Tactics and Substance in the 2004 Elections GoogleNews: Howard Dean

September 3, 2004

by V

Sir Dubya Bravely Ran Away, Away

Bush's camp may cut 1 debate [AZCentral.com]
President Bush's campaign won't say for sure whether he will agree to the three debates proposed by the independent Commission on Presidential Debates, or if a Republican strategist was right this week when he said the Bush campaign would agree to only two debates.

The commission, without a formal agreement by the Bush camp, set debates for Sept. 30 in Coral Gables, Fla.; Oct. 8 in St. Louis; and Oct. 13 in Tempe. A vice presidential debate between incumbent Dick Cheney and Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry's running mate, North Carolina Sen. John Edwards, was set for Oct. 5 in Cleveland.

GOP strategist Scott Reed was quoted by the Reuters news agency this week as saying the Bush camp's position is that "two debates are sufficient and will not dominate the entire fall schedule."

"Three debates would have a tendency to be a little overbearing on your campaign strategy and tactics," Reed was quoted as saying.
??!?!
On Thursday ... Bush campaign manager Ken Mehlman ... refused to elaborate when asked whether that was the Bush campaign's position.

"Debates are always very important," Mehlman said.

But will Bush agree to all three of the commission dates, including the one in Arizona?

"We'll see," he said.

In later calls to The Arizona Republic, Bush campaign aides asking not to be identified insisted that Reed was not speaking officially for the campaign and that no decision had been made on the debates.

..."John Kerry is willing to go to a debate every week," Kerry campaign spokeswoman Laura Capps said.

Arizona Democratic Party Chairman Jim Pederson said the Tempe debate is the only one scheduled in a Western state, adding that "the American people really need to see these men together."

Former Wyoming GOP Sen. Alan Simpson, who was on the commission when it proposed the three debates but who now is helping the Bush-Cheney campaign, said the idea that the Bush camp may want only two debates is "very disturbing."
  1. Simpson is one of the smarter Republicans left, and he knows this looks bad.
  2. Bush campaign disarray!
  3. Puuuss, puss, puss, puss... heeere, puss puss...
UPDATE: Ha! Obviously J and I collided on this one....
Posted by V at September 3, 2004 12:00 PM
Comments

Ok, Frank Rich didn't call Dubya a "pussy," but close enough.

Posted by: Kevin at September 3, 2004 01:35 PM

Oh, I have missed you, Value Judgment! But I'm back, and you are better than ever. Thank you for still being here.

Posted by: fishd at September 4, 2004 05:16 AM

Recommended Reading:

The Politics of Truth: Inside the Lies that Led to War and Betrayed My Wife's CIA Identity: A Diplomat's Memoir
The Politics of Truth... A Diplomat's Memoir


Worse Than Watergate: The Secret Presidency of George W. Bush
Worse Than Watergate: The Secret Presidency of George W. Bush


Against All Enemies by Richard Clarke
Against All Enemies: Inside America's War on Terror


LIES by Al Franken
Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them: A Fair and Balanced Look at the Right


The Great Unraveling
The Great Unraveling


The Great Big Book of Tomorrow
The Great Big Book of Tomorrow


Clinton Wars
The Clinton Wars


Blinded by the Right
Blinded by the Right: The Conscience of an Ex-Conservative


Waging Modern War: Bosnia, Kosovo, and the Future of Combat

Subject to Debate: Sense and Dissents on Women, Politics, and Culture

Living History

The Hunting of the President: The Ten-Year Campaign to Destroy Bill and Hillary Clinton

John Adams

Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation

Code and Other Laws of Cyberspace

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