NP: Jeff Beck, There and Back (Rhapsody)

You know how I said yesterday that Kerry seemed to be trying to flush Bush/Cheney out on Iraq not being the same as al Queda? Cheney came out swinging in response.

Obviously, the Democrats' response is that these are scare tactics, plain and simple, but it is pretty much the answer you'd have to expect from the GOP given the way they've spun the Iraq war lately. That is to say, Kerry would wait until terrorists attack us to respond, despite the fact that Iraq weren't actually terrorists, nor would they be in any position to attack us for a long, long time. If that's preemption, I think Switzerland is looking at us funny. Better go take 'em out.

This is classic Rove move. They're not saying Iraq was a threat, or that Iraq has anything to do with fundamentalist Islamic terrorism. Just that, because Kerry is criticizing this preemptive war, he is against all preemptive war, therefore he will only fight back when provoked by some "devastating" attack. So Bush and company get to paint Iraq and al Queda with the same brush again without actually saying it out loud, while making Kerry look like a wimp, which is the "Fox News slam dunk." Unfortunately, people will continue to fall for the routine.

I really, really hope the debates have substance. I really do. Is this too optimistic?