IPW Daily Report – Tuesday, February 24, 2004
"Kerry will spend more than $1 million this week
-- nearly five times as much as Edwards -- to run
campaign ads
in media markets in Ohio, Georgia and New York,
which vote March 2, aides said. Edwards has bought
about $270,000 of ad time in those states
thus far."
"If we are to prevent the meaning of marriage from
being changed forever, our nation must enact a
constitutional amendment to protect marriage in
America,"
President Bush said
"The Democratic Party is opposed to this
amendment,"
Democrat National Chairman Terry McAuliff said.
"It is wrong to write discrimination into the U.S.
Constitution and it is shameful to use attacks
against gay and lesbian families as an election
strategy."
"The Democratic primary comes down to John Edwards
who is worth $50 million and John Kerry who
married a woman worth $500 million. So it's a
classic battle between the haves and the really
haves," said Jay
Leno on the Tonight Show.
"The other party's nomination battle is still
playing out. The candidates are an interesting
group, with diverse opinions. For tax cuts, and
against them. For NAFTA, and against NAFTA. For
the Patriot Act, and against the Patriot Act. In
favor of liberating Iraq, and opposed to it. …And
that's just one senator from Massachusetts,"
said President
Bush.
"So far, all we hear is a lot of old bitterness
and partisan anger. Anger is not an agenda for the
future of America,"
said President
Bush.
"Others would have chosen differently. They now
agree that the world is better off with Saddam out
of power. They just didn't support removing Saddam
from power. Maybe they were hoping he'd lose the
next Iraqi election,"
President Bush
said.
"…[T]he American people will decide between two
visions of government: a government that
encourages ownership and opportunity and
responsibility — or a government that takes your
money and makes your choices,"
said President
Bush.
“… The more Americans think he has succeeded in
mitigating the terrorist threat, the more they
vote for Kerry. The more they feel that terrorism
is still at our doorstep - as it is - the more
they back Bush as the better wartime leader.”
-- writes Dick
Morris.
Sierra Club files Scalia recusal
Sharpton to the rescue
Edwards is irrelevant
Kerry still refuses to answer
Kerry’s hate for the Guard
Kerry in Harlem for rally
The gloves are off!
Hillary to give keynote at Brookings tomorrow
Sierra Club files Scalia recusal
In a 14-page motion for recusal filed with the
Supreme Court last night, the Sierra Club argued
that "by the objective standard required by
federal law, Justice Scalia's impartiality has
reasonably been called into question, and he must
be recused."
Judicial Watch decided not to join the Sierra Club
in asking for Scalia's recusal.
"We don't think the motion for recusal has a
factual or legal basis," said Tom Fitton,
president of Judicial Watch. "To the degree it
distracts the court's attention from the issue at
hand, which is Dick Cheney's power grab . . . it's
not helpful."
Sharpton to the rescue
The Associated Press reports that Al Sharpton is
considering meeting with the Haitian President:
Sharpton said Tuesday the Haitian consul general
told him the president is willing to meet with
him.
"If by the end of the day there's no agreement
between the rebels and the government, I'm
definitely going," Sharpton said in a telephone
interview shortly before meeting with the consul
general, Harry Fouche, at the Haitian consulate in
New York.
Sharpton said Haitian-Americans in New York and
Florida have asked for his help.
Edwards is irrelevant
By: Roger Wm.
Hughes
"The people of Georgia want this campaign to go
on, don't they?" Sen. John Edwards said at a rally
in Columbus, Ga.
The Democrats want Edwards’ campaign to continue
because it has become Kabuki theater. However,
Edwards has become irrelevant to the outcome of
the election save his surrogate, or
super-surrogate role as a Vice Presidential
candidate. This, of course, precludes Hillary
Clinton being Vice President.
Any chance Edwards had of continuing to be a
player ended Sunday on ABC’s This Week with
George Stephanopolous.” Since then, it has
only gone down hill with Bush singling out Sen.
John Kerry as his opponent.
Edwards failed to show any difference between
himself and Kerry on Sunday’s head to head. Now,
Edwards is desperate to win another state in the
South so that he can at least become a regional
candidate.
Even if Edwards is successful, it will not matter.
The question of who is Vice President is all up to
Kerry at this point. Edwards is playing his string
out too long. He is quickly becoming a Joe
Lieberman and Howard Dean who both did not know
when it was over.
Edwards, it is over.
Kerry still refuses to answer
Sen. John Kerry refused to answer questions why he
voted for specific military cuts and continued to
play his Vietnam card as reason enough that he is
strong on defense.
"That's the game they play," Kerry told reporters.
"They haven't come to you and said we need this
[weapons] system and John Kerry voted against the
system. They're saying he voted against defense
... and I'm not going to let them nickel and dime
us on one system or another that was an individual
vote."
Marc Racicot, Bush's campaign chairman, said it
was "simply not true" that Republicans were
attacking Kerry's patriotism.
