Posted on 07/31/2004 3:59:20 PM PDT by ambrose
August 1, 2004
Bush Planning August Attack Against Kerry
By ADAM NAGOURNEY and ROBIN TONER
ASHINGTON, July 31 - President Bush's campaign plans to use the normally quiet month of August for a vigorous drive to undercut John Kerry by turning attention away from his record in Vietnam to what they described as an undistinguished and left-leaning record in the Senate.
Mr. Bush's advisers plan to cap the month at the Republican convention in New York, which they said would feature Mr. Kerry as an object of humor and calculated derision.
The summer campaign plans described by aides to Mr. Bush and Mr. Kerry, who is in the midst of a two-week cross-country bus tour, suggest that August is no longer the slow and sleepy month it once was in presidential campaigns. Campaign aides described the period this year as an opportunity to shift the dynamic for their campaigns, because the race is so tight and because voters appear to be paying attention to what is going on.
Entering a four week run-up to the unusually late Republican convention, Mr. Bush's aides said they had laid out a week-by-week in plan in which Mr. Bush would talk about his accomplishments and his second-term agenda. But they said they would also try to blunt what Democrats and Republicans said was a successful four-day Democratic convention focused on Mr. Kerry's veteran credentials by turning attention from what they described as his brief four-month tour in Vietnam to his 20 years in Washington.
"This gives us a chance to lay out an agenda, to tell people what he wants to do over the next four years," said Karl Rove, Mr. Bush's senior political adviser. "We need, as we go into the convention, to put more of an emphasis on our agenda. But we still need to explain the war on terror and we need to offer a contrast with Senator Kerry."
Mr. Kerry's campaign manager, Mary Beth Cahill, said: "It's going to be an unusually contested month. What we're going to do is try to continue the momentum we have coming out of the convention."
In a sign of the intensity leading up to the convention in New York, aides to Mr. Bush and Mr. Kerry said they had no plans to suspend campaigning during the Olympics, a two-week stretch starting Aug. 13 that aides to both men had once assumed would force a respite on the campaign, as the nation's attention turned to Greece. "That's a two-week period in the middle of August; I don't think we can afford to do that," said Matthew Dowd, a senior Bush adviser, in a remark echoed by senior aides to Mr. Kerry.
Mr. Bush is planning to spend upward of $30 million on television advertising over the next four weeks. Democrats are looking to try to match Mr. Bush's effort with spending by independent Democratic committees not directly linked to the Kerry campaign.
The traditional reason for the August slowdown has been to save money and energy at a time when it is thought that voters are not paying particularly close attention to the campaign. One of the most famous examples of an August political recess, at least in political circles, was when another Massachusetts Democrat running for president, Michael S. Dukakis, spent much of August 1988 at home and returned to the campaign to find that much of the lead he had enjoyed over Mr. Bush's father coming out of the Democratic convention had evaporated.
Mr. Bush's aides said they were determined to use the weeks ahead to highlight Mr. Kerry's 20-year record in the Senate, using votes he has cast and what they described as his lack of accomplishments to portray him as ineffective, ideologically out of step, and a slacker for missing crucial votes while campaigning.
"He has 20 lost years," Mr. Dowd said. "It's amazing." Mr. Kerry's voting record - he has cast more than 6,000 votes in all - has long been considered vulnerable by Democrats and Republicans, not just because it can be characterized as liberal, but also because it is so vast and touches on so many complicated and politically fraught issues over so many years. The decision by Mr. Bush to turn on Mr. Kerry's voting record, while hardly a surprise, underlines why members of Congress are sometimes viewed as less than ideal candidates for president.
The decision by Mr. Bush's aides to continue the attacks on Mr. Kerry up to and including the convention is in keeping with the aggressive tone the White House has struck against Mr. Kerry from the moment he effectively won his nomination in March.
Some Democrats and even some Republicans have argued that such attacks have less power than they once did, and could backfire on Mr. Bush.
"The research we've done shows that the Bush campaign has come right up to the edge and probably now crossed the line in being too negative," said Geoff Garin, a pollster for the Democratic Party. He asserted that Mr. Bush was in something of a strategic box, under pressure to try to turn back any Kerry rise by attacking him, but in danger of alienating undecided voters who he said already perceived the Republicans as too negative.
