Being Presidential
Reported by Eleanor - September 8, 2004 -
Studio B with Rick Folbaum (Sept. 8, 3:00 p.m.) covered both campaigns - I think. Or maybe Kerry had his turn when Fox covered his speech this morning, and Bush gets the rest of the day?
Carl Cameron, supposedly covering the Kerry campaign, talked about the Kerry statement that 90% of the cost of Iraq is American, and that cost is the reason there is no money for domestic programs. Cameron countered with the Bush campaign response that education spending is at an all time high. Kerry once again takes an "incomprehensible" position, repeating the "for and against" and flip flopper mantra of the Bush campaign. He presented Kerry as one who misses the importance of the war on Iraq by saying that Kerry sees it as a "domestic pocket book issue."
Mike Emanuel immediately went to a video with Bush talking about how much he appreciates the sacrifice of our men in uniform. Emanuel called Bush the president twice and the commander-in-chief. The president vows to finish the mission in Iraq. A quote about the Texans for Truth group is followed by another that Bush would not have had an "honorable discharge if he didn't meet his commitment."
At this point, Bret Baier showed a video of a soldier saying that the Iraqis don't see us as occupiers but as liberators, and a Gitmo detainee was released. George W. and Jeb were handing out water in Florida.
Dan Roberts, a history professor with NPR, explained why Bush is trying to get out of the town hall meeting debate. He said that debates work to the advantage of the challenger. High powered legal teams on both sides are having a debate about the debates. In debates, the incumbent president must come down to an equal footing with the challenger. (He loses some of his presidential stature and mystique? I don't think Bush has to worry about that.) It's not unusual for presidents to dodge debates. Clinton dodged in 1996 and Reagan in 1984. George H.W. stumbled in 1992 - looked at his watch, seemed distracted. (So the debates cannot help Bush - but they might hurt him, so stay tuned.)
To reinforce the theme of the president's presence in times of trouble, at the end of the hour, we went back to Florida with Bush handing out ice, water and food. Then he made a little speech thanking everyone for their help. (The fact that disasters help a politician was well learned on 9/11, so here he is - in the middle of another disaster. They followed up on this theme of disasters helping politicians during the next hour.)
Comment: Again, the campaigns were given unequal coverage during this hour. A Fox viewer saw very little of Kerry, a lot of Bush being presidential, and a positive spin on the Bush negatives. They must be trying to make up for Kerry's morning speech.