"But he has refused repeatedly to explain his
record on voting to cut the very weapons systems
that are helping us fight and win the war on
terror, and that's what this discussion is about,"
Bush Campaign Chairman Marc Racicot said.
In 1996, Kerry voted for S. 1580 to slash defense
spending by $6.5 billion.
Kerry also supported canceling and cutting funds
for the B-2 Stealth Bomber, the B-1B, the F-15,
the F-16, the M1 Abrams, the Patriot Missile, the
AH-64 Apache Helicopter, the Tomahawk Cruise
Missile, and the Aegis Air-Defense Cruiser,
according to a Boston Globe report from June 19,
2003.
The Center for Security Policy has analyzed more
than 75 votes over the past decade cast by Mr.
Kerry and other senators. The Washington-based
conservative think tank gave Mr. Kerry one of the
lowest ratings of any senator.
Kerry said embracing every weapons system proposed
doesn't make Republicans stronger on defense.
"That's not the measure of whether you're strong
on defense," he said.
Kerry’s hate for the Guard
John Kerry's apparent contempt for the National
Guard goes back to at least 1970, when he helped
organize protests against the National Guard
Association convention, New York Post columnist
John Podhoretz writes.
"Mr. Kerry was present when the Vietnam Veterans
Against the War wrote Mayor John V. Lindsay and
demanded that the city refuse to welcome another
organization, one dedicated to representing other
American servicemen."
"Kerry's group set up a picket line in front of
the American, and staged a protest rally against
the Guard on Sept. 17, 1970, at 5:30 p.m.
"Why would they do such a thing?" Mr. Podhoretz
asked, and then supplied the answer as expressed
in a mimeographed flier handed out by the
protesters.
"The National Guard Uses Your Tax Dollar:
"To Support the military-industrial complex
"To honor war criminals — Westmoreland, Laird,
Nixon, etc.
"To applaud campus murders by National Guard units
"To encourage armed attacks on minority
communities."
Said Mr. Podhoretz: "The decision to stage this
defamatory protest against the National Guard —
which then comprised 409,412 Army Guard and 89,847
Air Guard personnel — was made in John Kerry's
presence and with his full knowledge.
Kerry in Harlem for rally
Senator John Kerry issued the following Press
Release:
John Kerry brought his campaign to New York City
today and brought into sharp focus his plan to
restore the 3.2 million jobs lost under George W.
Bush and create greater economic opportunity for
all New Yorkers.
At a morning rally in Harlem with hundreds of
supporters, Kerry focused on his plan to
revitalize urban communities by improving access
to capital and creating jobs. At a noon town hall
meeting on the economy and jobs at York College in
Queens, Kerry talked jobs and met with New Yorkers
who are struggling to make ends meet and get ahead
in George Bush’s economy.
“For nearly a thousand days, George Bush has stood
by as jobs have disappeared,” said Kerry. “Here in
New York, more than 480,000 jobs have been lost on
his watch. I have a real plan to rebuild our
economy beginning with repealing the Bush tax cuts
for the wealthiest Americans and closing the tax
loopholes and benefits that reward Benedict Arnold
CEOs and companies for shipping American jobs
overseas.”
“We will provide new incentives for companies that
create and keep good jobs here in America. We’ll
make health care affordable for our families and
our small businesses and hold down the soaring
costs of health insurance and prescription drugs.
And we'll insist that free and fair trade mean
fairness for workers - not a free ride for those
that break the rules.”
Kerry hosted a town hall meeting in Queens with
Congressman Gregory Meeks on jobs and the economy.
Kerry heard directly from four New Yorkers who are
struggling to make ends meet under the George W.
Bush economy, including: Gemma Deleon Lopresiti, a
working parent who administers the Retail
Wholesale Department Store Union’s Local 1102
health care benefits, and knows first hand how
difficult it is for workers to afford health care;
Chris Gleeson, a single father from Deer Park,
Long Island and a Gulf War Veteran and who has
been unable to find work for over five months;
Jean Phelps, President of the Jamaica Chapter of
the NAACP, who has been in the trenches and knows
the challenges facing African-Americans seeking
access to capital to build small businesses.
Kerry addressed each of these issues, outlining
his plans to make health care more affordable,
protect the middle class, and rebuild the American
economy. John Kerry is offering America a positive
vision of the future – a return to prosperity and
new and better jobs across America. Beginning with
the repeal of the Bush tax cuts for the wealthiest
Americans, John Kerry’s number one priority will
be middle class families who are working hard to
cover the mortgage, pay the high cost of health
care, child care and tuition, or just trying to
get ahead.
Earlier in the day, supporters packed the Alhambra
Ballroom in Harlem for the Kerry rally, where he
outlined his plan to create jobs, and his urban
renewal agenda, a program that will invest in
America’s inner-cities. Former New York State
Comptroller H. Carl McCall, Manhattan Borough
President Virginia Fields, NYC Central Labor
Council President Brian McLaughlin, State Senate
Democratic Leader David Paterson, and Congressman
Charles B. Rangel all announced they were
supporting Kerry because of his plan to strengthen
urban communities by getting our economy back on
track.
