Bush = Broken Promises

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15654769/ns/politics-political_cartoons/t/week-political-cartoons/

Too often, politicians and congressmen make promises that they can't or don't intend to follow through on. With these promises, they offer a temporary solution to a long term problem. One of the problems this country has faced for the past ten years is the war on terrorism. Bush assumed office in 2000 and soon had to deal with the crisis of 9/11. In response to the attacks Bush sent troops over to the Middle East in order to prevent any future attacks from coming to fruition. Constantly, Bush kept saying how he would take the troops out of Iraq and Iran by Christmas or in a year of the last promise. Finally after ten years, all troops in Iraq will be home for Christmas this year, something Obama said he would be able to do during his presidency.

In Adam Zygus's cartoon, Bush is in the background standing behind a podium saying "Major Combat Operations in Iraq have ended." I huge pencil is drawn next to the speaking bubble, dotting the period at the end of Bush's statement. On the side of the pencil the date "Dec. 15, 2011" is displayed. Bush's statement is supposed to represent all the false promises he made and what he was not able to accomplish during his time in office. Bush is also wearing an air suit that indicates he's been over to Iraq, meaning he should have obtained an update on the troops. This represents that Bush just wanted to appeal to the public when in fact he knew that the troops were not going to be coming home. In the bubble the date "May 1, 2003" is written and is used as a contrast between the date Dec. 15, 2011. This shows that it took eight years in order for the operations in Iraq to end instead of three years.

One of the techniques that Zygus uses is his placement of certain features in the cartoon. He places Bush in the background emphasizing the fact that Bush's remarks are part of the past, that he is no longer president. There's also a clear contrast between dates meaning that both are significantly different. May 3 is in the springtime heading towards summer, which for most families, is a time where they'll be taking vacations together. December 15 is ten days before Christmas, another event where families will be spending time together. Many of the people serving in the military are a part of these families and due to the fact that time kept elapsing, they didn't get to see them. Zygus also uses an actual quote which is supposed to make people think about the flaws that Bush had in his presidency. Bush would give information to the public that he thought they wanted to hear, not the information that they needed to hear.

For many years, we struggled with taking the troops out of the Middle East and finally we've been able to get them out of Iraq. Obama has made it possible for this to happen and that's a huge contrast between him and Bush. This cartoon deals with the issue of the amount of time the troops have spent over in Iraq, Iran, Pakistan and Afghanistan. While Americans would like to protect themselves from terrorists, they also need to think about those who are currently defending. Zygus seems to support that the troops need to be taken out of the Middle East because of Obama's presidency. Zygus could be a liberal due to the fact that they do not believe that America should be using violence as a means to fight terrorism. But the main message is not about the troops but about the lies that Americans have heard repeatedly about the war over in Iraq. Bush did not handle the war well and it is reflected in Zygus's cartoon. By emphasizing the past and present conditions of the war, Zygus is able to help Americans see what a difference eight years makes and how much more information we've obtained about the war.