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Lerkfish · Aug 23, 2004, 01:56 PM

Letter from Bush Campaign to TV Station Managers

(Editor's note: What follows is a letter to television station managers from from the Bush-Cheney campaign, asking stations to "set the record straight" on Sen. John Kerry's new advertisement accusing the Bush campaign of illegally coordinating with Swift Boat Veterans for Truth.)

Dear Station Manager:

Your station is being asked to run an ad from John Kerry's presidential campaign wrongly accusing Bush-Cheney '04 of violating the campaign finance laws. We ask that your station set the record straight.

It is completely false and without any evidence that the Bush "campaign supports a front group attacking John Kerry's military record," as the Kerry ad states. The Bush-Cheney campaign flatly rejects this baseless allegation of illegal coordination between Bush-Cheney '04 and a group called Swiftboat Veterans for Truth. The ad running on your station contains this false and libelous charge. Coordination with Swiftboat Veterans for Truth would be a violation of federal campaign finance laws. 11 C.F.R. 109.21.

Sadly, the Kerry campaign is using this falsehood for which it publicly admits it has no evidence to distract attention and gain free publicity. Attached is a verified transcript from a CNN interview in which Mr. Kerry's own spokesman, Tad Devine, could not present even one piece of hard evidence to back up the Kerry campaign's allegations.

The attached CNN Inside Politics verified transcript shows that Kerry campaign spokesman Devine is basing his charges solely on a newspaper article, "...it's in the New York Times today." However, not even this newspaper article presents evidence of "coordination." What has been reported are the Kerry campaign's unsubstantiated charges along with the explicit denial from the Bush-Cheney campaign. In fact, after inquiring about the alleged coordination reported in the New York Times story relied on by Mr. Devine, Wolf Blitzer, based on an earlier interview with a reporter who wrote the New York Times story, corrected Devine by stating, "They don't have any hard evidence backing it up." In other words, the allegation contained in the commercial running on your station is based on nothing more than the Kerry campaign's false accusations, having them reported in the media, and then the Kerry campaign referring to the published false accusations as proof.

The Kerry campaign is hiding behind the law which does not permit your station to reject this false advertising by a candidate. But your station can insure that the record is clear in your total program. We ask that you to do that.

Respectfully,

Ken Mehlman

Campaign Manager

BRussell · Aug 23, 2004, 02:00 PM

And this isn't the first time they've done that. People were complaining that the DNC and the Kerry campaign have asked stations to not play ads, when in fact the Bushies did the same thing earlier.

macvillage.net · Aug 23, 2004, 02:07 PM

I'm suprised Bush isn't attempting to issue a presidential order to cease the Kerry Ads until Nov 31, pending Congressional hearing.

spacefreak · Aug 23, 2004, 02:19 PM

Originally posted by BRussell:
And this isn't the first time they've done that. People were complaining that the DNC and the Kerry campaign have asked stations to not play ads, when in fact the Bushies did the same thing earlier.

As Bush's campaign manager, it's his job to write letters like this. It was a courteous request.

Did they threaten to sue the stations (like Kerry)? Did they demand that bookstores to pull all anti-Bush books (like Kerry)? Did they demand the publishers to seize printing of additional copies?

Better yet, has the Bush camp attempted to smear each and every veteran who supports Kerry's version of the story (like the Kerry camp has done to veterans who contradict him)?

SimeyTheLimey · Aug 23, 2004, 02:26 PM

The argument in the letter is rather close to the one the DNC's lawyers used in their cease and desist letter. I'd prefer they knock it off. I'd also prefer they knock off the pseudo lawyer talk. If the Kerry ads are really false and libelous, then they should sue the Kerry campaign.

However, this does appear to be more of a request than a threat. I just doubt it would prove either effective or wise.

Oh, and Lerk: it is customary to provide a source and a link when posting things like that.

Lerkfish · Aug 23, 2004, 02:29 PM

Originally posted by spacefreak:
Better yet, has the Bush camp attempted to smear each and every veteran who supports Kerry's version of the story (like the Kerry camp has done to veterans who contradict him)?

Interesting. You characterize Kerry's defense against a smear as a smear instead of setting the record straight.

Lerkfish · Aug 23, 2004, 02:30 PM

Originally posted by SimeyTheLimey:
Oh, and Lerk: it is customary to provide a source and a link when posting things like that.

why, do you think I'm quoting from a liberal conspiracy nut website?

here ya go....

http://www.townhall.com/news/politic...0040823d.shtml

SimeyTheLimey · Aug 23, 2004, 02:31 PM

Originally posted by Lerkfish:
why, do you think I'm quoting from a liberal conspiracy nut website?

