Posted on 06/11/2004 11:29:18 PM PDT by F14 Pilot
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A week of national mourning for Ronald Reagan has helped President Bush politically by shunting Democrat John Kerry to the sidelines and driving bad news from Baghdad off the front pages.
This week's burst of Reagan nostalgia, which included a flood of tributes to the Republican icon and reminders of Bush's claim to Reagan's legacy, could provide at least a short-term political boost for the president in his race for re-election.
But analysts and strategists in both parties caution that any benefits for Bush, who delivered a eulogy at Reagan's funeral on Friday, were likely to fade by the time voters cast their ballots in November.
"I don't think it hurts to remind people of a time when Reagan provided leadership that made people feel good about the country again -- that is a good atmosphere for Republicans," a Republican Party strategist said.
"But I don't think anybody is expecting this to last until November. Republicans aren't latching on to this as a rallying cry," he said.
Reagan's death a week ago forced Kerry to suspend campaigning for a week at a time when he was steadily building a narrow lead over Bush in many national opinion polls. Kerry and Bush halted their television advertisements during Friday's national day of mourning.
The break in campaigning, and the recent around-the-clock news coverage of Reagan's death, provided a welcome respite for Bush from the bad news in Iraq (news - web sites) and could give him a brief bounce in the polls over the next few weeks.
"It never hurts to change the subject after you've had a couple of bad weeks," California Republican consultant Dan Schnur said.
But Schnur and other Republicans said any potential benefits for Bush would be negated if he was perceived to be milking Reagan's death for political gain.
'POTENTIAL FOR BUSH'
"This has real potential for the president, but he has to be very careful," Schnur said. "If he is too heavy-handed, voters will back away."
The front page of Bush's campaign Web site was taken over this week by a tribute to Reagan, including links to some of his most famous speeches and to words of praise for Reagan from Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney (news - web sites).
Bush campaign spokesman Scott Stanzel rejected suggestions the campaign was politicizing Reagan's death.
"This is one way we can pay tribute to his legacy," he said of the Web site.
Kerry had planned to cede the spotlight to Bush for much of this week anyway, as Bush stepped into the role of world leader during the D-Day anniversary ceremonies in France and then at the G8 summit in Georgia. A Kerry adviser shrugged off the campaign break.
"This week was going to belong to George Bush as he met with heads of state and used the home field photo opportunity advantage on foreign policy that always belongs to the incumbent president," the adviser said.
He said Kerry, who paid a quick visit to salute Reagan's casket earlier this week during a trip to California to attend his daughter's film school graduation, had tried to rise above politics by praising Reagan and accepting his week out of the headlines.
"Next week it's off to the partisan races again," he said. Kerry will hit the battleground states of Ohio, Michigan and New Jersey to talk about economic policy next week.
The week of Reagan tributes has functioned as a "firebreak" for the White House campaign, said Steve Schier of Carleton College in Minnesota.
"People are thinking about different things this week than they were last week," Schier said, adding "facts on the ground" -- economic news, potential terror attacks, the hunt for Osama bin Laden (news - web sites) and events in Iraq -- would have far more impact in November.
"If this happened at the end of October, it would matter," he said. "But in the first week of June? Nah."
I dont think it's necessarily "for now". I myself have been shocked at how sad and upset his passing has made me. If there are others like myself on the right that are being politically reawakened and activated, Bush might benefit immensely.
Bump...
It must really gall the media that they have to take a back seat to a real man and leader who had more guts and kindness in him than they could ever muster - let alone posess.
Liberals think of everything in terms of short-term gain. If they can't have power, they have no life. The President and conservatives look to the long term, the future. Win or lose in November, the conservative movement will endure and grow. I'm not sure the Left can take another loss then.
Both are going well now and the people will catch up in a couple of months !
Kerry will get a Dem Bump at the Dem Pep Rally and Bush will get a bigger bump at the NY GOP Convention.
This will all be tied up after the GOP Convention unless major news turns bad !