And Democrats are increasingly trying to seize the moral high ground on the tone of this campaign. Mr. Kerry, on the eve of coming to Boston for his convention, said he did not want it to turn into a week of attacks on Mr. Bush. In his speech, he urged Mr. Bush to take "the high road" and avoid such attacks in the weeks ahead.
But Mr. Bush's advisers dismissed that as political gimmickry, asserting that Mr. Kerry had in fact countenanced an entirely negative convention, no matter how he and other Democrats described it.
"The whole spin that somehow this was a positive convention: I would call it the chutzpah convention," said Nicolle Devenish, Mr. Bush's campaign communications director. "These people walked out and said they would be positive, and instead they were so negative: Sharpton, Kennedy, Gore."
Mr. Dowd said: "I don't think anybody bought that. In the course of a speech when he talks about taking the high road, he's talking about Enron, he's talking about polluters, he's talking about that we want to mislead. Voters are smarter than that."
And, Bush advisers argued, voters are hungry for information about the records and positions of Mr. Kerry as they seek to sort out the candidates in the week ahead. Mr. Bush's strategists said that he and the campaign would seek to feed that hunger by pointing in particular to votes Mr. Kerry had cast.
"I think there's a public appetite for information, for finding out where people stand on issues," said Mr. Bush's campaign manager, Ken Mehlman. "I don't think there's an appetite for public name-calling. An appetite for information is different from an appetite for slogans and name-calling."
Bill McInturff, a Republican pollster, said August offered Mr. Bush a platform and an opportunity to begin pushing back Mr. Kerry as the spotlight turns to him in the run-up to the Republican convention. "He ought to have a chance to tell his side of the story," Mr. McInturff said. "What you hope is that puts you back by Labor Day at parity or better. Then you kick off a very close campaign."
Mr. Kerry's advisers said they planned an intensive coast-to-coast month of campaigning that would highlight his domestic proposals and the central message of the convention: that he "understands his first priority is to defend the nation," said Tad Devine, a senior Kerry adviser.
Mr. Kerry's aides said that voters who are still considered persuadable - about 15 percent to 20 percent - were interested in hearing what the candidates plan to do, on the economy, health care and national security. Mr. Kerry will be talking about those plans throughout the month, and is likely to issue his proposals in book form during August, taking a cue from the Clinton campaign of 1992, which issued a policy blueprint called "Putting People First."
Beyond that, his aides said that he would spend much of his time in medium and small communities where he is almost certain to receive extensive coverage in small-town newspapers and on local television stations. That kind of attention has become particularly important to Mr. Kerry this month because he is now, as the official nominee, under the spending restrictions imposed by the nation's campaign finance system. He can spend only about $75 million between now and Election Day.
By contrast, Mr. Bush, who picked the latest date possible for a convention, does not fall under that limit until he accepts his party's nomination at the beginning of September. Through August, he, unlike Mr. Kerry, is able to spend money.
Accordingly, Mr. Kerry's campaign officials said they had no plans to run paid advertising in August, so they can husband their resources for the fall.
Adam Nagourney reported from Boston for this article, and Robin Toner from Washington.
and he has it coming....he asked GWB to be civil and then he acts like the chit he is
It looks like Dubya is gonna give 'em hell in August. I love it, as should you.
Very Trumanesque.
Kerry, like Dewey, is a stiff.
How can using someones OWN record be an attack? What ELSE do you judge someone by? Past history is a clear indicator of what someone is all about, no?
Kerry said in his convention speech "Judge me by my record"...
In the world litigation, this is what we call "opening the door"...
All good and well, but I hope they use surrogates to attack his record on Vietnam. Something similar to the way the Dems used that fat sow Moore to spread lies and allow them to claim he isn't working for the Democratic party. Well, in this case the stories about Kerry's Vietnam record would not be lies. You don't have to make up stuff about Kerry, just go through the records.
I cannot possibly see how exposing the truth about someones record to the public can be "dirty". The rats will call it so because they are ashamed and scared that America will see what kind of a socialist puke Kerry is.
"Some Democrats and even some Republicans have argued that such attacks have less power than they once did, and could backfire on Mr. Bush."
