|
|
 |
|
 |
 |
| AD WARS | |
 October 30, 2000  |
|
|
With just over a week to go, the presidential campaign ad war remains intense. After this report by Terence Smith, Margaret Warner talks with David Broder, David Brooks and Tom Oliphant about the campaign's final week. The NewsHour Media Unit is funded by a grant from the Pew Charitable Trusts.
|
|
TERENCE SMITH: As the presidential campaigns hit the home stretch, their
television ads are focusing on two central themes: Trust, and Governor
Bush's record in Texas.
AD NARRATOR: He trusts government. I trust you. AD NARRATOR: Texas air-- the worst in the nation. |
||||||||||
| On the issues | |||||||||||
|
BOB BALL: I've looked over Governor Bush's plan. He takes one trillion dollars out of Social Security for savings accounts. But Social Security is counting on that money to pay benefits. His plan simply doesn't ad up and would undermine Social Security. TERENCE SMITH: Also, for the Democrats, the AFL-CIO is hitting the Governor hard on health care and his credibility. AD NARRATOR: When Governor Bush said during the debate that he brought people together to pass the Patients' Bill of Rights, he knew in his heart that that was absolutely false. Nurses worked long and hard to pass this legislation and hold the HMO's accountable for denying medical care to people. He fought it every step of the way. His constituency was the insurance industry. That's why he vetoed it. TERENCE SMITH: On the other side, the Bush campaign is taking a softer approach with commercials filled with music and smiling children. GOV. GEORGE W. BUSH: We need to raise standards in cur schools. We need more accountability and more discipline, and we need to stop promoting failing kids to the next grade because we've given up on them. It's easy just to spend more. Let's start by expecting more. |
|||||||||||
| Grabbing the voter's attention | |||||||||||
|
AD NARRATOR: Voting for Ralph Nader helps elect George W. Bush. TERENCE SMITH: But this ad from the Republican Leadership Council uses candidate Nader to project its anti-Gore message. AD NARRATOR: Eight years of principles betrayed and promises broken. AD NARRATOR: Ask Al Gore why. TERENCE SMITH: The group whose ad is getting the most media attention is the little-known Aretino Industries, a not-for-profit organization in McAllen, Texas. It spent a modest $60,000 to air this remake of "Daisy," an infamous commercial that tied Barry Goldwater to the threat of nuclear war in 1964. LITTLE CHILD: One, two....
AD NARRATOR: Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four... TERENCE SMITH: The original ad was withdrawn after one airing, but like the new version, has been replayed repeatedly by news organizations. The target of this ad, which the Bush campaign says it has not approved, is the Clinton-Gore administration. LITTLE CHILD: Seven, eight, nine... AD NARRATOR: Eight... Seven... Six... Five... Four... Three... Two... One. ( Explosion ) TERENCE SMITH: On the other side, the NAACP Voter Fund is also grabbing attention, with this graphic ad in which the daughter of James Byrd recalls the aftermath of his dragging death in Texas.
TERENCE SMITH: These ads and others are part of an air war that both campaigns and their supporters are expected to continue through next Tuesday. |
|||||||||||
|
|
|||||||||||
|
|
|||||||||||
The NewsHour Media Unit, including this site, is funded by grants from:   |
 |
   
|
|
| Support the kind of journalism done by the NewsHour...Become a member of your local PBS station. | ||
| ||
| PBS Online Privacy Policy Copyright ©1996- MacNeil/Lehrer Productions. All Rights Reserved. | ||
| ||
TERENCE
SMITH: The Gore-Lieberman campaign is also attacking the Bush proposals
for Social Security reform. This ad, released two days ago, features
Bob Ball, the Social Security commissioner of the Kennedy, Nixon, and
Johnson administrations. 
TERENCE
SMITH: The race is so tight that in some states Democratic interest
groups are trying to blunt the appeal of Green Party candidate Ralph
Nader. This ad is sponsored by the National Abortion Rights Action League.
LITTLE
CHILD: Six, eight, nine.... 
JAMES
BYRD'S DAUGHTER: So when Governor George W. Bush refused to support
hate- crime legislation, it was like my father was killed all over again.