George Bush! I CHALLENGE You to Donate Your $40MM in Inaugural Funds

[Stephanie]

SHAME on you George Bush Junior if you spend this money to celebrate yourself while 23,000 lay dead and millions are homeless and endangered.

I CHALLENGE you, George Bush, to show us the COMPASSIONATE in your conservatism by DONATING ALL of your inauguration funds to relief for the earthquake/tsunami victims.


_______________________________

According to the committee's Web site, seven corporations donated $250,000 each to help raise more than $3.3 million in the past six days. The updated list of major donors was posted on the Web site Thursday.

More than $8 million has been raised for the inauguration, which is expected to be one of the most expensive in history.

Inaugural organizers initially estimated that the cost for three days of events would reach $50 million. Last week, the committee said it would spend $30 million to $40 million, all of it from private donations.

http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/news/stories.nsf/polit...
_______________________________


SHAME on you George Bush if you waste this money on yourself.

[havocmom]

1. Ladies & Gentlemen of the DU, Stephanie is back and seems rested

and rearin' ta go! Let's send her challenge far and wide.

Real compassion would not allow for such extravagant parties in the face of such horrible tragedy and need. I second the motion: George W. Bush, put up or shut up. Give the money to the real needy or stop pretending to be a decent person with compassionate values!

[IronLionZion]

6. conservative 90, compassionate 0

[Stephanie]

16. hello friend!

we're still here -

[Eloriel]

34. She may be rested, but this is the 2nd thread she's posted to the

wrong forum.

Stephanie, I agree with you on both posts, but this is the ELECTION forum. Would you be so kind as to alert on your two threads and ask the mods to move them to a more appropriate forum? Thanks.

[Stephanie]

45. Yes, I am aware of what forum it is. I think the INAUGURATION

is relevant to the election. What's the problem?

[Lithos]

2. Or to the US military

to pay for armor...

But, in either case, this use of $40MM is a waste a time when there are greater needs than ego stroking.

[IronLionZion]

3. I wish someone would challenge him to a duel

or even Zell from hell.

The weapons could be pretzels

[RoeBear]

4. Come on

you wouldn't be saying this if it were Kerry's inauguation, would you?

[Stephanie]

7. I wouldnt' HAVE to if it were Kerry's inauguration

Kerry has a sense of decency

[RoeBear]

11. Do you truly believe that

Kerry would have cancelled because of the earthquake?

[Stephanie]

15. It is possible to have an inauguration that doesn't cost $40 million -

It's indecent and obscene to spend that money on a coronation in the face of this humanitarian disaster. I have no doubt that Kerry would do the right thing. George Bush should look into his own soul, for a change.

[proudtobeadem]

32. He doesn't have a soul!

[IronLionZion]

8. Bush is already there,

why does he need another inauguration party?

[RoeBear]

10. Well did Clinton

have a 2nd inauguaration?

[Is It Fascism Yet]

18. yes, he did, but...

a) it didn't cost 40 million, that excess sets an all time new record.
and
b) Clinton was actually elected and was actually legitimately entitled to be inaugurated.

[Stephanie]

20. c) 24,000 people had not just been killed in one hour

suddenly and randomly and all at once.

[smartvoter]

22. Wowl! Is that the total now? It's horrible. nt

[Stephanie]

23. No it's not - the total is now around 37,000

And it will just keep getting worse. It's unfathomable.

[Is It Fascism Yet]

17. ah, no, we wouldn't but thats only because

a) kerry actually won, and this inaguration is the culmination of a farce
and
b) kerry wouldn't have to spend 40 million to give a party because everybody on the planet doesn't want overthrow him, because he is actually legitimate. don't you realize that 38 of that 40 million is going to be spent keeping people away from shrub, in the hopes of perserving his miserable worthless life?

[HeeBGBz]

25. The original $40 million plan didn't include security

That was just all party.

[Skittles]

19. I WOULD

nt

[proud patriot]

5. I second that challenge to the cowardly giggling murderer

[NVMojo]

9. these people truly are pigs, aren't they? No soul ....

[Stephanie]

12. not really, no

Dec 26 2004


link


Sep 11 2001


link

[Stephanie]

27. I was unclear - I was agreeing with you - no soul

not really any soul to speak of

[GetTheRightVote]

13. Wow, what a shameful waste of money, when so many are hurting out here

in the world, one more very good reason why he does not need to sit in the WH sucking off of us for the next four years, evil man.

[Bush_Eats_Beef]

14. I "called out" Junior yesterday on DU...

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.ph...

You see, the only problem here is that pesky Time Magazine "Person Of The Year" piece.

