Oh, so <i>now</i> ‘scare ads’ are wrong

Five months after winning a second term by smearing his rival with deceitful, occasionally outrageous, advertising, Bush wants the public to discount “scare ads.”

President Bush and Democrats took their differences over Social Security to the airwaves on Saturday, with Bush complaining about “scare ads” against his plan…. Bush reiterated his promise of no changes in current benefits to those already retired or who are age 55 or older, “no matter what the scare ads or the politicians might tell you.”

Yes, because trying to scare people through misleading demagoguery is wrong. Bush knows all about that.

Indeed, as long as the president has a new found respect for honest public discourse, and opposition to advertising that’s intended to scare Americans, maybe now would be a good time to ask for an apology for the inane “Wolves” ad? Or how about repudiating the direct mail piece that claimed liberals want to “ban” the Bible? And maybe some sense of disapproval for the campaign mailings that showed Kerry alongside burning World Trade Center buildings?

For Bush, “scare ads” are only inappropriate when they’re a) true and b) directed at him. Good to know.