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Democrats pooh-pooh Bush ad campaign

By Sridhar Krishnaswami

WASHINGTON NOV. 26. The first campaign ad of the Grand Old Party, which was primarily intended to bring out the leadership qualities of the President, George W. Bush, especially as it related to tackling terrorism, has been pounded by the Democrats, many of whom finding the content utterly offensive and totally misleading.

"Some are now attacking the President for attacking the terrorists" are the words flashing in the screen after the President said, "Our war against terror is a contest of will, in which perseverance is power."

The screen flashed later, "Some call for us to retreat, putting our national security in the hands of others".

The $100,000 ad, which has first been aired in Iowa and will be followed shortly in New Hampshire, had been slammed by leading Democrats, particularly Senators Joseph Lieberman and John Kerry, both of whom are seeking the Democratic Party's nomination for next year's presidential election. And Senior Democrats such as Senator Edward Kennedy, said the advertisement was an attempt to "stifle criticism".

"Thirty seconds of RNC (Republican National Committee) rhetoric cannot paper over almost three years of short-sighted Bush security policies, both at home and abroad," argued Mr. Lieberman, himself a strong conservative on issues of national security and defence policies.

"The facts are that Mr. Bush hasn't fully funded homeland security and has alienated our allies around the world. This is a cynical attempt to rescue the President's sinking poll numbers by using fear and politicising our national security," he said.

The contention of Mr. Lieberman has been that the ad is nothing more than an attempt to take attention away from domestic issues such as joblessness, the Medicare and the energy bills.

Mr. Kerry was tougher: "If Mr. Bush and his Republican cronies think that spending their millions on phoney PR campaigns is going to distract Americans from their mounting death toll in Iraq, distract Americans from a failed foreign policy that has left our relationships with friends and allies in tatters, and distracting Americans from our dangerously under-funded homeland security needs, they better think again".

The GOP ad that has been aired in Iowa has left a bitter feeling among the Democratic leadership. The Minority Leader, Tom Daschle, has called on the RNC to withdraw the ad.

"It's really a repulsive and outrageous attack, once again, on those who question the direction that much of this administration has taken with regard to Iraq," the South Dakota Democrat said.

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