Ohio Talking Points

2006-10-25T01:14:00.000-04:00

-AZ-Sen: Jon Kyl

--AZ-01: Rick Renzi

--AZ-05: J.D. Hayworth

--CA-04: John Doolittle

--CA-11: Richard Pombo

--CA-50: Brian Bilbray

--CO-04: Marilyn Musgrave

--CO-05: Doug Lamborn

--CO-07: Rick O'Donnell

--CT-04: Christopher Shays

--FL-13: Vernon Buchanan

--FL-16: Joe Negron

--FL-22: Clay Shaw

--ID-01: Bill Sali

--IL-06: Peter Roskam

--IL-10: Mark Kirk

--IL-14: Dennis Hastert

--IN-02: Chris Chocola

--IN-08: John Hostettler

--IA-01: Mike Whalen

--KS-02: Jim Ryun

--KY-03: Anne Northup

--KY-04: Geoff Davis

--MD-Sen: Michael Steele

--MN-01: Gil Gutknecht

--MN-06: Michele Bachmann

--MO-Sen: Jim Talent

--MT-Sen: Conrad Burns

--NV-03: Jon Porter

--NH-02: Charlie Bass

--NJ-07: Mike Ferguson

--NM-01: Heather Wilson

--NY-03: Peter King

--NY-20: John Sweeney

--NY-26: Tom Reynolds

--NY-29: Randy Kuhl

--NC-08: Robin Hayes

--NC-11: Charles Taylor

--OH-01: Steve Chabot

--OH-02: Jean Schmidt

--OH-15: Deborah Pryce

--OH-18: Joy Padgett

--PA-04: Melissa Hart

--PA-07: Curt Weldon

--PA-08: Mike Fitzpatrick

--PA-10: Don Sherwood

--RI-Sen: Lincoln Chafee

--TN-Sen: Bob Corker

--VA-Sen: George Allen

--VA-10: Frank Wolf

--WA-Sen: Mike McGavick

--WA-08: Dave Reichert

April Fools Day Social Security event (revised)

2005-02-28T17:09:00.000-05:00

You are invited to join with Blue Dublin and the Upper Arlington Progressive Action (Democratic organizations in Franklin County, Ohio), as we organize April Fools Day media events /grassroots-building events related to Social Security. We are encouraging other local Democrats tohold events of their own across Franklin County. We are inviting Democrats across the country to participate also. Let’s try to have a nationwide party on April 1st, telling George W. Bush and the Republicans “Don’t Fool With Social Security.”

Goals – Ideally, each local event should provide:

* Proactive publicity through a tangible event that the media can cover, thereby raising the public profile of the Social Security debate in the local community;

* Grassroots recruitment through tangible activities that local Democratic Party organizations can use to raise their profile in the community and develop their grassroots.

Event Description:

On Friday, April 1st, Democratic and progressive activists will meet with their neighbors at some local venue to:

* Learn more about the debate, including specific actions they can take to save Social Security;
* Pick up/purchase “Don’t Fool With Social Security” yardsigns;
* Sign onto an open letter to President Bush;
* Sign up to participate in a phone/letter-writiing campaign, whereby elected officials are urged to sign the “Don’t Fool With Social Security” pledge.
* Meet their fellow activists.

What Needs to Be Done:

* Publicity Material: To provide a visual hook for the media and to “brand” the campaign, we will need yard signs and bumper stickers with the message “Don’t Fool With Social Security.” The Upper Arlington Progressive Alliance (which had enormous success wth yard signs in its earlier incarnation as “UA for Kerry”) is investigating costs. Ideally, some national printing house can be found to accept orders from individuals/organizations holding an event.

* Logo: Still to be designed.

* Website: Particularly if this expands into a nationwide effort, there should be some kind of website (“www.DontFoolWithSocialSecurity.com”?) offering online event kits (.pdf files of logos, materials, etc.) and a lookup feature so individuals can find out where the nearest event is. This still needs to be built.

* Open Letter/”Don’t’ Fool With Social Security” Pledge: Drafts are below; obviously, they will be tweaked as necessary.

* Media Kits/Education Materials: Working with a committee of folks interested in the topic, I will be preparing briefing materials including sample press releases, fact sheets, FAQs, and links to online sources of information.

If any of this sounds remotely interesting to you or if you have questions, please contact J.B. Lawton at jbliiiATcolumbus.rr.com or post a comment here And feel free to pass this idea along others who might be interested. Thanks.

JB

---------------------
Draft Open Letter

April 1, 2005

The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Ave.
Washington D.C. , 20500

Dear President Bush:

Today, April 1st is a day for celebrating practical jokes and foolish pranks. But starting tomorrow, the jokes have to stop. Privatizing Social Security is not a laughing mattter.

It’s foolish to destroy the most successful social program in the last seventy years of American history.

It’s foolish to use Enron accounting to claim that privatizing Social Security isn’t going to cost trillions of dollars.

It’s foolish to blow saddle our children and grandchildren with a “birth tax” of $360,000 apiece in order to pay the cost of privatizing Social Security.

It’s foolish to propose a “fix” for Social Security that doesn’t even solve the real problems that Social Security is going to face in the future.

It’s foolish to gamble folks’ futures in the stock market casino.

And it’s really foolish to think that we are going to sit back and let you do it. As you said yourself: "Fool me once, shame on -- shame on you. Fool me -- you can't get fooled again."

Well, we aren’t going to be fooled again. We pledge today to stop you from turning Social Security into a joke. And we pledge to raise money, raise awareness, and actively campaign against any politician—Republican or Democrat—who doesn’t sign the attached pledge.

Don’t Fool With Social Security.

--------------------

Draft “Don’t Fool With Social Security” Pledge

[The language has been taken almost verbatim from the Americans for Tax Reform’s “Taxypayer Protection Pledge. Obviously, the specific wording can be tweaked as needed.]

I, ____________, pledge to the taxpayers of the _____ district of the State of _________ and to all the people of this state, that I will oppose and vote against any and all efforts to dismantle Social Security.

Signed

_______________ ________________
(Candidate/Official) Date

_______________ ________________
Witness Witness

--------------------------------
Sample Invitation:

Don’t let politicians fool with Social Security. On Friday, April Fools Day, join your neighbors for a TGIF party as we remember who wants to privatize Social Security, playing a cruel joke on all of us. We’ll meet at [location] from [start-time] to [finish-time] to organize and kick off our local “Don’t Fool With Social Security” drive. Sign our open letter to President Bush, pick up a yard sign, and learn more about wht all of us can do to protect Social Security.
Questions? Email or call [contact person] or check out [www.DontFoolWithSocialSecurity.com or whatever the final website is].

Possible Related Media Events:

* Pre-event phone-bank of volunteers who will call invitees (ideally, this should be scheduled in the morning in order to make the noon local news).

* The party (or parties if there is county-wide/national interest) where an open letter to President Bush will be read, and volunteers will sign up to participate in a campaign calling the White House, Senators, and local Representatives the following Monday. (Ideally, volunteers should sign up for specific times, ensuring that offices will get phone calls and faxes at least every five minutes.)

* Monday phone bank of volunteers making their phone calls. (Again, while calls will be scheduled all day, the media should be invited to a morning kick-off phone bank so that the story will make the local news.

Social Security April Fools Event

2005-02-11T11:46:00.000-05:00

A group of us Kerry volunteers out here in the deep, dark, Republican suburbs of Columbus, Ohio (Dublin, actually) could use some help brainstorming. We've got the skeleton of an idea, but it needs some fleshing out. Maybe you could help.

Harry Reid (and others) noted that Bush delivered his State of the Union address on Groundhog Day. We'd like to piggyback off the calendar, too. We want to celebrate April Fools Day by highlighting Bush's plans to wreck Social Security.

Any ideas on an appropriate way to turn this into a media event that will get local coverage? Could it be something that other groups across the country could do in their neighborhoods? Let's get creative.

Since April 1 is on a Friday this year, we've got the chance to make it a twofer, not only generating media coverage, but also building our grassroots. It can be a TGIF party/happy hour/gathering for Democratic activists.

So what can we do? A few of us brainstorming have come up with a few ideas. C'mon, you can better than:

A party/press conference where we invite Bush and local Republican elected officials to finally come clean and admit that all of the talk about "reforming" Social Security was nothing but an elaborate April Fools prank? (After all, would anyone seriously try to gut the most successful social program in the past seventy years?)

An April Fool Idol contest for the most foolish way to "reform" Social Security, with all of the "contestants" offering actual Republican plans?

Some kind of a party around Bush's famous garbled line: "Fool me once, shame on — shame on you. Fool me — you can't get fooled again." (Sept. 17, 2002)?

Post your ideas here. Let's get a discussion going. Heck, let's see if we can take this nationwide. (Anyone know the folks at MoveOn?)

More Columbus advertisers oppose Sinclair

2004-10-18T14:23:00.000-04:00

The ranks of Columbus advertisers speaking out against Sinclair continue to grow. As you can read from the emails below, two local law firms have protested. I've also learned that a hair salon has pulled out, too.

The total list of pullot so far: HER Realtors, Homes That Click Realtors, Chesrown Buick Pontiac GMC and Kia dealers, Elk & Elk, The Plymale Partnership, and Kenneth's Hair Salon.

Speaking of protests...there will be a group of folks protesting WSYX/WTTE here in Columbus at 6:00. We'll meet in the parking lot just south of the station at 1261 Dublin Rd. Bring a flag, a sign, and an umbrella.

Elk & Elk lawfirm
info@elkandelk.com

We are in agreement with your position regarding our mutual disapproval of WSYX and WTTE's airing of the anti-Kerry documentary, "Stolen Honor". We have already expressed to Sinclair Broadcast Group's management that we disapprove of their airing "Stolen Honor" prior to the November 2nd election. We do not believe this method of "gutter" politics will be beneficial to whoever they support.

Our firm has strongly supported and will continue to support the Kerry/Edwards Presidential Campaign. We have made our offices available for several months now for Kerry/Edwards phone banks, as well as making our staff available to assist with the phone banks. We have distributed yard signs and contributed to their campaign by sending out flyers to our clients in support of their candidacy. We have pulled our 30-second television
commercial spots for the month of October from the stations, but we are not able to pull our billboard/news sponsorships due to contractual commitments.

We will continue to do everything we can to support the Kerry/Edwards Campaign.

The Plymale Partnership lawfirm
acecil@plymalelaw.com

I write to you in response to an email you sent to Ron
Plymale. Ron has retired so I, as one of the current partners, am undertaking the response on behalf of my firm. I apologize for not being able to respond to each individual note but the task would be too daunting. I will say I am honored and proud that each of you have taken the time to voice your concerns. Please continue voicing your concerns in the future. Be sure to vote on Nov. 2nd.

The Plymale Partnership purchases commercial air time though a buyer months in advance. Once we heard of the Sinclair issue, and before the emails started coming in, I contacted the buyer to express my displeasure and to see if it is possible to pull our current advertising. I have not received and answer as the affiliates, as I understand it, are hoping the "home office" will back down. I have made it
clear to our media buyer that if the program airs, though we may not be able to stop was is already in progress, we can certainly refuse to make purchases in the future.

