Bush speeches laced with messages to religious right

[PSU84]

"Bush’s speechwriter, Michael Gerson, himself an evangelical, laces the President’s addresses with seemingly innocuous terms that the devout recognize as laden with meaning: “whirlwind,” “work of mercy,” “safely home,” “wonder-working power.” Phillips refers to a study by the religion scholar Bruce Lincoln, who identified, in Bush’s speech to Congress announcing the invasion of Afghanistan, allusions to Revelation, Isaiah, Job, Matthew, and Jeremiah."

"The problem lies in the specific ways in which Bush uses religion. Abraham Lincoln, in his second Inaugural address, invoked God, but he did so in a spirit of humility, questioning his own certitude and thus inviting further questioning. Bush does the opposite: his use of religion seems designed to remove any doubt—first in his own mind, then in the public’s—about his course. It doesn’t assist Bush with his reasoning; it substitutes for reasoning. Instead of providing a starting point for careful judgments, it assures him that the instincts on which he has based his policy are unerring."

"This kind of recourse to religion leaves citizens no grounds on which to question the President’s actions. If the inspiration of God or the Bible is purely personal or subjective, it’s not open to debate—and decisions based on it become immune from scrutiny. The result is to short-circuit political deliberation, since democracy rests on the ability of the governed to check their leaders through reasoned argument."

http://www.newyorker.com/critics/books/?040712crbo_book...

[punpirate]

1. Immune to scrutiny, eh?

How about making a few allusions to Elmer Gantry? Haven't seen much of that in the press these days, and, goodness knows, we're overdue for a little reporting on Bush hypocrisy. :P

[young_at_heart]

2. Is Bush placing himself above the rest of us?

If I'm reading this correctly, there should be no discussion because Bush's "course" is designed by God.