Written by: Beck

The Bush campaign kicked off in force this week with a series of TV ad spots. I'd like you to take a moment now, and imagine what sorts of things President Bush might put in a (positive) campaign ad. You'd think he'd do things like highlight his successes and strong points, right? He'd most likely want to illustrate the challenges our nation faces, and how those challenges are uniquely suited to his brand of leadership.

As much as the Kerry camp would like to make this election about anything BUT the War on Terror, there is no denying that in the minds of a whole lot of people, the real issue is which person would be the most likely to maximize the Dead Terrorist to Dead American ratio. It should be self evident what I'm zeroing in on at this point. The challenge, leadership, all that--they all became relevant on 9/11/01. I can't count the number of people I heard saying, in the immediate aftermath of the World Trade Tower attacks, "Thank God Gore isn't president." Say what you will of the potential merits of a peacetime Gore administration, when it comes time to kick ass and take names, people want someone who doesn't take marching orders from France.

And I have now completely digressed from what I originally wanted to harp on. Bush's new TV ads feature footage of the World Trade Tower disaster. One features an American flag flying in the debris, another features fire fighters climbing through the wreckage. These are images of heroism and of the strength of the American spirit; furthermore, they are images of the severity and seriousness of the threat to our nation--no, to our very way of life--posed by terrorism and Islamic extremism. These images are relevant and appropriate. Frankly, nothing could be more relevant to the up coming presidential election.

So, naturally, the liberal spin machine is already gearing up to criticize the Bush election team for making use of these images.

"It's a slap in the face of the murders of 3,000 people," Monica Gabrielle, whose husband died in the twin towers, told the New York Daily News for its Thursday editions. "It is unconscionable."

No, Ms. Gabrielle, it is unconscionable to turn away from the wake-up call of 9/11. It is a slap in the face of those fallen New Yorkers to pretend that it didn't happen. The American people need to be continually reminded of the horror of that day, lest they forget for one moment what we are up against.

UPDATE: Instapundit tackles the issue, noting that the dems have done it too, that FDR did it, and a whole slew of other things. Read it and weep.