I'm so glad you posted this article...it clearly exposes the Dems. They never saw ANY event that they didn't politicize, use, milk for all it was worth, and generally make everybody sick.
But point out one little fact--that President Bush 43 is clearly the political heir of President Ronald Wilson Reagan, and they scream "foul!"
imho, that is so much bull bleep. I hope that the country's eyes are opened by this past week, that people realize that what was once optimistic, effective, and honorable about this country was utterly trashed by the Democratic Party in the decade of the 90s.
I hope they recognize that in President George Bush the nation realizes that it has another historically great man, that if they remember President Reagan with a lump in the throat for his sheer goodness, they should cling with all their might to President Bush.
God bless President Bush.
Not to dance on President Reagan's grave b/c I admired him tremendously. I think he was the greatest President of the 20th Century. However, I think a film tribute to Mr. Reagan and a speech by Nancy at the GOP Convention will help remind a nation that truly loved Ronald Wilson Reagan, that George W. Bush is the heir-apparent to the Reagan Legacy, not John Kerry.
This kinda news comes from their LEFTism disease!
Well said!
"I hope that the country's eyes are opened by this past week, that people realize that what was once optimistic, effective, and honorable about this country was utterly trashed by the Democratic Party in the decade of the 90s."
HEAR, HEAR. VERY WELL SAID. VERY WELL SAID !!!!
actually Reagan's passing overshadowed an already good week for Bush with the G8 going well and Irag settling down on it's own and good decisions by Bush...so what is their point...Bush needed Reagan's passing to turn a corner...no...but we do need to see more of kerry out there so that he can shoot his mouth off...I mean so that he can continue to shoot himself in the foot...he already has a habit of self inflicting wounds...remember Vietnam!
When was the last time the liberal media mentioned that bad news out of Iraq is likely to fade by November?
Its a history lesson and alot of people - I hope were educated - on Ronald Reagan Conservative thought.
The liberal media will NEVER say anything that does not advance their Clintonian agenda. They will leave it unreported, unremarked, unsaid, and thus, in their eyes, non-existent.
You got to remember, that if the roles were reversed. The Democrats, would take every advantage of this event. To increase their power!
Doesn't mean that we should be like them. But, to use RWR ideas to push the darkness back to where it came from.
I hope Bush campaign on a theme that Free Nations face another epic enemy: Radical Islam.
FDR faced Nazism (when it was unpopular) and Reagan faced communism. Both prevailed.
Bush can claim he is leading the way, against this new and deadly enemy, and that Kerry would fail to wage the cause.
He can prove Kerry's reluctance to face evil, by Kerry's repeated Senate votes against weaponry and the military.
Chris mathews (msnbc) had some guy on saying how Nancy's views on stem cell research is going to need to be addressed if they want Nancy up on stage. Someone else brought out some other difference they perceive that she has with Bush.
The only thing I thought was Reagan's rule of "Thou shalt not bash other republicans".
The other thing I thought was that Nancy seems a bit old and frail to be doing the whole convention thing. And it will also be such a relatively short time after the funeral and she will still be grieving, and should be allowed to grieve in private. Perhaps a video greeting?
What I see is a very bright and clear difference being shown between George W. Bush and John Kerry. John Kerry represents everything Ronald Reagan was not. The ease in which the media and the American people can draw comparison's between George W. Bush and Ronald Reagan are is not good news for the long faced leftist from Massachusetts.
In the coming months, President Bush will cut through all the politics and explain our purpose in this struggle of our time, and why we as a nation, should support him. John Kerry offers none of that, all he offers is what he thinks we need to hear today, and the future be damned. That is just the opposite from the vision President Bush is offering, and Ronald Reagan's passing sheds light on the profound difference between the two of them.
Shortly after being shot, Ronald Reagan said whatever time he had left on this planet was dedicated to the big feller above, his dedication to God and His will, liberated millions while he was alive, and even in death he serves as a stark difference between the two men we will choose to vote for next November.
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