Just so there is not misunderstanding, this firm is proud to be made up of trial attorneys that represents people. You will not find any kind words coming from Sinclair or the current administration towards our profession. With that in mind, you know which side of this issue The Plymale Partnership is on. Long before the Sinclair issue was raised, we were supporting those that support our clients and profession.

I don't know what will happen. I cannot subject my firm to
lawsuits for breach of contract. I, like each of you, can decide to spend my money elsewhere. There are many tv stations out there willing to take our money.

Thank you for contacting us and expressing your views. I am hopeful that you reach goal to stop the airing of the program. I also hope each of you vote your concerns on Nov 2nd. Take a friend. Finally, while in the voting booth, be sure to vote of Connelly, Fuerst, O'Neill and Pfeiffer for the Ohio Supreme Court.

Andrew W. Cecil

The Plymale Partnership
495 South High St, Suite 400
Columbus, Ohio 43215
614 221-1166 office
614 221-6633 fax
acecil@plymalelaw.com

More Columbus Sinclair advertisers

2004-10-13T01:57:00.000-04:00

Adding to this list of companies advertising on WSYX and WTTE (the Sinclair stations here in Columbus), I've got even more companies listed below. Note in particular the asterisked (*) companies. Their products were advertised during the Tuesday 5:00 Newscenter broadcast on WSYX.

And in case you need incentive to call, here's proof that our work is making a difference. Now (politely) call the companies below and ask to speak with someone in marketing and advertising.

-------MORE WSYX/WTTE ADVERTISERS--------

*3D Disaster Kleenup of Columbus
4110 Perimeter Drive
Columbus, Ohio 43228
(614) 351-9695
(866) 449-8740
Fax: (614) 351-6393
Jane Rogaliner, Sales and Marketing
Email: rogalinerj@3ddki.com

Association of Career and Technical Schools
1-888-541-4242
info@mycareercenters.com

*Bank One
J.P. Morgan Chase & Co.
270 Park Ave.
New York, NY 10017
212-270-6000

BalletMet Dance Centre
614.229.4860
614.224.1672
614.229.4848
cmitchell@balletmet.org

*Blind Gallery
8603 Columbus Pike
Hilliard, OH 43026
614-777-7787

*CheckSmart
5720 Avery Road
Dublin,OH 43016
614-425-5851
Fax: 614-737-5301

Crown Kia
614-652-6542
From an email sent by Crown Kia: "Kia of America has already pulled advertising from these stations. Crown Kia inDublin has not purchased any air time on these stations."

*Flonase
GlaxoSmithKline
1-888-825-5249

*Honey Nut Cheerios & Pillsbury Rolls
General Mills, Inc.
P.O. Box 9452
Minneapolis, MN 55440
1-800-248-7310
(763) 764-7600

Kaufmann's (May Department Stores)
314-342-6300

Law offices of Kevin Kurgis
1-877-4-Kevin-4

*Med4Home
1-800-207-0647
(816)801-7400
10800 N CONGRESS AVE
KANSAS CITY, MO 64153

New Uses General Store
1-614-760-7283

*Rally's
Checkers Drive-In Restaurants
4300 West Cypress Street
Suite #600
Tampa, FL 33607

*Re/Max
Central Ohio Regional Office
8390 E. Crescent Parkway, Suite 200
Greenwood Village, CO 80111
(800) 218-1564
FAX: (303) 796-3203

Resource Real Estate
614-865-9715
ext. 203

Ricart Kia
(614) 836-5321

*Schiff & Associates
866-472-6884
614-621-8888

Spagio (Good italian food!)
(614) 340-1144

*Stanley Steemer
5532 Dublin Industrial Lane
Dublin, OH 43017
(614) 764-2000
800-STEEMER
Columbus-Branch-L@steemer.com

*Telhio Credit Union
96 North Fourth Street
Columbus, OH 43215
614-221-3233

*TheGeneral.com
2636 Elm Hill Pike, Suite 510
Nashville, Tennessee 37214
1-877 GENERAL
Contact: Drew Martin, 615-744-1217
amartin@thegeneral.com

TheGeneral.com has the following contact info for "News Media Relations"
Keel Hunt, The Strategy Group - Nashville, TN
615-321-3110
keel@tsgnashville.com

Sinclair's at it again!

2004-10-12T13:41:00.000-04:00

Remember when we protested WSYX-6 here in Columbus last April because they refused to air the special Nightline honoring America's fallen? Well, they're at it again.

No doubt you've heard that Sinclair Broadcast Group, owners of WSYX, is mandating that its stations pre-empt regular programming and air a Kerry-bashing "documentary" between Oct. 21 and 24. There is a national campaign underway to complain, protest, and boycott Sinclair. The key websites to bookmark are:

http://www.stopsinclair.org
http://www.boycottsbg.com
http://loganselm.blogspot.com

We'll probably be doing something locally when this partisan propaganda airs, but in the meantime, here's the contact info for WSYX, Sinclair, and some of the companies advertising on WSYX.* Please give 'em a call and an email and make your opinion known.

JB Lawton III

(*In the credit-where-credit-is-due dept., I've compiled the list of advertisers from the websites above)

-----------------------

WSYX/WTTE
1261 Dublin Rd.
Columbus, OH 43215
614-481-6666

Corporate Headquarters
Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc.
10706 Beaver Dam Road
Hunt Valley, Maryland 21030
410-568-1500 (Main Telephone)
410-568-1533 (Main Fax)

Mark Hyman: mhyman@sbgnet.com Vice President for Corporate Relations
David Smith: dsmith@sbgnet.com CEO
Joe Defeo: jdefeo@sbgnet.com Corporate News Director
Lucy A. Rutishauser: investor@sbgi.net VP Corporate Finance and Corporate Treasurer

American Family Insurance
www.amfam.com
American Family Insurance
6000 American Parkway
Madison, Wisconsin 53783-0001
(608) 249-2111

Atlas Butler Heating and Cooling
www.atlasbutler.com
619 Reynolds Ave
Columbus, OH 43201
1-800-FURNACE
Fax: 614.298.6977
Email: info@atlasbutler.com

Campbell�s Soup
(Also does Pepperidge Farm, Prego, V8, and Spaghettios)
www.campbellsoupcompany.com
Douglas R. Conant
1 Campbell Place
Camden, NJ 08103-1701
1-800-257-8443
856-342-4800

Chesrown Pontiac-Buick-GMC
800-274-3603

Central Ohio Hyundai Dealers
Dennis Hyundai - 614 471-2900
Hatfield's Hyundai Subaru - 614 870-9559
(804) 418-8298

Circuit City PR Rep Kathie Hess at (804) 418-8298
(614) 471-7025
(614) 760-5890

Competition Accessories
(937) 323-0513

Coughlin Chevrolet Geo Toyota
(614) 221-6505

Doug Mann (Personal Injury Lawyer)
1-800-INJURED

Elk & Elk (�Injury Lawyers�)
www.elkandelk.com
info@elkandelk.com
1-888-ELKOHIO

Feazel Roofing
614-882-2782

Geico Insurance Corporate Communications
(937) 484-8911
301-986-2812

Germain Toyota
(614) 868-0300

Hatfield's Hyundai Subaru
614 870-9559

HER Realtors
***CALL HER TO THANK THEM FOR PULLING THEIR ADS FROM WSYX/WTTE!***
www.Herrealtors.com
Harley Rouda, Jr.
614-273-6004
77 East Nationwide Blvd
Columbus, OH 43215
614-459-7400 Office
614-457-6807 Fax

Homes That Click realtors
(614) 268-7653

ITT Tech
614 771-4888

Kenneth's Hair Salons and Day Spas
614.457.7712

Mario Tricoci
614-428-1000
614-764-7611
(800) 874-2624

OSU Ross Heart Hospital
614-293-5123

PepsiCola Bottling of Columbus:
(614) 253-8771

SafeAuto
www.safeauto.com
3883 East Broad Street
Columbus, Ohio 43213
614-231-0200 (office)
614-456-2940 (fax)
1-800-SAFEAUTO

Scrubbing Bubbles automatic shower cleaner
SC Johnson Corporate - 1.800.494.4855
Public Relations at 262.260.3709 or 262.260.4402

Tansky's Toyota
(614) 766-4800

Time Warner Cable/Road Runner Online
***THEY ARE KEEPING A TALLY OF CUSTOMERS WHO CALL ABOUT THIS ISSUE TO PASS ALONG TO THEIR EXECUTIVES. JOIN THE LIST!***
(614) 220-0979
(614) 481-5389

Toyota Direct
(614) 476-1979

Toyota West
(614) 870-8200

United Way
(614) 227-2700

Verizon Wireless
Midwest P.R. Manager David Clevenger 847-619-4291
Ohio P.R. Manager Laura Merritt 614-560-2605

Ohio Dems & ACT respond to Blackwell

2004-09-28T23:45:00.001-04:00

First, the Ohio Democratic Party (ODP) is actively looking for anyone who actually has been disenfranchised:

"If any Ohio citizens has information indicating a voter registration application has been denied because of inadequate paper weight, please notify the Ohio Democratic Party immediately. We stand ready to take whatever action is necessary to ensure that voter registration applications correctly completed by eligible voters are accepted." (ODP's full statement is below.)

Second, America Coming Together (ACT) has launched a petition drive against Blackwell.

Here's the ODP press release:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 28, 2004

Statement from Ohio Democratic Party Chair Dennis L. White

Regarding 80-Pound Voter Registration Card Directive

All or part of the following statement can be attributed to Dennis L. White, Ohio Democratic Party Chair.

"I am shocked and appalled by the latest directive from Secretary of State Kenneth Blackwell that calls for the disregarding any voter registration form not filed on 80-pound weight paper. This is an antiquated rule and an unnecessary barrier to voter registration efforts going on in Ohio.

"If any Ohio citizens has information indicating a voter registration application has been denied because of inadequate paper weight, please notify the Ohio Democratic Party immediately. We stand ready to take whatever action is necessary to ensure that voter registration applications correctly completed by eligible voters are accepted.

"Please call Dan Trevas at (614) 229-4149 or email dan@ohiodems.org if your applications have been denied.

-30-

And here's ACT's petition:

Desperation and 80 Pound Paper Stock in Ohio
With only a few days left before the registration deadline here in Ohio, Secretary of State Ken Blackwell is trying re-instate selective voting. His controls on the voting process will prohibit thousands of Ohioans from voting in the upcoming election.

He will not allow people to cast votes on provisional ballots if they go to the incorrect polling place, even if the voter is not at fault!
Citing an arcane ruling that requires voter registration cards be printed on 80 pound stock paper, Blackwell is threatening to void registrations submitted on a lighter weight paper, demanding they re-apply. There is no time to reapply and thousands of voters could be left off the rolls.
This is not only unethical, it's illegal. The 14th Amendment grants every citizen the right to vote--regardless of race, gender, creed--or polling location or paper stock.