Rather than trying to divine why I am asking for it, why not just provide a source and a link?

spacefreak · Aug 23, 2004, 02:40 PM

Originally posted by Lerkfish:
Interesting. You characterize Kerry's defense against a smear as a smear instead of setting the record straight.

Where did you see that Kerry has set the record straight? All he's done is send his surrogates out there while revising his autobiography on a daily basis.

BRussell · Aug 23, 2004, 02:40 PM

Originally posted by spacefreak:
As Bush's campaign manager, it's his job to write letters like this. It was a courteous request.

Did they threaten to sue the stations (like Kerry)? Did they demand that bookstores to pull all anti-Bush books (like Kerry)? Did they demand the publishers to seize printing of additional copies?

Better yet, has the Bush camp attempted to smear each and every veteran who supports Kerry's version of the story (like the Kerry camp has done to veterans who contradict him)?

I believe that Bush in 2000 got a publisher to withdraw an anti-Bush book called Favorite Son. It was probably filled with lies, just like this Unfit for Command. I don't think the Kerry campaign threatened to sue the TV networks any more than the Bush campaign. Kerry campaign: airing these opens you up to libel charges, so stop doing it. Bush campaign: airing these ads is against the law, so stop doing it. Both arguments are equally bogus.

How has Kerry tried to smear these swiftboat vets? He's not allowed to challenge their credibility? Their allegations are based on (supposed) eyewitness evidence that contradicts documentary evidence as well as other eyewitnesses. It's solely about their credibility.

spacefreak · Aug 23, 2004, 02:49 PM

Originally posted by BRussell:
How has Kerry tried to smear these swiftboat vets? He's not allowed to challenge their credibility? Their allegations are based on (supposed) eyewitness evidence that contradicts documentary evidence as well as other eyewitnesses. It's solely about their credibility.

Kerry has refused to refute the charges or sign form 180 authorizing release of all his military records. He's the one running for President.

By the way, this is interesting...

President Bush denounced TV ads by outside groups attacking both John Kerry and himself on Monday and called for a halt to all such political efforts. "I think they're bad for the system," he said.

But even more interesting is this challenge...

Bush's campaign heatedly denied any connection with the anti-Kerry group, and called on the Democratic challenger to join the president in a call for all outside groups to pull their ads.

macvillage.net · Aug 23, 2004, 03:00 PM

Originally posted by spacefreak:
Where did you see that Kerry has set the record straight? All he's done is send his surrogates out there while revising his autobiography on a daily basis.

Bush has done some revising and flipflops himself:
http://www.comedycentral.com/mp/play...yer=real_media

Dr.HermanG. · Aug 23, 2004, 03:03 PM

Shouldn't this be called:

"Bush campaign asks TV stations NOT to run misleading and fradulent Kerry ads...."

But of course not considering who started the thread.

PacHead · Aug 23, 2004, 03:06 PM

These ads should keep on being run. Bush has said he condemns all these sorts of ads, and wishes to get them all banned.

Kerry wasn't raising a stink when hundreds of millions of dollars of these sorts of ads were being run against bush.

A small, independant group runs a few ads and all of a sudden the Kerry camp raises a big stink. Hypocrisy is what this behavior is called.

Hundreds of millions of dollars of these sorts of ads against Kerry should be run. This would make it fair.

SimeyTheLimey · Aug 23, 2004, 03:20 PM

Is there some reason why Lerk won't substantiate the letter he posted? I googled it, and couldn't find it. Why is he refusing to post a link and a source?

macvillage.net · Aug 23, 2004, 03:25 PM

Originally posted by PacHead:
These ads should keep on being run. Bush has said he condemns all these sorts of ads, and wishes to get them all banned.

Kerry wasn't raising a stink when hundreds of millions of dollars of these sorts of ads were being run against bush.

A small, independant group runs a few ads and all of a sudden the Kerry camp raises a big stink. Hypocrisy is what this behavior is called.

Hundreds of millions of dollars of these sorts of ads against Kerry should be run. This would make it fair.

Bush isn't condemning all these ads.

Most of them are shown by his campaign directly. May want to checkout his website. Most of it is anti-kerry. Then a small part is about his campaign.

Bush's legal team is still going after moveon.org

He's just as mixed in this as Kerry.

