Posted on 11/30/2001 8:22:56 AM PST by laureldrive
11/30/2001 - Updated 02:23 AM ET
Democratic ad campaign to assail 'Bush recession'
By Kathy Kiely and William M. Welch, USA TODAY WASHINGTON — A leading Democrat said Thursday that the party will be making an issue of "George Bush's recession" with the launch of its first political ad campaign since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
At a breakfast meeting with USA TODAY and Gannett News Service reporters and editors, Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee chairwoman Nita Lowey said the time is right to make an issue of the economic downturn.
"The bottom line is, this is George Bush's recession," said Lowey, a veteran New York Democrat who is overseeing Democrats' effort to win at least six additional seats to take control of the House next year.
Lowey said the ads, which are scheduled to run in a few key congressional districts next month, will focus on Republican legislators' effort to roll back the alternative minimum tax on corporations. She called the plan "unpatriotic, inappropriate, wrong" during a time of layoffs and recession.
A spokesman for the National Republican Congressional Committee called Lowey's comments "despicable" and predicted that the ad campaign would backfire.
"I think it shows incredibly poor political judgment to attack a president with an 86% approval rating," NRCC communications director Steve Schmidt said. "The economy was in a slowdown in the last days of the Clinton administration, and the slowdown was exacerbated by the Sept. 11 attacks."
The ad campaign would mark the end of a virtual 3-month moratorium on political campaigning by the national parties. "People are ready," Lowey said. "I do think the public expects us to support the president at time of war, but they expect us to stand up and fight for what we believe in."
The House last month narrowly approved a $100 billion economic stimulus bill proposed by Republicans. Among other provisions, it would repeal the corporate alternative minimum tax, providing a $26 billion tax break to 23,000 corporations. Bush supports repeal of the tax, imposed in 1986 to prevent companies from avoiding taxes through deductions and writeoffs.
The stimulus bill has stalled in the Senate, where Democrats and some Republicans oppose the House's tax break. Front Page News Money Sports Life Tech Weather Shop Terms of service Privacy Policy How to advertise About us © Copyright 2001 USA TODAY, a division of Gannett Co. Inc.
This bipartisanship charade has been the most boring thing to happen to politics since the Joe Lieberman sex scandal.
And that reminds me, where the hell is Chandra Levy?
On another note, in the end, it won't matter anyway. Politics as usual. Let 'em attack. Everyone knows this recession started before the election. Just like the recovery started before 1992.
Bush took office in January and a recession started in March. Wow! he must be pretty powerful to accomplish a recession in less than 2 months.
MKM
And what does attacking Bush for the economy show they believe in? Partisanship?
That New York Dem woman calls the tax breaks for corporations "unpatriotic, inappropriate, wrong" during a time of layoffs and recession. Perhaps she would like to offer some FACTS to support her allegations.
Come on, then, WHY is it wrong to let Corps (who pay a LOT of people's salaries) keep more of their revenues?
No but it is unpatriotic to LIE about him and to blame him for Klintoon's screw-ups ... like WTC and the recession
The main one (MicroSoft) was Klintoon-inspired.
The second (California and the resulting mini-energy crisis), a combination of arrogant pols from both parties, but exacerbated by a DEM governor.
The last (terror), as we all know, is collateral damage and the bill coming due from a worthless ex-42. A man that focused exclusively on his holding of political power, at the expense of everyting else this nation holds dear.
Remember the ever-true words of Napoleon: "Never interrupt your enemy when he is making a mistake."
Little Tommy Dashole and his minions don't suprise me at all, they always lie. The media will report these lies as fact and the sheeple sitting at home watching the sheeple news will buy it.
MKM
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