Republicans in Ohio are scared--with good reason--ACT's Get-Out-the-Vote effort is working --in Ohio we're out-registering Republicans by 10 to 1.

Sign the petition, and then sign up to volunteer with ACT in a swing state. Be part of the winning strategy.

2004-09-28T23:45:00.000-04:00

By now, anyone interested in Ohio politics is probably aware of Secretary of State Ken Blackwell's latest effort to disenfranchise voters. (If not, go here or here for more.) But there are two developments worth noting.

First, the Ohio Democratic Party (ODP) is actively looking for anyone who actually has been disenfranchised:

“If any Ohio citizens has information indicating a voter registration application has been denied because of inadequate paper weight, please notify the Ohio Democratic Party immediately. We stand ready to take whatever action is necessary to ensure that voter registration applications correctly completed by eligible voters are accepted." (ODP's full statement is below.)

Second, America Coming Together (ACT) has launched a petition drive against Blackwell.

Here's the ODP press release:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

September 28, 2004

Statement from Ohio Democratic Party Chair Dennis L. White

Regarding 80-Pound Voter Registration Card Directive

All or part of the following statement can be attributed to Dennis L. White, Ohio Democratic Party Chair.

“I am shocked and appalled by the latest directive from Secretary of State Kenneth Blackwell that calls for the disregarding any voter registration form not filed on 80-pound weight paper. This is an antiquated rule and an unnecessary barrier to voter registration efforts going on in Ohio.

“If any Ohio citizens has information indicating a voter registration application has been denied because of inadequate paper weight, please notify the Ohio Democratic Party immediately. We stand ready to take whatever action is necessary to ensure that voter registration applications correctly completed by eligible voters are accepted.

“Please call Dan Trevas at (614) 229-4149 or email dan@ohiodems.org if your applications have been denied.

-30-

And here's ACT's petition:

Desperation and 80 Pound Paper Stock in Ohio

With only a few days left before the registration deadline here in Ohio, Secretary of State Ken Blackwell is trying re-instate selective voting. His controls on the voting process will prohibit thousands of Ohioans from voting in the upcoming election.

He will not allow people to cast votes on provisional ballots if they go to the incorrect polling place, even if the voter is not at fault!
Citing an arcane ruling that requires voter registration cards be printed on 80 pound stock paper, Blackwell is threatening to void registrations submitted on a lighter weight paper, demanding they re-apply. There is no time to reapply and thousands of voters could be left off the rolls.

This is not only unethical, it’s illegal. The 14th Amendment grants every citizen the right to vote—regardless of race, gender, creed—or polling location or paper stock.

Republicans in Ohio are scared—with good reason—ACT’s Get-Out-the-Vote effort is working --in Ohio we’re out-registering Republicans by 10 to 1.

Sign the petition, and then sign up to volunteer with ACT in a swing state. Be part of the winning strategy.

MediaCorps assignment: Kerry slams Bush on Iraq

2004-09-23T14:49:00.000-04:00

LATEST MEDIA CORPS ASSIGNMENT:

See http://www.johnkerry.com/mediacorps for details.

Monday John Kerry slammed George Bush for his "colossal failures of judgment" in the war in Iraq: In Iraq, this administration has consistently over promised and underperformed. This policy has been plagued by a lack of planning, an absence of candor, arrogance, and outright incompetence. And the president has held no one accountable, not even himself.

What are the consequences of Bush's misjudgments? What does Bush's Iraq look like now, months after Bush's declaration of "Mission Accomplished"?

Americans are dying, and the number is increasing. Forty-two Americans died in Iraq in June -- the month before the handover. Fifty-four died in July, 66 died in August, and 54 soldiers have already died in September.

More than 1,100 Americans were wounded in Iraq in August -- more than in any other month since invasion.

Our soldiers are fighting a growing insurgency in an ever widening war zone. In March, insurgents attacked American forces in 700 separate assaults. In August, they initiated 2,700 attacks -- a 400% increase.

Falluja, Ramadi, Samarra, and even parts of Baghdad, are now "no go zones" and breeding grounds for terrorists who plot and launch attacks against American soldiers.

Violence against Iraqi civilians is on the rise from bombings to kidnappings to intimidations.
Unemployment in Iraq is more than 50 percent.

Basic living conditions are deteriorating. Residents of Baghdad are suffering electricity blackouts lasting up to 14 hours a day. Raw sewage fills the streets.

The world is a much more dangerous place today because the president was wrong in the way he prepared for and waged war in Iraq.

George Bush has finally agreed to debate John Kerry on foreign policy next Thursday, September 30. We need you to prepare independents and swing voters in key states by making them aware of the real situation on the ground in Iraq. Bring those up to date who haven't been following the news so that they'll make the right decision on November 2.

Please write letters to the editor of local and state newspapers describing the increasing dangers facing American soldiers and Iraqi citizens.

Here's the one I just sent (and which the Cleveland Plain-Dealer is considering):

Bush Not Facing Reality

To the Editor:

The laughably optimistic Iraqi minister of (dis)information is back. But now he’s in the White House.

Months ago, the CIA projected three futures for Iraq: bad, awful, and worst. Things have only gone downhill since then. In August, our troops faced 87 attacks per day, the worst monthly average since “Mission Accomplished.” The death toll is steadily rising, augmented by daily beheadings of kidnapped civilians.

Our troops know how bad things have gotten. One Marine told the Christian Science Monitor recently “We shouldn’t be here.” Another said he was “thinking about throwing his medals over the White House wall.”

Congress knows what’s happening. As Republican Senator Chuck Hagel said “Right now, we are not winning. Things are getting worse.”

But George W. Bush remains in his own little make-believe world where Iraq and Afghanistan are “on the path to democracy and freedom,” as he told the U.N. Never mind that Iraq could easily erupt into civil war and the Taliban are back in power outside of Kabul.

Bush was on the pep squad at Andover and Yale. But it’s time he put away his pom-poms. The U.S. doesn’t need a cheerleader. We need a real leader. We need John Kerry.

Sincerely,

J.B. Lawton III

More language that works

2004-09-20T13:45:00.000-04:00

I've lauded Tom Terez of AnotherRepublicanforKerry.com in the past, but it's time to do it again. Tom has put together a memo on effective message strategies that's terrific.

Kos isn't the only one who's hooked on the work of George Lakoff, Tom's right there, too.

Tom's 7-point summary is below. Check it out and use it for your letters to newspapers and in your conversations with undecided voters.

SUMMARY

1. Early stages of the campaign gave prominence to John Kerry's Vietnam biography. The swiftboat attack ads, followed by stories and charges regarding George Bush's Guard service, have sadly made Kerry's war service more of a campaign liability than a strength. The solution? Pivot away from Vietnam and maintain a tight focus on the past four years and the next four years. Click here for detail

2. Bush-Cheney have been able to define the context for this election by emphasizing that “9/11 changed everything”; If this context continues to dominate, Bush-Cheney win. To create a context that favors Kerry-Edwards, it is crucial to elevate in people's minds the momentous nature of this election. People need to hear time and again that their vote represents an important responsibility and an opportunity to make history. As this message gets through, people will become more thoughtful and critical of the Bush administration's past four years, more cautious about the next four years, and more receptive to an alternative to George Bush. Click here for detail

3. Emphasize the sharp contrast in character between George Bush and John Kerry. In terms of working style, Bush makes loud pronouncements that stretch the truth (think aircraft carrier), while Kerry is quietly effective and marks accomplishment with dignified humility. Bush is a son of privilege and part of a political dynasty, while Kerry is a lifelong fighter who has taken on some of America's toughest foes regardless of the political consequences. Bush has led a divisive and venomous campaign aimed at suppressing the vote, while Kerry has maintained a positive message that offers practical solutions and real hope. Click here for detail

4. Tell the story of John Kerry's lifetime record as a leader who has repeatedly taken on tough foes on behalf of everyday people. All the details of Kerry's biography fit this powerful theme: his early work as a prosecutor against organized crime, his 14 trips to Vietnam to uncover the truth about POWs/MIAs, his determination to root out corruption at the politically entangled Bank of Credit and Commerce International despite protests from both political parties, his leadership in taking on corporate polluters and safeguarding our environment, his commitment to fiscal responsibility, etc. Click here for detail

5. Continue to expose the Bush record as four years of awful results, but instead of merely citing statistics, provide a context that explains why the results are so bad. .. Click here for detail

There are two main reasons:

5A. George Bush has handed control over to the extreme conservative think tanks. These groups have been busy during the past four years experimenting with the American system and our most important American programs and institutions -- with disastrous results. .. Click here for detail

5B. George Bush has a gambler's tendency to take high-stakes risks -- and his biggest rolls of the dice have produced some of the biggest losses this nation has ever seen. Click here for detail

6. Make America aware that four more years of George Bush will mean even more control by the extreme conservative think tanks, a new round of think-tank experiments, and more high-stakes gambles. This has dangerous implications for Social Security, Medicare, ongoing war, and our homeland security. .. Click here for detail

7. Explain John Kerry's plans by way of a distinct contrast: While George Bush would bring more think-tank experiments and more risky rolls of the dice, John Kerry has put together smart, practical plans that will strengthen our economy, secure our homeland, reknit the country into one America, and put the American Dream within everyone's reach. Click here for detail

Bush's health care failure

2004-09-16T15:00:00.000-04:00

LATEST MEDIA CORPS ASSIGNMENT:

George Bush's failed health care policies have taken our country in the wrong direction. Since Bush took office, families are paying a record 64 percent more on health insurance premiums. Deductibles have increased by nearly two-thirds and prescription drug co-pays have increased by more than 50 percent.

Write letters to the editors of your local and state newspapers telling your community that Bush's record of failure on health care speaks for itself. When you write, please emphasize how important it is to you that Americans have access to affordable health care. Think about your own experiences - Do you worry about the cost of a doctor's visit or prescription drugs? Do you and your family have health insurance?

Looking for the emails of newspapers? Check out the list at OhioTalkingPoints.com or use Congress.org.

Once you've written a letter, post it on the Big Board. Click the "New Thread" button

Writing points on health care are below. Please pick only 1-2 points to use in your letter.

New evidence of Bush's record of failure on health care:

NATIONAL HEALTH CARE FACTS

Since 2000, family health care premiums have increased by $3,412 - a 64 percent increase.
Premiums increased nearly five times faster than worker's earnings this year.
Deductibles have increased by nearly two-thirds and prescription drug co-pays have increased by more than 50 percent.
Forty-one percent of firms say they are likely to increase premium costs for their employees in the next two years.

