Kerry: Bush Lets Groups Do 'Dirty Work'
2 hours, 20 minutes ago
By RON FOURNIER, AP Political Writer
BOSTON - John Kerry (news - web sites) fought back Thursday against campaign allegations that he exaggerated his combat record in Vietnam, accusing President Bush (news - web sites) of using a Republican front group "to do his dirty work" and challenging Bush to debate their wartime service records.
"Well, if he wants to have a debate about our service in Vietnam, here is my answer: Bring it on," said the Democratic presidential candidate, reviving an old war and campaign slogan amid strong urging from party leaders for him to respond to two-week-old GOP assertions.
As Kerry denounced the criticism as "lies about my record," aides privately acknowledged that they and their boss had been slow to recognize the damage being done to his political standing.
Kerry won three Purple Hearts, a Bronze Star and Silver Star for Vietnam War combat. Bush served stateside in the Texas Air National Guard. Both men say the other served honorably, but their supporters are pouring tens of thousands of dollars into television ads and other tactics to insist otherwise.
MoveOn.org, a liberal group funded by Kerry supporters, is airing an ad accusing Bush of using family connections to avoid the Vietnam War. It also asks the president to denounce an ad that aired early this month by "Swift Boat Veterans for Truth," a GOP-leaning group of Vietnam veterans who say Kerry exaggerated his actions to win Vietnam War medals.
Bush campaign spokesman Steve Schmidt said the charge that Bush was in league with the group criticizing Kerry's war record "is absolutely and completely false. The Bush campaign has never and will never question John Kerry's service in Vietnam."
Yet the White House refused to condemn the ad questioning Kerry's war record.
"Let's not be selective here," White House spokesman Scott McClellan said in Crawford, Texas, where Bush is spending the next week. McClellan said Bush has been on the receiving end of more than $62 million in negative, false attacks by independent groups and "the president has condemned all of the ads," both those that criticize him and those that go after Kerry.
(more)
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20040820/ap_on_el_pr/kerry_war&cid=694&ncid=716
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So while its perfectly ok for MoveOn.org to air ads calling Bush a liar and saying he mislead the public about the war and Kerry to say nothing, all of the sudden, its this big horrible thing when Bush won't condemn the Swift Boat ad?
This election is getting flat-out sad.
2 hours, 20 minutes ago
By RON FOURNIER, AP Political Writer
BOSTON - John Kerry (news - web sites) fought back Thursday against campaign allegations that he exaggerated his combat record in Vietnam, accusing President Bush (news - web sites) of using a Republican front group "to do his dirty work" and challenging Bush to debate their wartime service records.
"Well, if he wants to have a debate about our service in Vietnam, here is my answer: Bring it on," said the Democratic presidential candidate, reviving an old war and campaign slogan amid strong urging from party leaders for him to respond to two-week-old GOP assertions.
As Kerry denounced the criticism as "lies about my record," aides privately acknowledged that they and their boss had been slow to recognize the damage being done to his political standing.
Kerry won three Purple Hearts, a Bronze Star and Silver Star for Vietnam War combat. Bush served stateside in the Texas Air National Guard. Both men say the other served honorably, but their supporters are pouring tens of thousands of dollars into television ads and other tactics to insist otherwise.
MoveOn.org, a liberal group funded by Kerry supporters, is airing an ad accusing Bush of using family connections to avoid the Vietnam War. It also asks the president to denounce an ad that aired early this month by "Swift Boat Veterans for Truth," a GOP-leaning group of Vietnam veterans who say Kerry exaggerated his actions to win Vietnam War medals.
Bush campaign spokesman Steve Schmidt said the charge that Bush was in league with the group criticizing Kerry's war record "is absolutely and completely false. The Bush campaign has never and will never question John Kerry's service in Vietnam."
Yet the White House refused to condemn the ad questioning Kerry's war record.
"Let's not be selective here," White House spokesman Scott McClellan said in Crawford, Texas, where Bush is spending the next week. McClellan said Bush has been on the receiving end of more than $62 million in negative, false attacks by independent groups and "the president has condemned all of the ads," both those that criticize him and those that go after Kerry.
(more)
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20040820/ap_on_el_pr/kerry_war&cid=694&ncid=716
===================
So while its perfectly ok for MoveOn.org to air ads calling Bush a liar and saying he mislead the public about the war and Kerry to say nothing, all of the sudden, its this big horrible thing when Bush won't condemn the Swift Boat ad?
This election is getting flat-out sad.