Posted on 08/26/2004 8:06:56 AM PDT by NormsRevenge
LAS CRUCES, N.M. - President Bush (news - web sites) wants to work with Republican Sen. John McCain (news, bio, voting record) to pursue court action against political ads by "shadowy" outside groups, the White House said Thursday amid growing pressure on the president to denounce attacks on John Kerry (news - web sites)'s war record.
"The president said if the court action doesn't work, that he would be willing to pursue legislative action with Sen. McCain on that," Bush spokesman Scott McClellan told reporters aboard Air Force One en route to New Mexico.
McCain, R-Ariz., has called on Bush to condemn the anti-Kerry ads, even as he is actively supporting Bush's re-election. McCain told The New York Times that he plans to personally "express my displeasure" to the president, the paper reported Thursday.
Bush called McCain from Air Force One and the two had a brief discussion about the matter, McClellan said.
The debate over Democratic nominee John Kerry's service in Vietnam has dominated the presidential race in recent weeks after the group Swift Boat Veterans for Truth aired ads questioning Kerry's decorated record.
Exactly!!! Thanks for thinking. The media and the Dims thought they had W painted into a corner on the swift vets. Okay, now W turns the tables big time and forces Skerry to join him condeming ALL 527's, which Johnny is not doing, and it shows. This is down and dirty politics, and folks that's the way it works. As someone else said, it's ugly, but it's better then anywhere else!!
To paraphrase Mr. Cleland---Now Kerry can put up or shut up!
Last time I checked, there were no obstacles to O'Neill or any other Swift Vet from going on television and talking about this issue. And the book is selling like hotcakes. Free speech is alive and well.
hehehe!!
I said almost straight down the line. I remember seeing several votes in the past 4 years where McCain was one of only 2 or 3 Senate Republicans to vote with the Dems in votes that proceed almost exactly down party lines -- the vote to abolish the estate tax and a couple gun-banning votes immediately come to mind.
Point is the guy is no conservative. ...which is not exactly a secret.
First glance, Zell Miller is a Democrat. Is that all that's wrong?
Very nicely put....
Putin and Chirac say Hi! :-)
Thanks. :-}
AP article rename on Yahooo
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Bush Calls McCain About Anti-Kerry Ads
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Bush, McCain Discuss Ads by Outside Groups
Yes, but I don't usually see it written with the Germanic K.
But that's not what will happen, regardless of who wins the November election and the resultant makeup of Congress. Instead they want to remove the "loopholes" in the current anti free speach laws. (The notion of parts of the Bill of Rights being mere "loopholes" sound familiar to the second amendment types out there?). First they'll try the courts, but I predict that even if they do get "relief" from the courts for the current election, they will still try to remove those "loopholes".
This represents a change in the President's position, at least his stated position, about the CFR law, which he intitially said parts of where unconstitutional, even though he signed it because the rest was "so important".
Haven't been subjected to many TV ads (since I don't watch much TV, and since Kerry gave up on GA a looonnnnnggggggggg time ago and runs almost no ads at dwon here), ..
BUT
Is Kerry running McCain's statements against the vet's on TV?
Legislatively yes, but a Judge could sign a restraining order today and shut the Swifties down (it would also theoretically shutdown the Soros funded 527s, but they get plenty of free "news" time anyway.)
McCain has asked the Kerry campaign to stop.
My comment, however, is that the ad has been made and shown last night on one of the talk shows.
Now, it's out there and I am sure that all the talk/news shows will be showing it as an example of what a "good guy" Kerry really is.
Get your message out there without paying for it, and making yourself out to be the actual good guy in the end. I am sure the cable shows will conveniently forget to mention that McCain had asked them in March not to use him in their ads.
Not bad for scum, wouldn't you agree?
Could go a little into your reasoning for that statement. Also sumarize what the FEC ruled and when, if you could please.
It's not. It's their way of reporting that Bush is saying ALL 527s should stop the ads. He can't tell the Swift Boat Vets to stop; that would be considered 'coordination' and the Democrats know it and would pounce on it immediately!
He's spoken in strictly generic terms and nothing will be done about it in this election cycle anyway!
But the anti Kerry ads are not what I would call "issue advocacy ads", like a general ad for or against gun control or abortion. They are an attack on a specific cannidate and an attempt to influence a federal election. They also *seem* to fit the definition of a "targeted communication".
A court could easily disagree with the FEC chairman, and one probably will very shortly do so.
Gutting the First Amendment.
It's disgusting.
I bet'cha thought we only got German rocket scientists from Germany after the war? ;-)
The 4th Reich .. More enemies within
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