This is the email I sent out to the mass media late last night (including a list of major Bush WOT failures below the fold). I know everyone's moved on from the OBL tape, but we still have to control the media spin around it. So, in the spirit of contributing my two cents...
As I watched the new Osama Bin Laden videotape tonight, I had to wonder why this man was still around to threaten us. Didn't the president say "dead or alive" sometime long, long ago? Weren't we going to "smoke him out of his hole?" It seems he's very much alive and still a threat, and the only smoke we've been seeing in recent days has been coming from the president's campaign.
The bottom line is Bush has failed in his efforts to fight terrorism. This is not opinion; this is fact.
(cont.)
-- Who attacked us on 9/11? Osama Bin Laden. Has he been brought to justice? NO.
-- Was Iraq involved in 9/11 in any way shape or form? NO. Are we diverting massive military and financial resources from finding Bin Laden and Al Qaida to fight the war in Iraq? YES.
-- Was Al Qaida in Iraq before the US invasion? NO. Now? YES.
-- Are terrorists now using the Iraq war (over 100,000 Iraqi civilian casualties, the Abu Ghraib photos, etc.) as a recruiting tool? YES.
-- Have we armed terrorists and insurgents with over 377 tons of high explosives, thousands of regular munitions, and HIV and black fever due to a complete lack of post-war planning? YES.
-- How many terrorists has the Ashcroft (In)Justice Dept. convicted? ZERO.
-- Are our ports, chemical and nuclear plants, and airplane cargo holds more protected since 9/11? NO.
In closing, let me remind you that one candidate in this election has said he doesn't think the war on terrorism can be won, that our security is "up in the air," and that he's not that concerned about Osama Bin Laden. It's President Bush.
Tough on terror? NO WAY.
Deserving re-election? NOT A CHANCE.
Let's not let the SCLM take its eye off the ball on this tape and what it means.