraq over nothing..."Finally Bush took my advice and fought a real war on terror."
The way to do it is to pressure Bush on the troop count in Afghanistan directly, past and present...pressure him on the fact it has been THREE YEARS and they haven't found the guy...everything everyone else has been saying...put them on the defensive...make them EXPLAIN to the American people why it is we don't just send 150,000 troops into that region and kick the shit out of everyone that says we don't have a right to be there...Better yet, let him explain that to the families who have waited for justice and found nothing but "capturing one guy is not our priority" as an answer...
If Bush moves ONE more soldier to Afghanistan after Kerry calls for Bin Laden's capture, he will be reacting to Kerry's call to action...
I'm beginning to think we can control this story big time, and it is our only chance...This is THE way to win this election on the terror issue...and the beauty is, it DOESN'T MATTER if Bush gets him...if he does, we win because we made it the focus of the campaign (recall that bin laden was not mentioned day one at the convention)...if he doesn't, this is the way Kerry SHOWS he can do a more effective war on terror...can't be worse than Bush, Bush couldn't even get Bin Laden!
This stuff is rolling off my keyboard, guys...I'm convincing myself...