but a roundup of points Kerry failed to make tonight:
– Bush provided a great opening on drug reimportation by referencing “working with Canada” on the flu vaccine. Yes, Kerry eventually got to reimportation, but not right when it counted.
– On the deficit, Bush “has a plan” but has never referenced exactly what it is; instead, he’s just attacked Kerry’s plan (which we’ve gone over before). Kerry should point out that Bush’s “plan” involves draconian 80% cuts in almost every government service known to mankind.
– To counter Bush’s warm words on education, roll out what Howard Dean called “the Bush tax”: the cuts in education and services and hikes in state taxes and fees (most especially college tuition). Where the feds have expanded programs by a bit, the states have already pulled out the rug — and Bush, instead of offering revenue sharing, again chose tax cuts for the rich.
– “98 times” is just wrong. Just call him out on “fuzzy math” and point out a few ways in which it double-counts votes.
– The “marriage protection amendment” does nothing of the sort. It’s an attempt to create a wedge issue, plain and simple, since this nonsense about state courts forcing other states to accept marriages is just silly.
– “Activist judges” is another right-wing trope. Didn’t Bush land his job thanks to some activist judges?
– Bush is bringing up the same old “compassionate conservative” tropes he did in 2000, only now he’s had four years to not act on them. Great opening to talk about the divisiveness, like…
– Much of the post-2001 divisiveness stems from Bush’s rush to war in Iraq and other actions from the administration. Kerry was right to pin the blame on the House leadership, but the President’s arrogance is more fundamentally at fault.
– HSAs are simply bad policy: “market reforms” for health care services don’t make sense, since health care is almost the definition of a market riddled with imperfect information. (If I had perfect information about health care, what use would I have for a doctor?) Besides, HSAs undermine the entire premise of health insurance — to spread the risks, to encourage preventive care, and to reduce costs for the poor — while opening up a huge new tax break for the rich. I know it’s not at all sound-bite-able, but someone has to make a cogent critique of these before they become too common.