*All statistics are from the Kaiser Family Foundation, Employee Health Benefits Survey 2004

OHIO HEALTH CARE FACTS

$2,704 Estimated Total Family Premium Increase. In Ohio, the total family premium for health insurance has increased by $2,704 to $9,300. [2000 MEPS Data from the Agency for Healthcare Quality Research projected forward using KFF National Premium Increase]
Health Care Premiums Increased Four Times Faster than Workers’ Earnings Last Year. Health care premiums increased by 13.9% last year while workers’ earnings increased by only 3.1%. This is the fifth year in a row that premiums outpaced earnings. [Kaiser Family Foundation, “Trends and Indicators in the Changing Health Care Marketplace, 2004 Update”]
The Average Annual Health Care Premium Increase More than Doubled Under Bush. From 2000 to 2003, the rate of health care premium increase more than doubled. From 1998-2000 the rate of increase was 5.3% and from 2000-2003 that rate was 12.7%. [Kaiser Family Foundation, “Trends and Indicators in the Changing Health Care Marketplace, 2004 Update”]
96,000 Ohioans have lost their health insurance coverage. Since 2000, 96,000 people in Ohio have lost their health insurance coverage. [US Census, Current Population Survey, 2000, 2002]
1,344,000 Ohioans do not have health insurance. There are 1,344,000 people in Ohio who do not have health insurance. [US Census, Current Population Survey, 2002]
239,000 Children Do Not Have Health Insurance Coverage. There are 239,000 children in Ohio that do not have health insurance coverage. [US Census, Children With Health Insurance: 2001, August, 2003]

GEORGE BUSH’S PLAN FALLS FLAT

Only 73,008 More Insured Under Bush Plan. According to George Bush’s plan, only 73,008 more people will be covered in Ohio. [Kenneth Thorpe, “Proposals for Covering the Uninsured and Reducing Health Care Costs from President Bush and Senator Kerry,” 5/5/04]

JOHN KERRY WILL LOWER COSTS AND EXPAND COVERAGE

$1,000 Reduction in Health Care Costs. Under John Kerry’s health care plan, families will save up to 10% or $1,000 in health care costs.
812,210 More People Will Be Covered Under Kerry’s Plan. By implementing John Kerry’s health care plan, 812,210 more people in Ohio will be provided health insurance coverage.
227,050 More Children Will Be Covered Under Kerry’s Plan. By implementing John Kerry’s health care plan, 227,050 more children in Ohio will be provided health insurance coverage.

Links to additional points:

OhioTalkingPoints.com
Center for American Progress -- Health care and seniors
Ohio for Kerry/Edwards -- Ohio's health insurance crisis
Kerry campaign rebuttal of latest Bush ad attacking Kerry on Medicare vote
Issues page from Kerry campaign, includes links to more talking points/headlines
Ohio fact sheet on Medicare -- .pdf file)

Homeland Insecurity

2004-09-09T14:38:00.000-04:00

Not surprisingly, every major paper in Ohio today leads off with a story on Kerry's speech in Cincinnati. Akron Beacon Journal: "Kerry blasts Bush on Iraq." Cincinnati Enquirer: "Iraq war costs us at home, Kerry says in new tactic." Columbus Dispatch: "Kerry blasts Bush on Iraq war." Cleveland Plain Dealer: "Campaign battle on Iraq heats up." Dayton Daily News: "Kerry: Bush rushed into war." Toledo Blade: "Kerry takes offensive over Iraq."

Several have editorials on the subject. The Cincinnati Enquirer, for instance, observes: "Kerry position in sharper focus." More importantly, the Enquirer closes by inviting readers to respond:

Are we better equipped to fight terrorism than we were on Sept. 11?" Send your responses to letters@enquirer.com; fax to (513) 768-8410; or mail to Letters, Enquirer Editorial Page, 312 Elm St., Cincinnati, OH 45202.

Why not email the Enquirer a response? After you've done so, tweak it and send it along to the papers above. (It's easy, just click on the paper's name. I've got 'em hyperlinked.)

Looking for talking points?

The Kerry campaign has a 10-page .pdf file called "Cincinnati Bungles: Bush Misled U.S. into War Based On False Evidence." That file quotes and refutes the arguments Bush made two years ago at a speech given at the same location in Cincinnati.
The American Progress Action Fund has some great articles: "Over 1,000 U.S. Troops Killed and Still No Plan for Iraq" and "An Indefensible Homeland Security Record"
Or just cite one of the Democratic Party's list of Bush lies. (Incidentally, ere's the full text of Bush's original Cincinnati speech.)

Ten Bush lies, 1,000 American deaths

More than 1,000 American men and women are now dead as a result of George W. Bush's flagrant, calculated lies "justifying" the war in Iraq.

John Kerry's speech in Cincinnati today outlined just how badly that decision has hurt America. Let's revisit another Cincinnati speech — the one George W. Bush gave on Oct. 7, 2002 — just as Congress was deciding whether to give Bush authorization to attack Iraq. Here are the ten lies that jump-started the wrong war—one that has killed 1000 Americans.

1. Bush lied about weapons of mass destruction.

Bush: "[Iraq] possesses and produces chemical and biological weapons.

FACT: David Kay said no stockpiles of weapons of mass destruction existed in Iraq. Kay said Bush should give up "delusional" hope that WMD will be found. [Kay Testimony, 9-11 Commission, 1/28/04; Reuters, 7/28/04]

2. Bush lied about an Iraq/Al Qaeda relationship.

Bush: "We know that Iraq and Al Qaeda have had high-level contacts that go back a decade."

FACT: The 9/11 Commission Report said no "collaborative operational relationship" existed between Iraq and Al Qaeda, while the Senate Intelligence Committee report found no "established, formal" relationship between Iraq and Al Qaeda. [9/11 Commission Final Report, 7/22/04; LATimes, 7/10/04]

FACT: A national security expert called conflation of Iraq and Al Qaeda a "strategic error of the first order." [Dr. Jeffrey Record (professor, Air Force's Air War College), "Bounding the Global War on Terror," December 2003, Army Strategic Studies Institute]

3. Bush suggested Iraq might have nuclear weapons and was planning to attack the U.S.

Bush: "Knowing these realities, America must not ignor the threat gathering against us. Facing clear evidence of peril, we cannot wait for the final proof, the smoking gun that could come in the form of a mushroom cloud."

FACT: The Senate Intelligence Committee reported that previous U.S. intelligence estimates said Iraq did not have nuclear weapons. [Senate Intelligence Committee Report, Conclusion #27; Wash Post, 7/10/04]

4. Bush claimed Iraqi scientists were reconstituting nuclear weapons.

Bush: "The evidence indicates that Iraq is reconstituting its nuclear weapons program."

FACT: Scientists were working on non-nuclear projects. [Washington Post, 8/10/03]

FACT: Saddam's scientist said Saddam gave up weapons in 1991. [AFP, 8/12/04]

5. Bush claimed Iraq was using aluminum tubes to produce weapons.

Bush: "Iraq has attempted to purchase high-strength aluminum tubes and other equipment needed for gas centrifuges, which are used to enrich uranium for nuclear weapons."

FACT: Senate Intelligence report found aluminum tubes were not being used to reconstitute nuclear weapons. [LATimes, 7/10/04]

FACT: No evidence that Iraq's nuclear program was being reconstituted. [CEIP: "WMD In Iraq," 1/2004]

6. Bush claimed Iraq was developing unmanned aerial vehicles to attack the U.S.

Bush: “We’ve also discovered through intelligence that Iraq has a growing fleet of manned and unmanned aerial vehicles that could be used to disperse chemical and biological weapons across broad areas. We’re concerned that Iraq is exploring ways of using these UAVs for missions targeting the United States.”

FACT: Air Force was never convinced Iraq had effective drones. [Wall Street Journal, 9/10/03]

FACT: United Nations chief weapons inspector concluded that no evidence of unmanned aerial program existed. [Wash Post, 9/5/04]

7. Bush promised to plan for war and build a real coalition.

Bush: If we have to act, we will take every precaution that is possible. We will plan carefully.
We will act with the full power of the United States military. We will act with allies at our side and we will prevail.”

FACT: The U.S. is carrying the burden in Iraq — nearly 90 percent of the troops there are American. [Washington Post, 6/20/04; AP, 9/6/04; Brookings Institution, "Iraq Index," Updated 8/16/04]

FACT: Officials admit Bush administration never had a concrete plan for post-war Iraq. [Newsweek, 7/21/03; Knight Ridder , 7/12/03]

FACT: Secret Joint Chiefs Report: Pentagon planners were not given enough time to consider reconstruction in post-war Iraq. [Washington Times, 9/3/03, emphasis added]

FACT: Bush is losing coalition forces in Iraq. Eight countries are planning to or have already withdrawn troops from the coalition in Iraq. In all, nearly 3,000 troops have pulled out or planning to pull out of Iraq this month. [AP, 8/13/04]

FACT: The Pentagon ignored early State Department predictions of postwar problems. [New York Times, 10/19/03]

FACT: Bush admits that he miscalculated the conditions in post-war Iraq. [New York Times, 8/27/04]

8. Bush said going to war with Iraq was crucial to the war on terror.

Bush: Some have argued that confronting the threat from Iraq could detract from the war against terror. To the contrary, confronting the threat posed by Iraq is crucial to winning the war on terror.”

FACT: The war in Iraq has hurt the war on terror. Former Bush counterterrorism coordinator Richard Clarke believes that by going to war in Iraq, "we delivered to Al Qaeda the greatest recruitment propaganda imaginable." [Newsweek, 4/12/04; Clarke 9/11 Commission Testimony, 3/24/04]

FACT: Al Qaeda Is Regenerating. "For the past several months, the president has claimed that much of Al Qaeda's leadership has been killed or captured; the new evidence suggests that the organization is regenerating and bringing in new blood." [New York Times, 8/10/04]

FACT: A national security expert said the war on terror was "strategically unfocused… promises much more than it can deliver, and threatens to dissipate scarce U.S. military and other means over too many ends." [Dr. Jeffrey Record (professor, Air Force's Air War College), "Bounding the Global War on Terror," December 2003, Army Strategic Studies Institute]

FACT: Troops were diverted from Bin Laden hunt to Iraq. [USA Today, 3/29/04, KnightRidder/Tribune News Service 9/5/03]

FACT: Franks told Graham that resources were being diverted to Iraq 14 months before the invasion. [AP, 9/5/04]

9. Bush said the Congressional vote on Iraq would not necessarily lead to war.

Bush: "Approving this [Congressional] resolution [authorizing war] does not mean that military action is imminent or unavoidable."

FACT: Bush mischaracterized Kerry's vote. [Bush remarks, 9/1/04]

10. Bush claimed Iraq possessed long-range missiles that could threaten Americans living in Saudi Arabia, Israel, Turkey, and other nations.

Bush: "Iraq possesses ballistic missiles with a likely range of hundreds of miles – far enough to strike Saudi Arabia, Israel, Turkey, and other nations – in a region where more than 135,000 American civilians and service members live and work.”

FACT: Inspectors Findings Disprove Bush Claims "Inspectors have found that the Al Samoud-2 missiles can travel less than 200 miles — not far enough to hit the targets Bush named. Iraq has not accounted for 14 medium-range Scud missiles from the 1991 Persian Gulf War, but the administration has not presented any evidence that they still exist." [Washington Post, 3/18/03]

Latest Media Corps assignment

2004-09-09T14:35:00.000-04:00

http://www.johnkerry.com/mediacorps

The Republican Party predictably turned to using September 11 and the politics of fear and attack this week in an attempt to re-characterize the Bush presidency as less extreme. Thursday night, President Bush did his best to mask his "compassionate conservative" agenda in an attempt to appeal to Independents and moderates.

