Bush's Latest Demonology

By Ned Zeman On 11/11/90 at 7:00 PM EST

George Bush, as a political matter, often tries to manipulate powerful symbols. Remember the flag, cops and Willie Horton? Those were nothing compared with his Saddam Hussein/Adolf Hitler demonology:

Oct. 15: "We're dealing with Hitler revisited."

Oct. 20: "When Hitler's war ended. there were the Nuremberg trials."

Oct. 23: Bush compares the alleged murders of Kuwaiti youngsters to actions by Hitler's Death's Head battalions.

Nov. 1: "[Saddam is engaged in] brutality that I don't believe Adolf Hitler ever participated in."

A noted German-born historian at Columbia University, Fritz Stern, called the last remark "an insult. . . to the [Holocaust] dead."

Request Reprint & Licensing, Submit Correction or view Editorial Guidelines