The fact that George W. Bush used a "buy now; pay during the next administration," bit of accounting legerdemain, (accounting pun alert -- accountants use ledgers -- get it?) to avoid putting the Iraq war into the budget figures, seemed kosher to Rove.
How much has the conservative talk radio phenomenon changed America? To get a different perspective on that question, ask yourself this question: "What's song is number one on this week's list of top 10 songs?" If you can't answer that question, just think back to the Vietnam War era. Back then, the music industry used the public air waves to sell products, which for the large part meant helping anti-war songs creep into the voters' minds. Where has top-40 radio gone? You don't see Bob Dylan selling anti-war songs now do you? Instead of the Fairness Doctrine, Rush Limbaugh (and his new substitute) can convince the people who have just had their homes repossessed that not continuing the Bush tax cuts for the millionaires would be just plain mean.
The fourth caller brought up how health care will affect small businesses.
In hour two, Rove started out by noting that during President Obama's, even as we speak, trip to Texas, the Republican governor will graciously greet the President and ask about border security, but the Democratic candidate running for governor of Texas, Bill White, is positioning himself as far away from Mr. Obama as he can get. Wink, wink. Nudge, nudge. Y'all understand why Mr. White doesn't want to stand next to Mr. Obama today, don'tcha? What's that feller's name again?
The Fifth caller gave Rove a chance to inform listeners that they could write to him and, if they had bought his book "Courage and Consequence," get an autographed book plate. The address can be found on the Rove dot com website, if you want one too. [Fans who asked John Wayne for his autograph were given a business card with an embossed image of the star's signature and not a genuine autograph.]
The next caller, Scott from Lone Wolf Oklahoma, asked what the Republicans will do after the fall elections. Tune in next hour to find out.
In the third hour Karl Rove plugged his book, "Courage and Consequence," again and talked about the fact that he has been working with and for the Bush family since August of 1973. He told about his first meeting with George W. Bush later that year. Like all good magicians' assistants, Rove totally ignored how the young Mr. Bush did the trick of finishing his commitment to the Air National Guard and going away to Harvard Business School so quickly and just gushed about the future President's exuded massive amounts of charisma. Was that before Dubya became a recovering alcoholic? If the young Bush could pump out a massive dose of charisma while he was in his drinking phase, that would be magical, eh?
Could the fact that Karl "the Architect" Rove has been working for the Bush family for nearly four decades mean that Jeb might be anointed "frontrunner" for the Republican nomination to run for President in 2012 the day after the fall election results are known?
Then he went into some poll numbers and touted a poll that would be released on Tuesday August 10, 2010. Both Rove and Scott from Lone Wolf seemed to assume that the Republicans would win a majority in the House this fall.
The polls were conducted by an entity known as American Crossroads. Rove refuted that it is a secret organization. Gee whatever happened to fair and balanced polls from reputable polling organizations? Cynics who think that polls produced by Republican-funded polling firms aren't big news, just don't "get it," do they?
Emily from Atlanta was very concerned about who will pay for the national debt and how will that be done. In one of his films, W. C. Fields used a sequence in which he swindled a fellow in a coffee shop into paying for Field's meal. Jerry Rubin described the same trick in his book "Steal this book." Now, all of a sudden after eight years of Bushonomics, the Republicans are very concerned that President Obama is going to stick future Americans with paying for the Middle East war adventures. Isn't that special?
The Rove talk show debut was a textbook perfect example of the kind of give-and-take debate that Republicans relish. The callers gave Rove an opening and he took the opportunity and ran with the relevant Republican talking points for that issue until the next commercial break stopped him. If that's not give-and-take-style debate, what is?
There is an old show business axiom that teaches that performers should leave their audiences begging for more. Odds seem good that journalists like those at Fox News -- Bill O'Reilly, and Sean Hannity -- will give Rove's Monday performance a thumbs-up verdict. Wait just a dang minute! They can't because that physical gesture is copyrighted and owned by Roger Ebert, so the aforementioned journalists will be compelled to find another way of fawning over the Monday broadcast.
If Rove gets the nod for some return engagements, he may need a distinctive theme song. Might we suggest the Horst Wessel Song, Die Fahne hoch ("The Flag Up High")? If Rove needs a distinctive adoring caller greeting phrase, how about "mega-sieg heils, Karl!"?
Joseph Goebbles is quoted online as having said: "If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it. The lie can be maintained only for such time as the State can shield the people from the political, economic and/or military consequences of the lie. It thus becomes vitally important for the State to use all of its powers to repress dissent, for the truth is the mortal enemy of the lie, and thus by extension, the truth is the greatest enemy of the State."
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