Don't let the voters (especially the undecided ones) in your community be fooled. Write letters to the editors of your local and state newspapers about Bush's record of repeated failures on the important issues -- education, health care, the economy and jobs, and foreign policy.

Writing points on education, health care, the economy and jobs, and foreign policy are below. Please pick only 1-2 points to use in your letter.

The Bush-Cheney Record: Four Years of Failing the Middle-Class

The Bush Economy: Fewer Jobs, Smaller Paychecks
Under George Bush, the American economy has lost 1.8 million private sector jobs.
Under George Bush, the Administration has supported tax breaks for companies that ship jobs overseas.
Under George Bush, family income has declined by $1,500 a year.
Under George Bush, jobs are shifting to industries that pay $9,160 less than jobs in contracting industries and are less likely to provide health insurance.

The Bush Health Care Plan: High Costs
Under the Bush administration, health insurance premiums have gone up by 50 percent.
The Bush administration has prohibited American patients from buying cheaper prescription drugs from Canadian pharmacies.
The Bush prescription drug plan helps drug companies increase their profits, instead of helping America's seniors.

The Bush Education Plan: Leaving Schools Behind
George Bush failed to provide the resources necessary for schools to meet the new requirements of The No Child Left Behind Act . As a result, schools are being punished, but not supported.
George Bush is slamming the doors of colleges shut at a time when college is more important than ever. Over the last three years, tuition at a public university has increased by a record 35% -- over $1,200.
George Bush has not adequately funded the development of sound tests and has failed to address schools' reliance on the fill-in-the-bubble exercises that undercut true learning.

Bush's Foreign Policy: World View
George Bush has rushed us to war in Iraq without a plan to win the peace, a decision that has cost Americans 90% of both the casualties and the cost.
George Bush supports a loner foreign policy that weakens the war against terror. Now, he says we can't win that war.
The Bush administration shortchanged our troops on body armor and benefits but rewarded Cheney's former company, Halliburton, with a contract worth billions for the reconstruction of Iraq.

Republican Convention letters

2004-08-31T01:33:00.000-04:00

Here's the latest from the Kerry/Edwards Media Corps

Your Assignment:

From supporting the outsourcing of American jobs to turning surpluses into record deficits to putting the interests of HMOs and drug companies over the interests of patients and families, President Bush has turned away from the middle class and the American dream.

The Republican National Convention starts today. Write a letter before Wednesday and submit it to your local newspapers so that it will be timely. Tell your community that the Bush's economic record in OH speaks for itself -- the Bush economy is bad for OH's middle-class.

Everything you need is in this email. To increase the likelihood of you getting published, write your letter in response to an article on the economy published in your local newspaper.

Statistics on Ohio's Bush economy and other info are below.

Go to OhioTalkingPoints.com for links to Ohio and national newspapers.

When you're done, report back to the Media Corps and post a copy of your letter at the OhioTalkingPoints.com Big Board.

P.S. To get a sense of how this assignment ties in to the broader political context, check out these articles recently published on the economy. The Las Vegas Sun published "Job slump tied to cost of health care" and The Arizona Republic led with this article about the economy, "More in U.S. live in poverty."

Perhaps more useful are articles from Ohio papers about the economy. Use these as springboards for your letters. Mention each newspaper's particular article in your letter to its editor--it'll be more likely to be printed.

Columbus Dispatch: "Poverty plight worsens in Ohio"

Cleveland Plain Dealer: "Cleveland No.1 in big-city poverty" and Sunday editorial, "The capital of need"

Cincinnati Post: "Census: 170,000 Ohio jobs lost"

Dayton Daily News: "Poverty and Insurance data provide presidential political fodder"

Toledo Blade: "Poverty rate rises for local children"

Or pick an Ohio paper from this list. Chances are it had an article on August 27 about the Census Bureau's report on income and poverty statistics.

Download the DNC's "Mission Not Accomplished" talking points sheet for Ohio.

Ohio's Bush Economy:

Since Bush took office:

* 114,000 people in Ohio have lost their health insurance.

* 170,000 manufacturing jobs have been lost in Ohio since Bush took office.

* The average wages for growing industries in Ohio pay $11,869 less than in contracting industries.

* Ohio family health insurance premiums increased by an estimated $2,704 to $9,300.

* College tuition has increased by $2,026 at Ohio's four-year public universities.

* Bankruptcy skyrocketed as 116,615 Ohio households filed for bankruptcy in 2003, a 68% increase from 2000.

* Child care costs increased by $2,050 to $12,910 for an Ohio family with two children under age 5 in full-time daycare.

More Dispatch on Swift Vets

2004-08-25T12:50:00.000-04:00

It was a good day for us in the Columbus Dispatch, with two separate editorials, both of which basically bashed the Smear Vets.

War and remembrance: `Truth squad' fails to discredit Kerry's service in Vietnam

and

Refighting an old war: Critical issues ignored as rabid partisans distort the presidential campaign

Now there are still some problems. The second editorial, in an effort to be "even-handed," makes some appalling statements like:

President Bush's Vietnam-era military service, too, was questioned earlier in the campaign. Did he fulfill his duties in the National Guard? The records say he did, but reasonable suspicions remain. Did Kerry merit his medals? The records say he did, but reasonable suspicions remain.

"Reasonable suspicions remain"?!! By whose standards?

Oh, well, at least two of us on the Ohio letter-writing team were published on the same page! My letter on prescription drug importation and Mike Houlahan's letter criticizing Bush's troop redeployment plan. A two-fer!

fnord

2004-08-24T15:33:00.000-04:00

Another test

Dispatch on the Swift Vets

2004-08-23T02:58:00.001-04:00

I don't know that the editorial board has weighed in yet, but the Columbus Dispatch's senior editor, Joe Hallett, had a devastating commentary featured on page one of the "Insight" section.

Headlined Bush re-election machine busy tearing down another war hero (subscription required), it included a great final sentence that all of us should adopt in our letters to editors:

If the tactic works, none of the men and women now fighting in Iraq can trust that the medals they earn won’t someday be used against them.

Read the whole piece below, then send some lovin' to the Dispatch and Joe Hallett...

Bush re-election machine busy tearing down another war hero

Sunday, August 22, 2004

JOE HALLETT

If John Kerry wins the Democratic nomination, I mused on Jan. 17, President Bush will do back flips to avoid comparisons of their respective military records.

On a stage in Des Moines, Iowa, that night, I watched a retired policeman embrace the Massachusetts senator, creating the most poignant moment of the Democratic campaign for president.

Jim Rassmann had come from Oregon to tell the world that 35 years earlier, then-Navy Lt. Kerry, wounded, turned his swift boat around against enemy fire and fished Rassmann out of the Bay Hap River in Vietnam.

‘‘He could have been shot and killed," said a teary Rassmann, a Republican. ‘‘I figure I owe this man my life."

Kerry was given a Bronze Star for that heroic act. He also got a Silver Star and three Purple Hearts for his service in Vietnam.

Score one for Kerry, I thought, standing amid the cheering Iowa Democrats. With questions lingering about Bush’s stateside service in the Texas Air National Guard during the Vietnam War, military records weren’t likely to top Bush’s discussion agenda during the campaign.

And it didn’t help that influential hawks in his administration — Vice President Dick Cheney, Attorney General John Ashcroft and Defense Department Deputy Secretary Paul Wolfowitz — found ways to avoid military service during the war.

But then, I had forgotten some recent history and once again underestimated just how good Karl Rove & Co. are at winning elections.

As Bush scores with voters by lauding the heroism of troops he sends to war, his allies systematically tear down old war heroes for political gain.

In 2002, Republicans painted Sen. Max Cleland, a Georgia Democrat, as unpatriotic. Nevermind that Cleland lost two legs and his right arm in the Vietnam War. Cleland’s GOP opponent, Saxby Chambliss, ran a television ad showing Osama bin Laden, Saddam Hussein and Cleland, contending that Cleland ‘‘voted against the President’s vital homeland security efforts 11 times." Chambliss won.

Two years earlier, in the bitter 2000 South Carolina presidential primary, Bush supporters sponsored a rumor campaign against Sen. John McCain of Arizona, suggesting he was loony from five years of torture in Vietnamese prisoner-of-war camps.

A couple of weeks ago, McCain saw a 60-second TV spot sponsored by a group called ‘‘Swift Boat Veterans for Truth." The ad, financed by Texas Republicans and aired in Ohio and two other battleground states, said Kerry lied to get his Bronze Star. Livid, McCain referred to Bush backers and said, ‘‘It was the same kind of deal that was pulled on me." He called on the Bush campaign to repudiate the ad; it declined.

Voters in key states now are debating whether Kerry really earned his Vietnam War medals. Exhaustive reporting by the Los Angeles Times, The Washington Post, and other newspapers has discredited most statements made by the ‘‘Swift Boat Veterans for Truth." But Bush’s ubiquitous AM talk-radio surrogates loyally and doggedly fan the fire.

At the Veterans of Foreign Wars annual convention last week in Cincinnati, vets were buzzing about Kerry’s war record. It was clear that Bush backers were successfully doing to Kerry what they tried to do to Cleland and McCain: sully the honor of war heroes.

With practiced discipline, Bush allies adroitly had shifted the discussion away from Bush’s lack of a war record to whether Kerry’s is bogus.

Realizing he was being hurt, Kerry fired back Thursday, accusing Bush of using front groups ‘‘to do his dirty work." Kerry said if Bush wants to ‘‘have a debate about our service in Vietnam, here is my answer: ‘Bring it on.’ "

At the VFW convention, Peter Rebold, 61, a Cincinnati lawyer who had led U.S. and South Vietnamese troops into battle as an Army captain, said the effort to smear Kerry won’t work.

‘‘All you have to look at is one thing: Kerry was in Vietnam. Bush wasn’t there. Cheney wasn’t there. Kerry volunteered."

Kerry’s postwar protest activities and his Senate voting record on defense issues are fair game for critics. But twisting his valorous war record for political purposes is shameful.

If the tactic works, none of the men and women now fighting in Iraq can trust that the medals they earn won’t someday be used against them.

Joe Hallett is senior editor at The Dispatch.

jhallett@dispatch.com

Dispatch on the Swift Vets

2004-08-23T02:58:00.000-04:00

If the tactic works, none of the men and women now fighting in Iraq can trust that the medals they earn won’t someday be used against them.

Read the whole piece below, then send some lovin' to the Dispatch and Joe Hallett...

Learn to communicate better!

2004-08-17T23:09:00.000-04:00

If you want John Kerry to take back the White House and put America back on track, you need to take back the English language. Let me explain...

That teaser is from Tom Terez (a.k.a. "Another Republican for Kerry"), who has created an online tutorial for folks looking to better communicate a political message.

