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from primarymonitor.com

Editorial: Smear campaign

Tuesday, November 25, 2003

Television ad seeks to portray Bush's critics as unpatriotic.

We welcome the new requirement that forces political candidates to take responsibility for their advertisements by informing viewers that they did indeed "approve this message."

That announcement, however, does not appear in the new TV ad being aired by the Republican National Committee in Iowa. President Bush neither authorized nor approved the ad. But he is nonetheless responsible for the 30-second spot, which seeks to frighten Americans into voting for him.

The commercial, which is expected to air in New Hampshire in coming weeks, is of a piece with President Bush's "Clear Skies" and "Health Forests" initiatives. Its title is "Reality."

As a dirge plays in the background, the president appears to remind America that "It would take one vial, one canister, one crate slipped into this country to bring a day of horror like none we have every known" - at least since Sept. 11, 2001.

Bush goes on to say, "Our war against terror is a contest of will in which perseverance is power." That true statement, however, is then followed by the Big Lie that is the cornerstone of the message.

"Some are now attacking the president for attacking the terrorists," the announcer says in a direct reference to Bush's Democratic presidential contenders.

Now Bush has every right to defend himself and his policies from a Democratic cannonade of criticism. But that statement is a flat-out lie, one calculated to (more)