Bush Redoubles Ineffectiveness Against Shadowy Groups

Atrios wonders. Here, here, and here too.

All 527 Ads Off the Air

Elizbaeth Dole just told us once again that this is Bush's position. Can some reporter please get to the bottom of this? Does Bush want them to be illegal? Has he embraced a new campaign finance law position?

What Atrios is referring to, of course, is the shadowy network of organizations that we've heard so much about from the White House in recent days. Witness:

MR. McCLELLAN: We've already said we weren't involved in any way in these ads. We've made that clear...I mean, where has the Kerry been -- Kerry campaign been for the last year while more than $62 million in funding through these shadowy groups has been used to negatively attack the President. The Kerry campaign has been noticeably silent, and in many instances, they have actually fueled these kinds of attacks by these shadowy groups that are funded by unregulated soft money. (August 20, 2004)

MR. McCLELLAN: The President has condemned all of the ads by the shadowy groups. We have called on Senator Kerry to join us in calling for an end to all the unregulated soft money activity that is going on in this campaign...And the President has condemned all of the ads and condemned all of the soft money -- unregulated soft money that is going on. Senator Kerry should join us in calling for an end to all of this soft money -- unregulated soft money activity. Senator Kerry has declined to do so. The President has been on the receiving end of more than $62 million in negative, false attacks from these shadowy groups that exist. The President thought that we got rid of all of this kind of soft money activity when he signed the campaign finance reforms into law. (August 19, 2004)

MR. McCLELLAN: We have been on the receiving end of more than $62 million in negative political attacks from these shadowy groups that are funded by unregulated soft money. And the President has condemned all of the ads and activity going on by these shadowy groups. (August 18, 2004)

MR. McCLELLAN: You heard last week, I mean, we made it very -- let's not be selective here, because the issue here is looking at this unregulated soft money advertising and activity that is going on. And we made it very clear last week that the President deplores all the unregulated soft money ads and activity that are going on. And that's why we called on the Kerry campaign to join us in calling for an end to all of this unregulated soft money advertising and activity that is going on...He should join us in calling for an end to all of this unregulated soft money activity by these shadowy groups. That's what the President thought we got rid of when he signed the campaign finance reforms into law. (August 10, 2004)

MR. McCLELLAN: Again, we continue to urge Senator Kerry to join us and call for an end to all the ads and activity by these shadowy groups that are funded by unregulated soft money. These ads are examples of the kinds of problems with this unregulated soft money. The President signed the campaign finance reforms into law in part to get rid of this kind of activity. (August 6, 2004)

MR. McCLELLAN: The President thought he put an end -- or the President thought he got rid of this kind of unregulated soft money when he signed the bipartisan campaign finance reforms into law...And, you know, the President has been on the receiving end of more than $62 million in negative attacks from shadowy groups. The President is calling for an immediate cessation to all the unregulated soft money activity...Again, the President has been on the receiving end of more than $62 million in negative attacks from shadowy groups. And the President thought he got rid of this kind of activity when he signed the bipartisan campaign finance reforms into law...These were loopholes that we thought were closed when the President signed the campaign finance reforms into law...The President knows what it's like to be on the receiving end of more than $62 million in negative attacks from these kinds of shadowy groups. (August 5, 2004)

What Atrios is wondering, I think, is whether Bush has flip flopped once again. Afterall, Atrios seems to be implying, isn't this the same George W. Bush who was opposed to campaign reform during his last unsuccessful bid for the presidency in 2000? Isn't this the same George W. Bush who only reluctantly signed McCain-Feingold into law? Isn't this the same George W. Bush who wouldn't even have a Rose Garden ceremony -- signed in the shadows, you might say -- for this, his new signature issue?

Fair questions, all. But, Mr. Atrios, I think you're being too hard on Mr. Bush. Afterall, I think the record is clear that the Bush administration has a long if undistinguished record of ineffectual battles against shadowy organizations:

June 22, 2004: "We face an enemy that lies in the shadows..." -- White House Counsel Judge Alberto Gonzales

March 8, 2004: "...and shadowy private networks and individuals who also traffic in these materials, motivated by greed or fanaticism or both..." -- National Security Advisor Dr. Condoleezza Rice

February 18, 2004: "This is a shadowy network that exists. The investigation continues, there is still more that we are learning. But we are acting to break up this network once and for all." -- Scott McClellan

November 4, 2002: "...could use his shadowy group of people to attack his enemy and leave no fingerprint behind. He's a threat." -- George W. Bush

October 14, 2002: "We face a shadowy enemy. They're real, they're tough, they are determined." -- George W. Bush

September 17, 2002: "Now, shadowy networks of individuals can bring great chaos and suffering to our shores..." -- George W. Bush

September 16, 2002: "They kind of move around in the shadows of big cities in some countries, and hide, and then strike hard...If they're in some shadowy neighborhood, we'll finally put the spotlight on the shadowy neighborhood. It doesn't matter where they hide, we're after them, one person at a time." -- George W. Bush

June 19, 2002: "And we're making progress, we're making progress. We've got the FBI and the CIA talking like they've never talked before. And that's important, and that's important. (Applause.) It's important because we fight a shadowy enemy." -- George W. Bush

June 3, 2002: "...against this shadowy enemy, it's very important that we gather as much intelligence as we can. We need to know what they're thinking, and what they're planning on doing before they do something. That's the best way." -- George W. Bush

May 21, 2002: "Now, as the President said from the very beginning, it's a shadowy war, it's a different kind of war. It's not the type of war that our parents were used to..." -- Ari Fleischer

May 14, 2002: "One of the things that we're finding is that our enemy is shadowy. They lurk behind civil institutions and then they strike. They -- they're not like an enemy we've known before." -- George W. Bush

May 13, 2002: "We're facing a shadowy enemy..." -- George W. Bush

January 23, 2002: "We still face a shadowy enemy who dwells in the dark corners of the earth." -- George W. Bush

December 12, 2001: "We are fighting shadowy, entrenched enemies..." -- George W. Bush

It seems to me that when Bush says he "thought he got rid of this kind of activity" it's sort of like when he thought he got rid of Osama bin Laden before he went into Iraq. Perhaps he ought not think so much. Or, put another way, Bush has once again demonstrated that shadowy groups concern him only after they attack.