Everyone, particularly the members of the Ohio Media Corps Team who are supposed to be writing letters to the editor every week, should check it out.

(I'll let Tom complete his own introduction to www.anotherrepublicanforkerry.com/tutorial...)

Over the past 30 years, the most extreme conservative elements in this country have become masters at selecting words and crafting messages. By spinning the facts, staying on message, and using certain words over and over, they've managed to define our national dialogue.

That's how the term "compassionate conservative" has gained so much mainstream credibility while "liberal" has become a dirty word. That's how a label like "tax relief" has become so widely used and accepted, even though most of the "relief" goes to a handful of millionaires and billionaires who should be paying their fair share like the rest of us. That's how a program title like "Healthy Forests Restoration Act" can convince so many people that it's good for forests when it's really about forest destruction.

IT'S UP TO YOU

If you're okay with all this, then this tutorial is not for you. But if you want to restore moderation, balance, and plain old common sense to our political conversation, you're in the right place!

ARE YOU READY?

With this free tutorial, you will:

Gain a deeper understanding of how words are currently being used and abused in order to promote the right-wing agenda.

Learn a simple yet powerful way of seeing the two major political mindsets .

Identify ways to choose words that will influence undecided voters and the "other side."

Get briefed on three big potential pitfalls . If we avoid these traps as the election approaches, we'll dramatically boost the chance of a Kerry-Edwards victory.

Equip yourself with a collection of major themes -- constructive points of emphasis that will add persuasion power to your conversations with voters and your letters to the editor.

Take action! That's right, this tutorial concludes with practical ideas for putting all this good stuff to work.

What we say and write between now and November 2 -- in our informal conversations, our more formal canvassing efforts, our letters to the editor, and elsewhere -- will be the deciding factor in this crucial election. And it will shape the tone and content of our national dialogue for years to come.

Bush's "adoring audiences"

2004-08-16T16:41:00.000-04:00

It's interesting to note that the media has begun picking up on the Bush's campaign's pre-screened events. Just today, the AP , the NY Times, and Columbus Dispatch (subscription required) all had stories on the phenomenon.

This is great fodder for letters to editors. (The full Dispatch text appears below, for those of you without a subscription.)

Screening can ensure adoring audiences

Monday, August 16, 2004

Darrel Rowland , Alan Johnson and Mark Niquette

THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

When John Kerry comes to Steubenville for a town hall meeting Friday, anybody can get tickets until the place is full.

When George W. Bush traveled to Columbus earlier this month for an "Ask President Bush" session, admission was limited primarily to staunch Republican supporters.

Ohio has been inundated with visits from the presidential candidates this year, and these two examples illustrate the contrasting styles of the Bush and Kerry campaigns as they try to pry loose the Buckeye State’s 20 electoral votes.

Of course, the contestants are making their pitch not only to those attending the events, but also to a much broader audience of television viewers watching carefully prearranged camera angles of candidates in front of strategically placed backdrops.

Although both presidential candidates travel with heavy security, Bush visits are more tightly controlled with limited access to the general public.

The Kerry camp is much less picky about who can attend ‘ and has on occasion paid the price when protesters attempted to disrupt the Massachusetts senator’s appearances.

Should voters care about the difference?

"I think it does matter because John Kerry wants to have the opportunity to listen to all kinds of voters in Ohio," said Jennifer Palmieri, his Ohio campaign spokeswoman.

"We’re not going to win this state if we just turn out Democrats. We’re trying to move undecided voters. . . . It’s our belief that undecided voters have already made up their minds about George Bush, and now they want to know more about John Kerry."

Bush campaign spokesman Kevin Madden said the president’s events are small by design, such as his Aug. 5 appearance before 2,500 supporters at the Aladdin Shrine Temple.

"If you look at Franklin County alone, we have 5,000 volunteers. We distributed tickets to everybody who wanted to see the president, volunteers on the campaign who’ve worked hard knocking on doors and stuffing envelopes. The tickets went very quickly," Madden said.

"It seems the Kerry campaign has a really tough time building crowds. They do their ticket distribution publicly. You can download a ticket on the Internet. We actually have to turn people away."

Palmieri, noting Kerry has attracted 20,000 people to some of his rallies, said, "If all you’re concerned about is making sure your guy looks good on TV, their strategy works.

"I think they’re afraid of a real engagement on the issues. I think when President Bush comes to Ohio, it’s like he’s a president from a different planet."

Paul Beck, chairman of the Political Science Department at Ohio State University, said each side is trying to play to its candidate’s strengths.

"Bush is very scripted and always has been been. His advisers, going back to his gubernatorial campaign, don’t want him to speak extemporaneously," Beck said.

"That’s not a strength for Kerry either, but he’s more comfortable than Bush."

In addition, the Bush campaign, having gone through the 2000 election, is a team of veterans, Beck said.

He also noted built-in differences.

"A president is different than a presidential candidate. The president commands more security and more careful scheduling and screening. That’s clearly the case here."

Even so, when a campaign limits access too much, the public can get a skewed opinion of the candidate, Beck said.

"If the general public sees that, they’re put off by it," he said. " . . . People don’t like to feel they’re manipulated."

Several reports have surfaced recently about tight controls at Bush campaign events.

In New Mexico, supporters at an appearance by Vice President Dick Cheney were forced to sign a loyalty oath.

In Phoenix, an official from the Kerry campaign was denied admittance to a Bush speech even though she had a ticket.

During Bush’s Columbus visit this month, a select group of people was chosen to ask him questions, many of which were prearranged. The participants included Phil Derrow, the president of Ohio Transmission Corp. ‘ who also hosted a May 21 event with U.S. Treasury Secretary John W. Snow.

At a Dayton appearance by Cheney last week, the invited audience of 1,000 people included veterans, firefighters and "favorable friends of the campaign," said Carl Wick, Dayton area coordinator for the Bush-Cheney campaign.

Screening by the Bush campaign and Montgomery County Republican Party ensured Cheney would have a respectful, enthusiastic audience free from distractions and hecklers.

During Cheney’s July 3 bus trip through northeastern Ohio, all aspects were tightly controlled. The main event, a rally in Parma, was an ticket-only affair. At a stop later in downtown Lisbon, only supporters were told about the event beforehand.

In contrast, when Kerry and his running mate, Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina, appeared at their first campaign rally together July 7 in Cleveland, it was held in a downtown park open to the public.

As usual, local Democrats and Kerry campaign supporters got special tickets to get in the gated area closest to the stage that day, but a crowd estimated at between 12,000 and 15,000 braved threatening skies and stood in line to go through security screening to fill out the rest of the space in the park.

Perhaps because of the Kerry campaign’s greater openness, hecklers frequently show up at his events. During an April 6 stop in Cincinnati, for example, a couple dozen people started clapping flip-flop sandals together during his speech as a reminder of his alleged changes in position on several issues.

At a June 15 rally in Westgate Park on the Hilltop, demonstrators in a nearby house played the theme song from the old television show Flipper so loudly that many in the audience couldn’t hear Kerry.

Lately, however, the Democratic campaign has been trying to turn the tables on the protesters. At a July 31 visit by Kerry and Edwards to Wheeling, W.Va., Edwards used a relatively minor disruption in the crowd to deplore the negativity in the presidential campaign.

"Aren’t you sick of it?" he said to loud cheers.

Dispatch reporter Catherine Candisky contributed to this story.

Cheney misquotes Kerry

2004-08-13T16:55:00.000-04:00

Ohio papers are full of stories about Cheney's remarks in Dayton yesterday, ridiculing Kerry for using the word "sensitive."

Too many of them further Cheney's message by including it in the headline. Among these are the Columbus Dispatch, "U.S. doesn't need Kerry's 'sensitivity,' Cheney says" (subscription required); Dayton Daily News, "Cheney rips Kerry's 'sensitivity;" Toledo Blade, "Cheney scorns Kerry's 'sensitive war'"

Others were better and deserve "attaboys." These include the Cleveland Plain-Dealer's "War on terror letdown invites attack: Cheney" and Canton Repository's "Cheney scorns Kerry plan for terrorists"

Obviously, Kerry's remarks were taken out of context. Cheney was being an "attack dog," as the Kerry campaign noted in its Rapid Response, and making "irresponsible personal attacks," according to the statement from ten senior military officers. Cheney was also hypocritical, as the Center for American Progress noted, listing Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld, Ashcroft, Gen. Franks, Gen. Myers, and others using the same word. [It's a great list; check it out!]

There are a lot of other sources of info and talking points you can use, including the American Prospect.

Some verbiage I didn't get to use in my letter include:

It's too bad the Bush/Cheney campaign didn't listen to Kerry's convention speech when he said, "Republicans and Democrats must make this election a contest of big ideas, not small-minded attacks." Cheney's audience in Dayton, the people of Ohio, and the American public at large deserve better.

Dick Cheney said that Kerry got it wrong in his address to the UNITY conference. Does that mean Cheney thinks we should fight a less intelligent, less thoughtful, less strategic, less proactive, less sensitive war on terrorism?

Here is the letter I just sent the Dispatch:

Cheney misquotes Kerry rather than confront issues

To the Editor:

Thanks for including John Kerry's full remarks in today's story about Dick Cheney's speech yesterday ("U.S. doesn't need 'sensitivity,' Cheney says"). Unlike the New York Times and Washington Post, the Dispatch put Kerry’s quote in context. Readers could see for ourselves that when Kerry said he would "fight a more effective, more strategic, more proactive, more sensitive war on terror," he was using the word "sensitive" to mean aware, not touch-feely.

It says a lot about Cheney's campaign strategy that he chose to spend "half of his 25-minute speech” misquoting Kerry. Apparently, when talking to military veterans, political cheap shots are more important than substantive issues like:

* the 1000th U.S. serviceman or woman who will be killed in Iraq in just a few weeks at the current rate;
* the "backdoor draft" the Bush/Cheney administration needs to deal with a military stretched thin by overdeployments;
* the veteran's benefits that the Bush/Cheney administration has tried to cut;
* the Veterans Hospitals that the administration has proposed closing--including one in Ohio serving 48,000 residents.

But, if I were five-time Vietnam deferee, I guess I'd try ridiculing a decorated war hero who volunteered for combat duty rather than talk specifics.

Sincerely,

JB Lawton III

Latest Media Corps assignment

2004-08-13T16:25:00.000-04:00

Last week's assignment -- "Results Do Matter" -- was a great success.

The letters you wrote for this assignment were unique in that many of you framed the issue with an analogy -- and you did it with humor and sarcasm. When telling others why it's absurd for Bush to use "Results Matter" as a campaign slogan, an analogy works extremely well because it gives people a familiar frame through which to judge Bush -- after all, why should we hold him to lower standards than we would hold ourselves? Sarcasm and humor did a great job at keeping our letters succinct and to the point. Excellent work!

If you're looking for your next assignment, it's below. Next you'll find examples of some great "Results Do Matter" letters.

