In my view, one of the most interesting exchanges of the second debate has gotten very little coverage. The media are certainly not eager to remind us of it, for it goes to their very credibility.
When John Kerry wanted to convince people that the President's plan in Iraq is not working, he appealed to the mainstream media's depiction of the war.
Kerry: I have laid out a different plan, because the president's plan is not working. You see that every night on television.
But note how Bush responds.
Bush: Two days ago in the Oval Office, I met with the finance minister from Iraq. He came to see me. And he talked about how optimistic he was and the country was about heading toward elections. Think about it: They're going from tyranny to elections. He talked about the reconstruction efforts that are beginning to take hold. He talked about the fact that Iraqis love to be free. He said he was optimistic when he came here, then he turned on the TV and listened to the political rhetoric and all of a sudden he was pessimistic. Now, this is guy a who, along with others, has taken great risk for great freedom. And we need to stand with him.
I thought this was very effective.
