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You can always tell when Bush is in trouble. He always brings out 9/11. 9/11 is the cudgel that he waves. As far as he's concerned, it's 'Open Sesame'. 9/11 is his way of saying, 'Okay, I'm fucking up now, but remember four years ago? That was cool.' I think he thinks he can use it for anything. '9/11. On 9/11 we were attacked. And so, I should get to bang your wife.' What? 'Now, there are some nay-sayers out there who think I shouldn't bang your wife, well, that's the cut-and-run crowd.'

Jon Stewart#30

PoliticsAccountabilityLeadershipRhetoric

About this quote

What does it mean?
Stewart argues that political leaders often exploit 9/11 to deflect from current failures.
In plain terms
Leaders use past tragedies to justify poor current decisions.
What can you take from it?
Past trauma should not be used to justify unrelated present actions.

Where it applies

  • critiquing political rhetoric
  • analyzing leadership tactics

Putting it to work

  • identify rhetorical deflection
  • evaluate policy on merit

Questions to consider

  • How is history used in politics?
  • What justifies bad decisions?

Another view

It reduces complex political discourse to a personal attack.

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