Here's the Commercial I would do if I was running the Bush Campaign

[MarkDel]

If I was running the Bush Campaign, I would wait until the last week just before the election and run a campaign ad where Senator John McCain called for my re-election and explained why people should not vote for John Kerry. If the Republicans did this commercial, JUST AS I WROTE IT, a Bush victory would be a foregone conclusion.

Here's how I would do the commercial if I was running the show. Place John McCain in front of an American flag and let him speak, while occasionally flashing pictures of POWs being paraded around and humiliated by the North Vietnamese...and here's the text of what I would have McCain say:

"Hi, I'm Senator John McCain and I'm here to tell the American people why it's so important that you vote to re-elect George W. Bush this fall. We as a nation find ourselves locked in a desperate struggle against international terrorism, and we need a leader who has the strength and vision to win the War on Terror. The Democratic Party tells you that their candidate, Senator John Kerry, has the qualifications to lead this nation because of his status as a decorated combat veteran in Vietnam. Many of you know that I too was in Vietnam and spent years as a POW, and I'm here to tell you that Senator Kerry is not the right man to lead this nation in the War on Terror. I mean no disrespect to his valiant and heroic service, but the fact remains that Senator Kerry became a hrash and vocal critic of the United States upon his return from Vietnam. His comments and actions went beyond those of mere anti-war demonstrators as he held a special ceremony where he threw away the medals he earned in Vietnam, and he also gave seemingly false and embellished testimony where he accused American soldiers of widespread war crimes. While John Kerry was assailing his own country, I personally sat in a Vietnamese POW camp and witnessed, with my own eyes, the joy and comfort that his anti-war statements were giving to the North Vietnamese enemy. I witnessed how Kerry's words and deeds helped our enemy in their time of need, and made a difficult job even harder for American troops. The men and women fighting for our freedom deserve better from its citizens, and they certainly deserve better from a man who would be their Commander in Chief. So think about Senator Kerry's actions when you cast your ballot this fall, and think about the impact a Kerry presidency would have on the morale and fighting spirit of US troops abroad."

[TheWildCard]

That would make an excellent ad. Only problem is it might have to be cut a little I'm not sure(how long is the average commercial 15-30 seconds?)

I'd also like Arnold Schwarzenegger(mainly to attract younger voters) to do a commercial that goes something like this

Hello I am Arnold Schwarzengger Governor of California. As you know I've played a hero in many movies but this November I ask you to re-elect a true hero and a champion of freedom in George W. Bush. He bravely led us through the 9/11 tragedy and has worked hard to rebuild our economy. So on election day cast your ballot for George W. Bush.

I'd also run ads with Rudy Giuliani.

[MarkDel]

WildCard,

The "Arnold" ad would definitely be a good one. As for my proposed McCain ad, I'd buy a 60 to 90 second block ad. It would be expensive, but WELL worth it with the commercial I propose.

As you can tell from the commercial I designed, I am a refugee from the Lee Atwater days in the Republican Party...back in the 1980's when we used to be every bit as rough and nasty as the Democrats. Unfortunately, the modern Republican Party has lost its stomach for hardball politics which is why George W. Bush has been dropping like a rock in recent polls. When it comes to politics, the Democrats do NOT fight fair, and we must do the same or we risk losing all that we've gained since the Reagan Revolution.

[TheWildCard]

I agree.

The problem is in the past if the republicans launched an attack ad or played duty in responce to the democrats the media would take the democrats side. Things are changing and I believe its time the republicans took advantage. I'm not saying we should be ruthless but we should at least call a spade a spade.

[elcorazon]

Republicans really despise free speech don't they, especially when it questions the government's policies.  I hope they run that commercial then get swamped on election day.

[agcatter]

I'm sure you do.

[MarkDel]

Elcorazon,

What an incredibly foolish thing for you to say. The right to free speech is NOT a right to free speech without accountability. Kerry has the RIGHT to say whatever he wants...I would 1000% support his right to say whatever he wants. However, I also have the right to criticize him or ask that he be held accountable for his positions.

I love when people claim you're trying to stifle free speech when I ridicule the CONTENT of that speech...that's at best a silly argument, and at worst, intellectual dishonesty of the highest level.

[zachman]

I'm not sure Bush could get McCain to run ads for him. I don't get why McCain supports Bush.

What do you mean the republicans don't play hardball politics? What about the campaign against Max Cleland, and the republican's successful attempt in Florida in puting "vote on Wednesday" papers in minority neighborhoods, the Paul Wellstone funeral exagerations. The democrats have been so week in recent years because they have not rebuted the Republican tactics.

Scwarzenneger would not attract young voters, because a. young people don't like Bush, and b. even young voters know Scwarzenneger is not a statesman. That makes Bush look like a lightweight.

