White House urges N.C. GOP to hit Edwards' record

[Kadie]

Posted on Fri, Sep. 03, 2004

White House urges N.C. GOP to hit Edwards' record

Associated Press


NEW YORK - North Carolina Republicans who attended their party's national convention this week got marching orders from White House aides who urged them to talk down Sen. John Edwards, the Democratic vice-presidential nominee.

"North Carolina, you've got a very special responsibility," said Ruben Barales, a White House advisor to President Bush, at a delegation meeting Thursday. "You need to tell the rest of the world about John Edwards. Tell them what he's like as a politician, and let them know about John Edwards."

Delegates from Iowa and South Dakota, both considered key battleground states, were also at Thursday's briefing, where a series of speakers talked about the broad themes and strategies of the Bush-Cheney re-election campaign, the Star-News of Wilmington reported Friday.

Speakers described Edwards as an absentee politician who has missed Senate votes and has not paid sufficient attention to constituent concerns.

http://www.charlotte.com/mld/observer/news/local/9574254.htm?1c

[Lex]

1. That will backfire. Here's why.

My grandma is a Faux News watching Republican, BUT she does NOT like people trashing John Edwards--she thinks it is mean and hateful to attack a "North Carolina boy" like that.

[LTR]

2. It's been done

The Helms machine ripped him apart when he first ran for Senate.

Results? Nada.

Good luck, boys! You'll need it.

[progressivebydesign]

3. Can someone tell me WHY the White House is in the campaign?

I thought they had to keep that separate?? I'm really confused. Having worked with Congressional campaigns, I KNOW that you could lose everything by mingling staff, resources, time, etc. HOW does the White House get away with using Scott McClellan to deliver campaign barbs, White House aides to use our time to counsel his campaign, and Karl Rove to act as a campaign advisor while ON the taxpayers payroll??? How does that work?

[mbali]

5. It's very different for the White House

The general view is that the President/White House is much more closely entwined with and affected by political issues and needs to be in order to govern effectively. Thus, the president is given much more leeway than members of Congress.

This isn't unique to Bush - the same way under Clinton and his predecessors. However, the Bush White House has taken this to an extreme never before seen.

[Catfight]

4. Spreading the word of Jesus...thy shall eliminate and lie about thy

brother to win an election! Edwards is your all American boy, he's not fake like Bush.

[MrBenchley]

6. Cheney can't come out of the shadows and face up to him....

And they're afraid to start ANOTHER negative campaign themselves.....after they've shot themselves in the foot over and over again with them.

Just a few days ago there was a 527 group in the wings ready to savage Edwards with an ad campaign ("Defective Product Manufacturers Against Trial Lawyers" or some such bunch)....but then along came Zell....