Priming Outrage

President Bush used a heavy gain-frame when announcing the Iraq war, but nestled inside his message to the American people was a quote that strongly resembled President Nixon's "I am not a crook." When President Bush said: "We have no ambition in Iraq," plenty of Americans knew exactly what he meant.
     His running mate was Dick Cheney: CEO of Halliburton oil; and President Bush had just declared war on one of the most oil-rich nations with a nationalized oil industry under a hostile dictator.
     Like Nixon's quote, his words have not aged well. For President Bush, using negative priming and suggesting that his intentions were not for personal gain only worked to remind skeptics of that which his administration had to gain.