Matthew from Oregon wrote, "With a campaign slogan of 'Results Matter,' the current administration wants us to believe that four more years of lackluster-at-best performance is what this country needs. I don't know about your performance standards, but if I turned in the same "results" in my job as the current [R]epublican administration, I'd certainly be one of the more than one million Americans who lost a job between January 2001 and May 2004. [Bureau of Labor Statistics; Economic Report of the President, 2002]."

Rena from Virginia wrote, "Here's a really simple example of results if you ran your household the way George W. Bush has been running the US economy: You would have been out of work at some point in the past year. When you found another job, it would pay about $9,000 less than the one you had previously. To compound the problems created by your unemployment and lower-paying job, you would grossly overspend your means, running yourself into debt from which you would have a nearly-impossible time recovering. Results DO matter, and the President's results speak volumes."

Your Next Assignment:

The Bush Prescription Drug Plan is a sham. The health care industry spent over $150 million lobbying for the Bush drug plan. That's why George Bush doesn't allow seniors to get drugs from Canada that are up to 80% cheaper. That's why the Bush Drug Plan doesn't allow Medicare to negotiate cheaper drugs for seniors like the Veterans Administration does for vets (often 50% cheaper).

We need you to write a letter to the editor telling your community's seniors how George Bush has dramatically worsened the quality of their lives. The senior vote is extremely powerful -- in 2000, 72% of registered seniors ages 65 to 72 voted. In 2000, Al Gore won the seniors vote 50% to 47%.

• Writing points on both Bush's failure to provide for America's seniors and John Kerry's plan for America's seniors are below.
• Click here to send your letter to your local newspaper. If you have the time, please consider handwriting your letter.
• Click here to share your letter with other Media Corps members.

Thank you,

Amanda Michel
Internet Team

Writing Points

Bush and America's Seniors

• George Bush prohibited Medicare from negotiating lower drug prices on behalf of America's seniors. The administration's plan explicitly would not allow HHS to negotiate better prices or allow seniors to get more affordable prices available to Canada.
• George Bush opposed allowing the re-importation of cheaper, affordable prescription drugs from Canada.
• George Bush wants to privatize Social Security, cutting its guaranteed benefit by 40% or more.

John Kerry and America's Seniors

• John Kerry will protect and strengthen the Medicare program by ensuring that seniors have access to both quality care and a real drug benefit by blocking efforts to privatize the program.
• Kerry will fight to cut the costs of prescription drugs that have been rising 17% a year.
• Kerry will allow the safe re-importation of prescription drugs from Canada, because it is the right thing to do and it will dramatically cut costs for America's families and seniors.
• Kerry will allow Medicare to negotiate lower prices for prescription drugs like the Veterans Administration does for veterans (often 50% cheaper).

Ohio Facts

UHCAN Ohio (Universal Health Coverage Action Network) of Ohio) has some useful facts from last year.

• An estimated 2,236,000 Ohioans have no prescription drug coverage.

• A recent study by Express Scripts Inc., a St. Louis-based pharmacy benefits manager, shows Ohio as one of 3 states whose residents were given the most prescriptions - 11.

• Last year, Ohio residents paid some $4.25 billion to brand name drug companies. If these same drugs were given the Federal Supply Schedule prices (discounted prices given to certain federal agencies), the brand name drug makers would receive payments of $2.7 billion, and Ohio residents would save some $1.54 billion. That is a 36.4 percent saving.

• U.S. Americans pay 30 percent to 70 percent more than Canadians and Mexicans for the same prescriptions.

• U.S. prescription drug spending rose nearly 17 percent in 1999 - some $99.6 billion, and analysts predict double-digit increases in spending per year until 2010. In the year 2000, Ohio residents paid some $4.25 billion to brand name drug makers.

• Pharmaceutical giants spend two or three times as much on marketing and sales as they do on research and development.

• The pharmaceutical industry is earning profits of 18.3 percent compared to an average profit of 5 percent for other industries.

2004-08-10T00:46:00.000-04:00

Sunday's Columbus Dispatch had an interesting article examining some of the data from the recent Dispatch Poll. It noted that the undecideds were leaning towards Kerry. As Republican pollster Tony Fabrizio put it: "Clearly, if these undecided voters were leaning any harder against the door of the Kerry camp, they would crash right through it."

That's not to say we can take the undecideds for granted, of course. We still need to work hard, doing things like improving our media outreach.

If you're a Dispatch subscriber you can read the article on their website, along with a chart showing the demographics of the undecided 7%, otherwise, read it below...

Key bloc of voters leaning to Kerry

Group that could deliver Ohio open to change, Dispatch Poll indicates

Sunday, August 08, 2004

Darrel Rowland

THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

This hotly contested presidential election might come down to the 7 percent of Ohio voters who say they are undecided.

And danger signs aplenty lurk for President Bush amid that voting bloc, according to the latest Dispatch Poll.

More than three-fourths of undecided respondents said the country is on the wrong track, and more than 7 of 10 disapprove of the way Bush is handling the economy and the situation in Iraq.

Such numbers are significantly closer to those of supporters of Democratic challenger John Kerry than of Bush's backers.

Republican pollster Tony Fabrizio found similar results when he looked last month at undecided voters in 19 battleground states, including Ohio.

"If you look at them, they're clearly not favorably disposed to the president," said Fabrizio, who was Bob Dole's pollster in the 1996 presidential campaign. "Under the best circumstances (for Bush), those undecideds will break 60-40 for Kerry."

The Dispatch Poll showed Bush topping Kerry 47 percent to 44 percent, with 2 percent favoring consumer advocate Ralph Nader and 7 percent undecided. The margin of sampling error was 2 percentage points. The July 14-23 mail survey from was based on returns from 3,047 registered Ohio voters who said they intend to cast a ballot Nov. 2.

Kerry will work hard to win the support of Ohio's undecided voters because "the outcome of the presidential election is in their hands," said Jennifer Palmieri, spokeswoman for the Massachusetts senator's campaign in Ohio.

"By and large, these voters have shown themselves to be dissatisfied with Bush's performance on the economy and Iraq," she said. "We will spend the next 90 days making sure these voters learn what plans Kerry and (running mate John) Edwards have to make our economy stronger at home and America respected abroad."

Bush will make his case with undecided voters by "showcasing presidential leadership" through an emphasis on a growing economy and the need to keep America safe, campaign spokesman Kevin Madden said.

"He looks forward to looking an undecided voter in the eye and making the case for why he's the right president at the right time," Madden said. "We'll make sure we contrast our optimism versus the Kerry campaign's doom and gloom."

But unless the Bush team can improve voters' perception of the economy and lower their view of Kerry, the undecideds "appear poised to break heavily against President Bush in John Kerry's favor," Fabrizio said.

"Clearly, if these undecided voters were leaning any harder against the door of the Kerry camp, they would crash right through it," he said in an analysis of his July 8 poll.

Although the Bush campaign has spent as much as $100 million in ads against Kerry, they almost are forced to step up the assault, Fabrizio said.

"They've got to do a better job of bloodying him up," he said.

In many respects, the undecided voters are not remarkably different from those in the Dispatch Poll who already had made their selection. They are neither concentrated in any particular region of Ohio nor defined by racial background or union membership, and they are spread proportionally across all income and education levels.

The share of undecideds is somewhat higher among female respondents and those ages 35 to 44.

Undecideds are unlikely to vote for a sitting president, political experts say.

An established incumbent would be lucky to pick up a third of undecided voters, said Charlie Cook, editor of the Cook Political Report, in a recent National Journal column.

"Voters who now consider themselves `undecided' have already made a tentative decision not to support the incumbent; the remaining decision is whether to vote for the main challenger," he wrote.

After reviewing data on the nation's undecideds from several polls, Cook predicted Bush would lose the election -- barring a major, unexpected event.

Media outreach meeting on Wednesday

2004-08-10T00:41:00.000-04:00

I'm hosting a meeting at my house in Dublin (NW suburb of Columbus) this Wednesday night from 7:00-8:30 pm to discuss how we can better organize the central Ohio letter-writing campaign on behalf of the Kerry/Edwards ticket.

If you're interested in coming or just getting more information, please email me so I can send you the details, including a map to my house.

See you Wednesday!

Responding to Bush's Columbus appearance

2004-08-06T23:05:00.000-04:00

Bush's show yesterday at the Aladdin Shrine Temple offers a couple of useful opportunities for letters to Ohio editors. For instance, in the letter(s) I sent today (and reprinted below), I brought up today's woeful employment numbers.

Another approach is to bring up the Bush's talk about "comp time" and "flex time." As the Center for American Progress points out in excruciating detail, these innocuous terms camouflage eliminating overtime for millions of Americans. Check out the report for a variety of devastating talking points. (And, as noted below, those points are known to be persuasive with those oh-so-important swing voters.)

Here's my letter. Write one of your own.

To the Editor:

It's no wonder George W. Bush only talked to pre-selected Republicans when he held his "Ask the President" forum yesterday in Columbus.

Days before Bush got here, Techneglas laid off nearly 400 employees.

The day after he left, the Labor Department reported that payroll growth slowed dramatically in July with only 32,000 jobs being added nationwide. As the Associated Press noted, that's "the smallest gain in hiring since December." It's also barely 10 percent of the 300,000 monthly new jobs Bush promised if he got his tax cuts.

Adding to the woes, the payroll figures for May and June were both revised downward. At this rate, Bush is well on his way to becoming the first President since Herbert Hoover to leave office with fewer people employed than when he started.

We better get ready for more articles about local Bush supporters getting their teenage daughters to steal Kerry yard signs. After all, they can't win on Bush's economic record.

JB Lawton III

Don't forget smaller papers

2004-08-06T00:21:00.000-04:00

This week's Media Corps assignment is to explain to your local papers that Bush is right-- "Results matter"--and that's why you're supporting John Kerry. As I was thinking about writing my letter, it occurred to me that I ought to hit some of the smaller papers in the central Ohio media market, particularly those free community papers that don't get a lot of letters.

And since a letter is more likely to be printed if it's written in response to a specific article, I chose to springboard off a column that appeared in today's ThisWeek newspaper. The results are below. I already sent the first letter; the second one is going out under a pseudonym.

Try your hand at your own letter. Email ThisWeek's editor. (If you're looking for facts and figures, go here or here.

------------First letter----------

To the ThisWeek Editor:

In today's column ("It's the right time to turn to Twain"), Kevin Parks observes the saturation of campaign ads with their "accusing and unpleasant voices telling me how truly awful is the opponent of the candidate they're promoting."

At the risk of sounding accusing and unpleasant, I'd like to point out that those attack ads are only coming from one of the Presidential candidates. And he's spending a lot of money doing so. As USA Today reported in May, the Bush-Cheney campaign has spent nearly two-thirds of its ad budget on negative attacks.

Worse, the attacks are often factually wrong. The Washington Post ran a front-page story noting Bush's "Unprecedented Negativity: Scholars Say Campaign Is Making History With Often-Misleading Attacks."