“John Kerry is the best Democratic candidate to
take on George W. Bush,” said Congressman Charles
Rangel, who endorsed John Kerry today. “Kerry’s
urban renewal plan will invest in people,
strengthen our communities, and rebuild our
economy. We have always been able to count on John
Kerry to lead the fights to improve health care,
to strengthen schools, and to create jobs. As
President, John Kerry will take on special
interests, and put working families first.”
“Charlie Rangel has served his country in uniform,
and has served his country in Congress,” said
Kerry. “He serves with passion, with insight, and
with distinction. I am proud to stand with Charlie
Rangel – a leader with a lifetime commitment to
civil rights and civil liberties. Our campaign is
about lifting up all Americans with an agenda that
unites us and moves us forward.”
Representatives Maurice Hinchey, Steve Israel, Joe
Crowley, and Anthony Weiner; New York State Senate
Democratic Leader David Paterson; Queens Borough
President Helen Marshall; and Queens County Chair
and former Congressman Tom Manton; and former New
York City Mayor David N. Dinkins all announced
their support for John Kerry for President today.
These elected officials are supporting John Kerry
because he is the best candidate to take on George
W. Bush, and take back the White House.
The gloves are off!
President Bush showed Sen. John Kerry he is going
to have to do better than his past performance
against fellow Democrats to beat Bush. The
President in a forty-minute speech showed that he
was the President who the nation trusted and
respected following the 9-11 attack.
"I stood in the ruins of the Twin Towers. I
remember a lot that day. Workers in hard hats were
shouting, 'Whatever it takes.' One fellow pointed
at me and said, 'Don't let me down.'
"As we all did that day, these men and women
searching through the rubble took it personally. I
took it personally. ... I will never relent in
bringing justice to our enemies," President Bush
said in his speech to the Republican Governors
Conference.
President Bush invoked the traditional divide
between Democrats’ spending and government
intervention and Republican individual
responsibility the Washington Times reports:
"We'll hear them make a lot of promises over the
next eight months — and listen closely because
there's a theme: Every promise will increase the
power of politicians and bureaucrats over your
income, your retirement, your health care, and
your life. It's that same old Washington mind-set
— they'll give the orders, and you'll pay the
bills," he said.
"It's a choice between keeping the tax relief that
is moving this economy forward — or putting the
burden of higher taxes back on the American
people," Mr. Bush told the gathering.
"It's a choice between an America that leads the
world with strength and confidence — or an America
that is uncertain in the face of danger."
He said in the election, "the American people will
decide between two visions of government: a
government that encourages ownership and
opportunity and responsibility — or a government
that takes your money and makes your choices."
The Bush campaign, which has raised a record
$143.6 million re-election war chest, was also
expected to send more surrogates to states where
Democratic candidates are campaigning to give a
direct response to their criticism.
For the full text of the speech visit
BushCheney.
Bush gives support for Constitutional ban
"Neither this Constitution or the constitution of
any state, nor state or federal law, shall be
construed to require that marital status or the
legal incidents thereof be conferred upon
unmarried couples or groups." Is the proposed
Constitutional ban on gay marriages proposed by
Rep. Marilyn Musgrave, R-Colo., and President Bush
has indicated that he will support it.
Why are economic forecasts wrong?
The Washington Post takes on the question of why
President Bush’s economic teams have been wrong in
their predictions:
…Sen. John F. Kerry (D-Mass.), the leading
prospect to challenge Bush in November, said
Friday. "They didn't tell Americans the truth
about Iraq. They didn't tell Americans the truth
about the economy. And now they're trying to
manufacture the 2.6 million manufacturing jobs
they've destroyed."
Economists agree that economic forecasts are often
unreliable, but they say there is at least one
plausible explanation for the discrepancies of
recent years: The Bush administration, like the
Clinton administration before it and like most
private economists, assumed that tax revenue and
jobs would rise or fall with the gross domestic
product in the same proportions as they had in
previous recoveries.
But, because of structural changes in the economy
such as soaring gains in productivity, the
historical patterns have not held. Job growth and
tax receipts were badly underestimated in the boom
of the late 1990s, and overestimated since 2000,
even as the economy has begun to improve.
Robert D. Reischauer, a former director of the
Congressional Budget Office, said that the
administration has been "a little exuberant" in
its forecasts but that the problem is more a
statistical one. "The patterns that prevailed
before don't seem to be holding in this current
recovery," Reischauer said.
Hillary to give keynote at Brookings tomorrow
The Brookings Institute [located at 1775
Massachusetts Ave. N.W., Washington, D.C.] is
having a leadership forum tomorrow and has tapped
Senator Hillary Clinton to be the keynote speaker.
She is expected to talk about her trips to
Afghanistan and Iraq. A question session from the
audience will follow Clinton’s speech.
Hillary is a member of the Senate’s Armed Services
Committee and the Emerging Threats and
Capabilities Subcommittee.
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