Only difference is one of his staffers got caught participating in an ad, violating the campaigning rules.

BRussell · Aug 23, 2004, 03:27 PM

Originally posted by SimeyTheLimey:
Is there some reason why Lerk won't substantiate the letter he posted? I googled it, and couldn't find it. Why is he refusing to post a link and a source?

He posted it. Open your eyes man.

Originally posted by spacefreak:
Kerry has refused to refute the charges or sign form 180 authorizing release of all his military records. He's the one running for President.

His campaign people have been all over the networks debating with these guys. Why do you say he has refused to refute the charges? And as far as I know, he has released all the records. People keep saying he hasn't, but I haven't seen any evidence that there's anything missing from what he's posted on his website.

By the way, this is interesting... But even more interesting is this challenge...

Yeah Bush has called for a ban on all the ads. Amazing, after being against McCain-Feingold and then flip-flopping to sign it, he now wants to go even further than it. And BTW, Kerry does support banning all these ads. Every time I've seen that brought up on TV, Kerry's people say that he agrees that all these should be stopped.

SimeyTheLimey · Aug 23, 2004, 03:31 PM

Originally posted by BRussell:
He posted it. Open your eyes man.

Ah, thanks, I missed that.

soul searching · Aug 23, 2004, 03:31 PM

Originally posted by macvillage.net:
Bush has done some revising and flipflops himself:
http://www.comedycentral.com/mp/play...yer=real_media

Heh, Jonh has done this a few times. Always funny

macvillage.net · Aug 23, 2004, 03:44 PM

Originally posted by soul searching:
Heh, Jonh has done this a few times. Always funny

But that's not flipflopping on the issues.

PacHead · Aug 23, 2004, 03:52 PM

Originally posted by macvillage.net:
Bush isn't condemning all these ads.

Sure he is. I just saw him just today on the news, and he said from his own mouth he condemns ALL ads that use the soft money, including the swiftboat ad.

Lerkfish · Aug 23, 2004, 03:59 PM

Originally posted by SimeyTheLimey:
Is there some reason why Lerk won't substantiate the letter he posted? I googled it, and couldn't find it. Why is he refusing to post a link and a source?

not your fault here... I posted, thinking I had the link handy. then I had to edit the post to include the link. You probably saw it pre-edit and didn't refresh your browser.

I edited to add: but it only took me about a minute to locate the link, and when I edited, it looked like no one had read it so I didn't bother making a second post and just edited the first one.
that's why I think you just didn't have a refreshed screen, because there wasn't much time at all between the first post and the edit.

macvillage.net · Aug 23, 2004, 04:11 PM

Originally posted by PacHead:
Sure he is. I just saw him just today on the news, and he said from his own mouth he condemns ALL ads that use the soft money, including the swiftboat ad.

Actually... no:

http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.j...toryID=6047784

Bush stopped short of directly condemning the charge that Kerry lied about his actions.

He's doing the same thing Kerry did just a short while ago. Talking, but saying nothing.

Spin, Spin, Spin

Lerkfish · Aug 23, 2004, 04:32 PM

Originally posted by macvillage.net:
Actually... no:

http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.j...toryID=6047784

He's doing the same thing Kerry did just a short while ago. Talking, but saying nothing.

Spin, Spin, Spin

but saying it in such a way that it fools those not paying attention.

macvillage.net · Aug 23, 2004, 04:38 PM

Originally posted by Lerkfish:
but saying it in such a way that it fools those not paying attention.

Says something about some people here doesn't it?

He made it very clear in his statements.

He lets people's imaginations do the rest.

spacefreak · Aug 23, 2004, 04:41 PM

Originally posted by BRussell:
And as far as I know, he has released all the records. People keep saying he hasn't, but I haven't seen any evidence that there's anything missing from what he's posted on his website.

He has not released all the records. He has not signed form 180 that authorizes a complete release. All you see on his website are the records he wants you to see.

And BTW, Kerry does support banning all these ads. Every time I've seen that brought up on TV, Kerry's people say that he agrees that all these should be stopped.

How about we hear from Kerry himself?

Lerkfish · Aug 23, 2004, 04:46 PM

Originally posted by spacefreak:
He has not released all the records. He has not signed form 180 that authorizes a complete release. All you see on his website are the records he wants you to see.

How about we hear from Kerry himself?

LOL!. the hypocrisy of Bush's position on his own records vs. Kerry's is glaring and laughable.