Meanwhile, the Kerry campaign has taken a break from television ads entirely, preferring instead to concentrate on its coast-to-coast tour. So far, it looks like John Kerry is following the mandate he set for himself in Boston: "Republicans and Democrats must make this election a contest of big ideas, not small-minded attacks."

Here's hoping Kerry continues to take that high road. Maybe Bush will follow his example, for all of our sakes.

JB Lawton III
Dublin

------Second letter----------

To the Editor:

With all due respect to Mark Twain and Kevin Parks (ThisWeek, Aug 5, "It's the right time to turn to Twain"), not all of us interested in politics think our opponents are insane.

I don't think George W. Bush and the Republicans are insane. I think they are well-meaning individuals trying to do the right thing.

But after four years of one-party rule in Washington (and twelve years in Ohio), it would be insane to ignore the reality that the Republican approach isn't working. Let's look at the facts:

In 2000, the United States had a $5.6 trillion surplus; now we're facing a $3 trillion deficit, with no end in sight.

Since Bush took office, there has been a net loss of jobs, the first time that’s happened since Hoover was President Ohio alone has lost nearly 250,000 jobs.

Republican tax reform hasn’t worked either, particularly for the middle class, which has gotten squeezed. Five years ago, Ohio ranked 15th in the nation in overall tax burden. Now, we’re ranked 3rd.

I'm not going to vote for Kerry because I hate Bush. I'm voting for Kerry because I hate what Bush's policies have done. Things need to change.

Sincerely,

[Pseudonym]

Bush is coming to Columbus! Ask questions

2004-08-04T00:41:00.001-04:00

Bush is coming to the Shriner's Temple here in Columbus this Thursday for an "Ask the President" dog-and-pony show. I just wrote a letter on the subject to the Columbus Dispatch. I'd encourage you to write your own version to the Dispatch and other local papers like Columbus Business First, This Week Community Newspapers, Suburban News Publications, and OSU's Lantern.

Looking for more information? Check out the Resource Links I've provided over to the right. And don't forget to follow my ten letter-writing tips. (Don't like mine? Look at the John Kerry Media Corps tips.)
-----------

To the Editor:

George W. Bush is coming to Columbus on Thursday to hold an "Ask the President" event. Here are a few questions I'd like to ask:

Do you think the 1300 workers who were laid off from the Timken Company a few weeks after you campaigned there would have any advice for the 300 workers who were just laid off when Techneglas closed its Columbus plant?

Last month, the Dispatch reported that "Ohio has 231,700 fewer jobs today than when President Bush took office - including 173,300 fewer manufacturing jobs." When do you anticipate that Ohio will see the 485,000 jobs that were supposed to be created here from your tax cuts?

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, more than 100,000 Ohioans have lost their health insurance since you took office. That brings us up to more than 1.2 million Ohioans who lack health insurance , a ten percent increase since 1999. Given all that, why haven't you proposed a real plan to bring down health care costs?

According to the EPA, Ohio is the #1 state for air pollution in the entire U.S. and #2 state for levels of toxic mercury. Why are you gutting the Clean Air Act and making it easier for polluters to poison our kids?

I'm sure the Dispatch and its readers can think of other questions that ought to be posed to Mr. Bush when he comes to town.

Ten letter-writing tips

2004-08-04T00:41:00.000-04:00

These are old hat to veteran writers of letters to the editor. But for those of you trying to get in the habit of writing a letter in this important election year, the following tips may be useful. (And if you don't like 'em, check out John Kerry's Media Corps site for other tips.)

1. Keep it short. Concise letters are more likely to see print. Try for under 100-150 words. 200 max.

2. Stick to a single subject. Deal with only one issue per letter. (Got more? Write another letter and have someone else send it in.)

3. Keep your cool. Don't be shrill or abusive. Always write as if your target audience is an intelligent, thoughtful person who can be persuaded by a good argument.

4. Organize your argument.

Begin by summarizing the point that prompts your letter. Ideally, this should be a specific article or editorial appearing in the newspaper. If so, mention the headline and date.
State your own position.
Provide example(s) to support your position. Use facts, figures, and independent experts whenever possible.
Close with a short restatement of your position or pithy comment.

5. Be patriotic. Republicans like to wrap themselves and their arguments in the flag. Remind readers that Democrats love America too. It will broaden your audience.

6. Defy stereotypes. Liberals get (mis)characterized as effete, godless, intellectuals who are out of touch with mainstream values. When appropriate, try some rhetorical jiujitsu by citing unexpected sources. For example, the Bible--and religion in general, for that matter--is a valuable resource that the Left underutilizes. Surprise your reader.

7. Provide your own headline. Use the subject line of your email to summarize your letter in a punchy way. The editor might decide to use it. Get your message out to even the casual reader skimming the editorial page.

8. Proofread. Editors usually clean up mistakes, but why take the chance?

9. Contact information.Always include your name, address, and day-time phone number so that the newspaper can verify that you wrote it.

10. Just write. Don't worry about perfection. Even if your letter isn't published, it can help sway an editor's opinion about whether to print another letter expressing your point of view.

Sample letter:

To the Editor:

Last Sunday, the Dispatch editorial ("A World Changing Election") noted that voters "will face a striking, historic choice on the issue of foreign policy." I could not agree more. George W. Bush's radical agenda of "preemption" has led to the deaths of nearly 600 American service men and women since he declared "mission accomplished" a year ago.

That death toll is only going to grow as more countries abandon the quagmire Iraq has become. John Kerry, a Vietnam veteran and decorated war hero, has spent his life fighting for this country and fighting against policies that needlessly sacrifice American lives. He has a plan to work with the United Nations to restore order to Iraq. For me, the choice in this November's elections is clear.

J.B. Lawton III

1234 Home Address
Columbus, OH 43221
614-123-4567

Words to use

2004-08-03T15:02:00.000-04:00

As I mentioned in the last post, I attended a training at the Ohio Democratic Party. Session presenters also offered a list of specific messages and relevant facts that have been tested and polled. These work, particularly with undecided Ohio voters .

Feel free to use them. But also personalize them for your own reference. Filling out the following list can help.

Local job losses or company closures:

People you know who have lost jobs:

Local taxes rising because of state and federal cuts:

Local tuition increases:

Families whose health care costs have increased:

School Districts on the ballot because of cuts:

Education programs cut:

ONE-PARTY RULE HAS FAILED OHIO'S JOBS & ECONOMY

Protecting American jobs should be our top priority!

FACT : Since George W. Bush took office, Ohio has lost 250,000 jobs , while the United States has lost over 3 million jobs .
FACT : George W. Bush supports eliminating overtime for 8 million Americans--almost half a million in Ohio alone!

ONE-PARTY RULE AND THE GEORGE W. BUSH LEGACY FOR OHIO:

250,000 Ohio jobs lost!
Ohio now ranks 3rd in the U.S. in overall tax burden!
The Clinton 5.6 trillion dollar national surplus that Bush inherited is now a 3 trillion dollar deficit!
Millions of dollars in aid to Ohio cut including:

* $130 million lost for education, job training, and social services in Ohio.
* $94 million lost for health care in Ohio.
* $50 million lost for police and security in Ohio.

MIDDLE CLASS FAMILIES NEED A BREAK!

The middle class in America carries much more than its fair share of the tax burden. We need real tax cuts in America that help the middle class, not tax breaks for the top 1% of millionaires. We need to start by closing corporate loopholes that benefit only large corporations.

FACT : Five years ago, Ohio ranked 15th in the U.S. in overall tax burden.

The Bush Middle Class Tax Shift:
After 12 years of one-party rule and four years of George W. Bush, Ohio ranks 3rd in overall tax burden . We need tax fairness . 2.5 million Ohio taxpayers will get less than $100 in Bush tax breaks in 2004, while the richest 1% of Ohioans will get a $37,910 Bush tax break.
In 2001, six of Ohio's largest corporations paid only $50 in Ohio taxes.

OUR HEALTH CARE COSTS ARE SKYROCKETING!

Under George W. Bush, Ohioans are losing prescription drug benefits, health care insurance coverage and, worst of all--our veterans are facing cuts in health care services.

FACT : George W. Bush's Medicare bill is a big win for Drug Companies.

150,000 Ohioans will lose employer-based benefits .
200,000 Ohioans will pay more for prescriptions.

FACT : Since George W. Bush took office, 100,000 Ohioans have lost their health insurance , bringing Ohio's total uninsured population to ONE MILLION !
FACT : Health care and Veterans should never be sacrificed. George W. Bush has:

Proposed a new $250 enrollment fee for veterans .
Tried to double veterans' co-pays for prescription drugs.
Proposed closing seven V.A. Hospitals --including one in Ohio that serves 48,000 residents .

THE BUSH EDUCATION PROGRAM HAS LEFT OUR CHILDREN BEHIND!

George W. Bush left Ohio's children behind when he slashed 130 million dollars in education funding to the state.

FACT : George W. Bush has cut over $3 million for educating children in rural schools .
FACT : George W. Bush cut $2.7 million in teacher quality programs .
FACT : George W. Bush cut $10 million for low-income college student scholarships .

Words to avoid

2004-08-03T14:09:00.000-04:00

Some time ago, I attended a media training session at the Ohio Democratic Party headquarters here in Columbus. The training confirmed what we've always known: The next President of the United States is going to be chosen by the 6-10% of voters who still haven't made up their minds yet.

So how do we convince them to vote for John Kerry and the Democrats?

Drawing upon polling and research done here in Ohio, session presenters offered some valuable tips on the arguments and rhetoric that can turn an undecided voter off or on. Consider the points below as you write your letters to editors and talk to undecided voters. They work.

WORDS TO AVOID

Republican
Democrat

[Undecided and swing voters won't be swayed by partisan arguments]

Any "tax and spend" rhetoric
Words that buy into or repeat Republican rhetoric
Words that feed into rhetoric about "waste and big government"

[Republicans use particular phrases and terms because it works--for them. Don't try to co-opt their language. It won't work.]

Attacking the rich without attaching a value such as greediness or unfairness

[Everyone would like to be rich, so criticizing someone for being rich is not persuasive. Attacking greedy CEOs and corporate profiteers who've gotten rich unfairly, however, is going to resonate with undecided voters.]

Attacking the Bush tax cut without providing an alternative for swing voters
Attacking people instead of issues

[Undecided and swing voters are more likely to listen to arguments appealing to reason, rather than red-meat rhetoric bashing individuals by name.]

WORDS TO USE

Any discussion of the Middle Class, including giving them a break
Terms about values
Need to play fair with those who work hard and play by the rules
When people work hard, they should be able to earn enough to send time with their families and children
Protect us against greed
The unfairness of "one-party" rule
Close corporate loopholes
Target tax cuts for families who pay more than their fair share
Protect overtime pay

Ohio newspaper links

2004-08-03T11:06:00.000-04:00

Here are links to some key Ohio papers: Columbus Dispatch, Cincinnati Post, Cleveland Plain-Dealer, Akron Beacon Journal, Canton Repository, Columbus Business First, This Week Community Newspapers, Suburban News Publications, and OSU's Lantern.

1992-12-24T15:31:00.000-05:00