Richard Halicek – 10/24/04

This page was last updated on October 24, 2004.

Fire Bush; Richard Halicek; Beaver County Times; October 24, 2004.

Below is a detailed critique of the subject letter.

“I have no hesitation in suggesting that George W. Bush be fired as our president.

“He has led America from record surpluses to record deficits, imposing a huge burden on our children and grandchildren, which threatens to seriously compromise our Social Security and Medicare programs.

[RWC] The “record surpluses” myth again. The budget surplus had already declined in Bill Clinton’s last budget. Therefore, there is no way President Bush could have inherited a “record” budget surplus. The primary reasons for the deficits are the recession that started toward the end of the Clinton administration, 9/11 and its aftereffects, and the insecurity caused by the uncovering of accounting scandals that flourished during the Clinton administration. The uncertainties inherent in the war on terror also contribute.

What evidence can Mr. Halicek provide to support his allegation that the deficit “threatens to seriously compromise our Social Security and Medicare programs?”

“He has orchestrated tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans, which will increase these deficits to more than $5 trillion over the next decade.

[RWC] Nice try, but everyone received a tax cut. If there’s going to be a tax cut, shouldn’t everyone who pays the taxes get a share? Isn’t that fair? Even people who owed no taxes received larger tax “credits” (read: handouts).

“He has led us into a war in Iraq on the false claim between Saddam Hussein and Osama bin Laden. In so doing, he incurred a huge cost of $120 billion and growing on the American people, the loss of more than 1,000 American lives, the heightened animosity of the Arab world and the estrangement from allied nations.”

[RWC] The only “false claim” here is that by Mr. Halicek. Though recent independent reports acknowledge al-Qaida and Hussein didn’t collaborate on 9/11, the same reports confirm there were links between al-Qaida and Iraq. That has been the Bush administration position all along. The Clinton administration also believed in an al-Qaida/Iraq link.

“Heightened animosity?” You mean more than it took to kill nearly 3,000 defenseless civilians? More than it took to kill sailors on the USS Cole? More than it took to kill American soldiers at the Khobar towers? What BS! I guess this means we should not fight crime either because it might make the criminals angry.

“Estrangement from allied nations?” Apparently the 40+ nations helping in Iraq don’t count. Apparently the only “worthy” allies are those that didn’t join us in Iraq.

“And, he has enhanced and encouraged terrorist activity around the world.”

[RWC] Can Mr. Halicek provide any provable facts to support this allegation?

“Such poor judgment and mismanagement as he has shown accentuates the need for a change in leadership. The American people should recognize the above realities and vote him out of office for the benefit of our great nation.”

[RWC] The problem with this last paragraph is that Mr. Halicek presented only fantasy, not reality.