[MattMa]

McCain ticks me off Big Time.

[My2Cents]

How believeable is a Reuters report?

[Prime Choice]

President Bush on Thursday sought to smooth over differences with Sen. John McCain by promising to take legal action to stop political ads by outside groups, including those attacking the war record of Bush's Democratic presidential rival, John Kerry.

I would advise Bush not to make so much as one move toward fulfilling this promise until John F'n Kerry denounces MoveOn.Org, the Tides Foundation, and a host of other Leftist 527s that went negative long before the Swiftboat Vets even appeared on the national scene.

[ken21]

mccain's a bitch, isn't he?

[Always Right]

It's all about McCain.

[southernnorthcarolina]

Maybe some court will set a hearing date of November 3.

[outlawcam]

The Bush campaign said it, rather than the White House, would file a lawsuit in federal court to try to force the Federal Election Commission to crack down on the ads.

If these groups are breaking no law, then what's the point in bringing it up before the court, except to waste taxpayer money and/or tempt the judges to legislate from the bench? I know Kerry is claiming that they are breaking the law due to "coordination," but Bush isn't claiming that. Why would he do this?

[marron]

It makes no sense to declare a cease-fire when your opponent has just emptied his magazine, and your side has just opened its first box of ammo.

527's are McCain's concession to the 1st Amendment. Without the 527's, there is no First Amendment. McCain Feingold is a naked attack on free speech, and the only thing that keeps it on the right side of the constitution is the 527 provision, and McCain wants to kill that.

I obviously don't like what the Dems have done with their 527 money, but thats because I don't like Dems. You don't solve the problem by cutting off the money (mainly after the Dem money has already been spent), you do it on the battlefield of ideas, and the battlefield of ideas costs money. 527 money, it seems these days, in the McCainFeingold era.

[Guillermo]

McCain? And Bush shouldn't take any of the blame? He SIGNED CFR. 98% of the responsibility for that atrocious bill is HIS.

Here is a President promising to take legal action against groups who criticize candidates for political office.

Absolutely 100% DISGUSTING.

[bigbob]

Don't you think this is cleverly crafted by the Bush campaign (aka Rove) to best optimize the effect of the ads? Ad #3 is very hard-hitting, and won't be undone by threat of a future lawsuit. This genie is out of the bottle!

[afz400]

Bush should be taking legal action instead against Max Cleland, who is a federal employee. At the very least some conservative publication should file a freedom of information act request to see if Cleland took leave when he took the letter to Texas. How often DOES Cleland show up for work )$136,000 a year at the EX-IM Bank)

[Mike Bates]

Two cheers for negative campaigning

[NavySEAL F-16]

Someone better call Reuter's and remind them that McCain lost in 2000 and Bush won. (Although, sometimes I even wonder)

[Servant of the 9]

Very slick maneuver on Bush's part.

The suit will take years to take effect, and he looks like a good guy to middle of the road voters in the meantime.

Besides, the Vets have moved on to the more effective and non-disputable adds about what Kerry did when he came home.

McCain has his panties in a twist mainly because the Swift Boat Vets picked the same add agency that hammered McCain in SC in 2000.

So9

[housewife101]

Well, if you ask me, McCain caused all this in the first place.Let HIM fix it!

[Dad2Angels]

But the case could bog down in the courts, and thus might have little impact before the Nov. 2 election

This is the key statement in the entire article. The Presidents campaign files, the Swift Vets counterfile, a motion here another there and before you know it kerry's back to asking momma-t for his allowance and President Bush goes on to term #2.

[afnamvet]

McCain has called on Bush to do more to end ads by a group called Swift Boat Veterans for Truth, which has accused Kerry, McCain's friend, of lying about his Vietnam War service.

The Swift Boat Veterans for Truth mission is expose the lies and falsehoods in Kerry's service record. It is an issue solely between the swift boat vets and Kerry. Kerry's "testimony" before the Fulbright committee in '71 and the actions of the VVAW are between us Vietnam veterans who were libeled by Kerry. There are other issues that disqualify Kerry from becoming CIC. His ultra liberal senate record comes to mind. I don't care what McCain thinks or says. Kerry must be defeated.

[spodefly]

The Founding Fathers established the First Amendment to protect two forms of speech: political and religious. Yet in a typically perverse irony of our time, these blameless exercises of the First Amendment are regarded as "shocking" violations of it while a growing culture of obscenity not protected by the framers receives its imprimatur. Daily we're told of sinister "outside groups" churning out...political speech. "Outside groups" is treated as a discussion-ending epithet by both the Bush and Kerry camps. Why the existence of independent groups should strike fear into the hearts of Americans is never explained. Is the United States of America owned by the Democratic and Republican parties?

More here ...

[DustyMoment]

Why does Bush make stupid moves like this? This makes it look as though Kerry and the Demowhiners have a valid complaint against the Swift Boat vets.

Why not just rachet up the dumb-meter and declare the 1st Amendment null and void?

[NoControllingLegalAuthority]

I believe George W. Bush is really mad about the Swiftboat vets ad campaign.

The leaders of this country have turned politics into a private club. These top officials are not populists who want the everyday person involved directly in government. The Swiftboat vets have turned the entire campaign in an unexpected direction and it is very irritating to the planners and manipulators at the very top of both parties.

Both parties want to control the debate. The Swiftboat vets have completely taken the debate away from both major parties. I love what has happened but I believe the President absolutely does not.

[Loyal Buckeye]

Two comments:

1. "The White House said..." seems highly unusual to me.

2. The lawsuit is a good political move. It will sound good on the nightly news.

I don't agree with CFR, but our elected officials passed it and one of our political parties is ignoring its substance.