Bush campaign to file law suit to stop attack ads.

[palmtreegirl]

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=564&e=2&u=/nm/campaign_bush_dc

Quote from above link-

President Bush on Thursday sought to ease differences with ally Sen. John McCain by promising to take legal action to stop a wave of ads by outside groups, including those attacking the war record of Bush's presidential election rival John Kerry.

 

[wvrevy]

Yeah, but first they'll have to hire another lawyer

Why is it that they can't talk about the groups without putting the word "shadowy" in front of it, like they're trying to scare little kids ? Why not just call them "evil doers" and get it over with ?

 

[Saffron]

I hope you don't mind if I put up the entire story.

Responding to McCain, Bush Plans Legal Action on Ads

By Adam Entous

LAS CRUCES, N.M. (Reuters) - President Bush (news - web sites) on Thursday sought to ease differences with ally Sen. John McCain (news, bio, voting record) by promising to take legal action to stop a wave of ads by outside groups, including those attacking the war record of Bush's presidential election rival John Kerry (news - web sites).

The White House said Bush made the commitment to file a lawsuit against the Federal Election Committee when he spoke to McCain in a telephone call from Air Force One.

The Arizona Republican and Vietnam veteran has called on Bush to do more to end anti-Kerry ads by a group called Swift Boat Veterans for Truth, which has accused Kerry, McCain's friend and the Democratic presidential nominee, of lying about his Vietnam War service.

The White House made the announcement as Bush emerged from seclusion at his Crawford, Texas ranch and started a week of intense campaigning before next week's New York Republican convention with a raucous rally in Las Cruces, New Mexico, a state he lost to Democrat Al Gore (news - web sites) by just 366 votes in 2000.

Bush was accompanied for the first time on the campaign by former New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani (news - web sites), a Republican whose response to the Sept. 11 attacks made him a national figure and popular with independent voters.

The fierce dispute over Kerry's record in Vietnam, where he was decorated for bravery, has dominated recent campaigning in the neck-and-neck race for the Nov. 2 election. Both candidates are trying to portray themselves as the best man to lead the United States in its war on terrorism.

McCain has also asked Kerry to pull ads that featured the Arizona senator at a 2000 debate as an example of how the Bush campaign smeared other veterans. The Kerry campaign said in Minneapolis it would withdraw them from the airwaves.

McCain has threatened to raise his concerns about the Swift Boat ads when he campaigns with Bush next week.

He wants Bush to directly condemn the ads. Bush has yet to do so, issuing instead a blanket condemnation against all outside groups funded by unregulated soft money.

SHADOWY GROUPS

"The president said he wanted to work together (with McCain) to pursue court action to shut down all the ads and activity by the shadowy ... groups," White House spokesman Scott McClellan told reporters aboard Air Force One.

McClellan said the lawsuit would be filed by the Bush campaign -- rather than the White House -- against the Federal Election Commission (news - web sites).

"There have been previous complaints filed against the FEC. The FEC had an opportunity to act... They did not act. So that allows those who had filed those complaints to pursue action against the FEC," McClellan said.

McClellan said McCain told Bush during their conversation that "he thought it was a good idea to work together to shut down this kind of activity."

But McClellan did not say when legal action would be taken by the campaign, and he would not single out the Swift Boat group for condemnation. "The president condemns all the ads and activity by these shadowy groups," McClellan said.

Federal election rules bar organizations that take unrestricted donations from coordinating their activities with campaigns or political parties.

Records show the Swift Boat group received some of its funding from long-time Bush supporters. Its new commercial also features one veteran, Ken Cordier, who was on a Bush campaign committee until last week, when he was forced to quit.

A top lawyer for Bush's re-election campaign, Benjamin Ginsberg, resigned on Wednesday after disclosing he has been providing legal advice to the Swift Boat group.
(Additional reporting by Jeremy Pelofsky)

 

[bsnyder]

I wonder what John Kerry's response will be.

 

[palmtreegirl]

I hope you don't mind if I put up the entire story.

Of course I don't mind!

BTW I really love your palm tree hugger tag

 

[KarenC]

When President Bush signed McCain-Feingold he said,

"However, the bill does have flaws. Certain provisions present serious constitutional concerns. In particular, H.R. 2356 goes farther than I originally proposed by preventing all individuals, not just unions and corporations, from making donations to political parties in connection with Federal elections.

I believe individual freedom to participate in elections should be expanded, not diminished; and when individual freedoms are restricted, questions arise under the First Amendment.

I also have reservations about the constitutionality of the broad ban on issue advertising, which restrains the speech of a wide variety of groups on issues of public import in the months closest to an election. I expect that the courts will resolve these legitimate legal questions as appropriate under the law. "

http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2002/03/20020327.html

The fact that groups could for 527s to get around the ban on issue advertising convinced him that he could sign the bill.

 

[Saffron]

Thanks palmtreegirl! I used to be envious when I first saw your user name! Oooh, how I wanted it so!

 

[peachgirl]

Yeah, but first they'll have to hire another lawyer

Looks like McCain has Bush right where he wants him....
Bush can either bow to the pressure and do what McCain wants, or McCain can make it very uncomfortable for him.

I give Bush 0 credit for this one. Were it not for McCain this would never happen. Still, it's just a promise and Bush certainly knows how to break those.

as Bush emerged from seclusion

You mean he finally came out of hiding? I was beginning to worry!

<center><IMG width="150" SRC="http://logo.cafepress.com/5/2952.281325.jpg "></center>

 

[bsnyder]

Originally posted by KarenC

The fact that groups could for 527s to get around the ban on issue advertising convinced him that he could sign the bill.

But we've all certainly seen first hand the train wreck that McCain Feingold has wrought, haven't we?

Is there a workable solution that doesn't limit free speech?

 

[crazyforgoofy]

Originally posted by peachgirl
:

You mean he finally came out of hiding? I was beginning to worry!

You don't suppose the wide coverage Max Cleland got rolling his wheelchair up to the gates of Dubya's ranch had anything to do with it, do ya?

 

[DawnCt1]

I think its a big mistake. President Bush has put up with the assault from the left for the good part of his presidency, from the MM film, moveon.org, etc, etc. Now that Kerry is being wounded from the truth of the Swift Vets, he is crying foul. If they want to stop the ads, wait until after the election.