If you read the article (or as much as Time will let you read online without a subscription), Bush seems to validate his own actions in direct proportion to the hatred sent his way. He feels that if he is hated, he must be doing something right (the old Ralph Waldo Emerson premise that "to be great is to be misunderstood," apparently).

He feels like his "good works" won't be written about in his lifetime.

Read the article and you might walk away with the same opinion I did: the more we scream about the good he could do with that $40 million, the more determined he will be to spend it on himself.

Hell, people have been yelling about the money LONG before the tsunami / earthquakes hit. But now that we have such a major disaster in our "world community," HOW will our "Born Again Christian President" react?

My guess is that on January 20th, he will party like it's 1999, at a cost of $40 million.

The Time article is here:

http://www.time.com/time/personoftheyear/2004/story.htm...

Get ready to get PISSED.

[RoeBear]

21. Let's look on the bright side..

...most of the money being used is from contributors.
If they spend it on the inauguaration they can't be using it for other things like re-election of Republicans.
Plus alot of it is being spent in the D.C. area to small business and thath's a good thing.

[Snivi Yllom]

24. how about the $15 Million Kerry sat on, instead of using it to try to win?

oh wait

he needs that for 2008

[Stephanie]

26. whatever

you might want to read some of the other threads

[lonestarnot]

28. I challenge the bitch to feed the hungry, educate the poor, give up the

tax cut and STOP THIS FUCKING WAR FOR OIL!

[Meme]

29. so all this money will be used

for stupid events just because he´s the president for the next four years? Just one day or a few days, and all this money will be gone? Im sorry.. just have no idea what actually happens at an inauguration.

[Stephanie]

30. It's another informercial, plus parade, coronation, & nine "balls"

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/chitribts/2004...

...."Celebrating Freedom, Honoring Service" is the slogan for a festival that will start with a ceremony at an indoor Washington arena "saluting those who serve," and close with a collection of nine formal balls. The dances will include a Commander-in-Chief Ball open, admission free, to invited members of the military.

*****

At the same time, McGlennon suggested that a costly, military-theme celebration may sound jarring at a juncture when the Bush administration is predicting rising violence in Iraq as that nation nears elections scheduled 10 days after Bush's inauguration.

"Holding a military ball in conjunction with the inauguration at the same time that there are troops in harm's way is inevitably going to raise some questions about spending money on an elaborate event when we've just gone through some discussion about adequately equipping the troops in Iraq," McGlennon said. "The decision to highlight the president's attachment to Iraq is going to depend on things getting better there."

Most of the money for ceremonies, such as the elaborate balls and the parade through Washington after Bush's swearing-in at the west front of the Capitol, will come from a private committee with a stated budget of $30 million to $40 million. However, it is likely that Bush, who raised a record $270 million for his re-election, will surpass the $40 million spent on his first inauguration in 2001.

*****

"This is one of the few places left where corporations, wealthy individuals and others can provide a huge sum of money to directly help a president, and gain access and influence as a result," said Fred Wertheimer, president of Democracy 21, a Washington-based public interest group.

[sepia_steel]

31. kick

death toll is now up to 51,000.

[bunny planet]

33. While he's at it he can give the money he wants to spend buying back the

Presidential YACHT that was sold during Carter's presidency. He is beyond disgraceful.

[Name removed]

35. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Stephanie]

36. Asking the CORPORATIONS who donate milllions to his CORONATION

to redirect their funds to disaster relief charities? You think that might be a crime? No doubt you're right.

[Name removed]

37. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Stephanie]

38. You're right

Redirecting funds from Chimp ass-kissing to humanitarian life-saving would be illegal, no doubt.

Let them eat - ummm - what should they eat? There's not enough cake.

[Name removed]

39. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Stephanie]

40. At DU we base our arguments on facts

If that is too strenuous for you, please move on. Evading an argument by making snide but irrational sexist comments won't win you any points here.

[Name removed]

41. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Stephanie]

42. "cute little ideas" was sexist - say that to a man

the money has not even been raised, yet alone spent. $40M is the estimate - they are one tenth there. Look it up.

A better suggestion would be to have an actual President.

Enjoy your stay.

[BoomerSoonerOKU]

43. I really

don't understand what the big outcry of "not enough money" is about right now. Throwing money at them isn't what is going to help now. Sending manpower and assitance for the clean-up / recovery is much more important imo. Money is needed for the re-build, no?

[Stephanie]

44. Money is needed for clean water

For food, for medicine, for shelter. Watch the news. Representatives from the relief agencies are on every day asking for money. They are saying that the government donations come in very slowly and that they need public donations for immediate needs.