Are they joking?! What kind of bubble have these people been living in? Bush's ads have been totally mooshy and off-message. The next 4 weeks should be devoted to:
1. Kerry is a flip flopper(especially on Iraq)
2. Kerry is weak on defense(voted against every weapons system we're using in the war on terror)
3. Kerry is TOO FAR LEFT(The most liberal voting record of any senator)
The next 4 weeks we should be hearing that and ONLY THAT. I'm tired of fuzzy, off-message ads from Karl Rove.
you couldn't pay me to watch kerry AND HIS GIRL FRIEND JOHN-BOY ON FOX TOMORROW.....
I'd say do the opposite of what Democrat strategists are saying is good or bad for Republicans.
When the poll numbers start to track lower for sKerry, he'll have to dole out from the government handout of 75 million, all he's got.
The Dems' current plan was to have the 527 groups carry the load between their convention and Labor Day. As the difference between 90's sKerry and candidate sKerry is broadcast on TV and radio, he'll have to respond directly or look like he hasn't an answer to the Republicans.
Skerry's screwed. He never thought he'd raise as much money as he did since the end of the primaries, which was the only reason he committed to the federal campaign funds. Dubya agreed in an act of fairness and the fact that 75 million is plenty for a sixty day campaign, not nearly enough for a hundred day campaign.
This is a funny article -- Bush is going to focus on Kerry's record, and this is called an "attack" or an "aggressive tone."
But when the left hurls vicious personal insults at the president or vice president -- accusing them of killing soldiers to advance some dark and unknown profit motive -- well that's just normal campaigning in the eyes of the Times.
GO DUBYA!!!
Remember, in footaball, on each play, the whole team gives 100%. No one half-heartedly blocks, runs, or tackles. If they do, THEY LOSE.
Your tagline is a perfect example of what a juicy target Kerry is.
"John Kerry has the most far-left voting record in the senate. John Kerry has been endorsed by the Communist Party USA. John Kerry, too far LEFT for America."
Right there is a perfect Ad. This is exactly what we should be seeing from the Bush campaign.
Have you listened to John Ziegler on KFI AM 640 radio?
He's doing a great job at night, exposing Kerry's lies
and propaganda. I love his insights!
Tune into http://www.kfi640.com for live streaming
10 pm to 1 am, PT.
Also see: http://www.johnziegler.com
**Oh my gosh! I just went to his website.
John Ziegler is SO Cute!!!***
(John...I loved you before I saw your picture, honest!!!)
IF you don't want hanoi john elected president: Hit the air waves...IF I can get on talk radio and blow my mouth off so can others.
1. Kerry is a shameless flip-flopper
2. Kerry is weak on defense, he's voted against every weapons system we are using to fight the war on terror...kerry is weak on defense!
3. Kerry is too far Left (THE MOST LIBERAL SENATOR, edwards is the #4)
4. Wants homosexuals to openly serve in the military
5. Will impose a tax hike on small business...ala the $200,000 tax hike.
6. Handgun Control Inc gives him an A
7. NRA gives him an F
8. anti death penalty, wants moratorium on federal death penalty...means OBL won't get true justice..i.e soft on terrorist
9. Kerry is a socialist
10. Edward's junk science lawsuits drove up the cost of health care while driving OB's out of business
11. Pro partial abortion ban will be repealed under a kerry administration
Kerry, for many years sat on the Intelligence Committee, long before George Bush was Governor of Texas, long before he was President, and he was privy to the increasingly alarming information that indicated that the United States was going to be subjected to an horrific act of terrorism.
Why did he NOT raise the alarm (as did Sen. Biden et.al) but he also STILL voted against increasing our defense budgets and then, agreed to the "wall" that allowed our intelligence gathering departments to be furhter blinded?
Me, either. I saw ENUFF of them for 4 days and them some. I change the channel when sounds bites for them come on.
"IF you don't want hanoi john elected president: Hit the air waves...IF I can get on talk radio and blow my mouth off so can others."
That is true. But Talk radio is largely preaching to the choir. Bush campaign has the ad money to reach all americans.. he needs to do so with this message:
1. Kerry is a shameless flip-flopper(especially on Iraq)
2. Kerry is weak on defense, he's voted against every weapons system we are using to fight the war on terror...kerry is weak on defense!
3. Kerry is too far Left (THE MOST LIBERAL SENATOR, Endorsed by the Communist Party USA)
Why is anyone listening to this tired ole troll.
She should be given the Helen Thomas award and sent to the back of the room..
..and gagged.
All people know about Kerry is that he has home movies he took himself of himself 35 years ago.
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