[elcorazon]

I guess I should have said that Republicans think criticizing one's government and its policies is somehow unpatriotic. Kerry served in the military and served well.  He returned as an opponent to the war.  The proposed commercial above claimed he somehow embellished facts, but the main criticism seems to be that he dared to criticize the policies of our government during war.  I suppose there was no suggestion of illegality so the free speech comment was a little overboard, but the fact remains that you're basically saying a war protester shouldn't be president... Or at least that's how it came out to me.

[MarkDel]

Zachman,

Thanks to Ralph Reed, like myself a refugee from the harsh style of the 1980's, the Georgia Republican Party DID play hardball in 2002 and that's why they were so much more successful than the national Republican Party.

And as for the "embellishment" of the Paul Wellstone funeral...LOL...you must be joking!!! There was NO embellishment necessary, you guys took care of making yourselves look ridiculous all by yourselves. It wasn't just Republicans who were disgusted by the behavior of Dems at the Wellstone funeral...go talk to some Independents and see what they thought. The Democratic Party basically HANDED THE MINNESOTA SEAT TO THE REPUBLICANS with their behavior at that funeral.

And as for your ludicrous contention that ALL or MOST young people hate Bush...well...you've been hanging out at too many Dean rallies. ALL polling data suggest that this generation of young people is more politically conservative than any generation in several decades. It's just that the Liberal young people bitch and scream louder than the Conservative ones...which is just the way it was when I was in college.

[MarkDel]

El Corazon,

No problemo. Actually, I really WAS trying to say that Kerry should be dismissed as a legitimate Presidential candidate based on his anti-war activities. In my opinion, it is OK to protest a war BEFORE it begins, but once the bullets start flying and American lives are at stake, you should bite the bullet and do everything in your power to support the troops. You have the RIGHT not to do so, of course, but I think that makes you unfit to be President.

[zachman]

I'm in highschool- I know first hand that there have been so many refugees with republican parents who now hate Bush. The speaker at the Paul Wellstone funeral did say enough controversial words to make a soundbite, but otherwise gave a solid eulogy to the Senator. It was pathetic how the media picked up that one soundbite.

MarkDel what part of Florida do you live in, how old are you?

[elcorazon]

Then you are kind of saying that you should have free speech but you shouldn't state your honest opinions even when you think the policies are putting your peers in danger for their lives, sort of a backhanded free speech, isn't it?

[MarkDel]

I live in Tampa, Florida, but I'm originally from Upstate New York. I'm 37 years old, very soon to be 38,  and for the sake of total disclosure, I was once a Republican Party operative on Capitol Hill in the late 1980's and early 1990's.

As for the Wellstone funeral, the biggest problem might have been when the man's own son got up and spent 2 minutes saying nice things about his father, and then about 10 minutes in a hate-filled anti-Republican rant closed out by screaming over and over again, "WE WILL WIN, WE WILL WIN."

[MarkDel]

El Corazon,

Nope...what I am saying is that free speech should and DOES have consequences.

[elcorazon]

El Corazon,

Nope...what I am saying is that free speech should and DOES have consequences.

I agree with you on that, I just don't think what Kerry said should have any negative consequences.

[MarkDel]

El Corazon,

Then we agree to disagree where Kerry is concerned, but I think it shows that we both respect the RIGHT to free speech as nothing in my original post suggested that Kerry should have been barred from expressing his feelings.

[elcorazon]

fair enough markdel.

[NHPolitico]

I'm not sure Bush could get McCain to run ads for him. I don't get why McCain supports Bush.

Because he doesn't think Bush is an idiot cowboy like the Dems do, I guess. Why wouldn't McCain support Bush?

[Nym90]

Speaking out against a war after it starts is not failing to show support for the troops. After all, the anti-war people are the ones who want to save the lives of the troops, while the pro-war people want to put their lives at great risk. How can being against the war be considered not to be supporting the troops? You can make plenty of good arguments against anti-war protesters, but saying that they don't support the troops is ridiculous.

Kerry, as a veteran, has even more legitimacy in his criticisms of the war than most of the rest of the protesters. He personally saw what a mistake it was.

And to this day, I think most Americans would agree that Vietnam was a mistake.

I don't see how you are going to get any political mileage out of criticizing Kerry for having opposed an unpopular war that we lost and that caused 50,000 American deaths, especially when he was a veteran of that same war and thus has plenty of credibility in this area.

What was Bush's position on Vietnam? Did he support it? If so, is he prepared to defend that stance? If you are going to make Kerry's Vietnam stance an issue, then Bush is going to have to defend his support of that war. It's only fair.

I would definitely say that it is preposterous to suggest that such an ad would clinch the election for Bush. No offense, but your opinion of yourself as a political strategist is a little too high. I don't see how you can expect one ad like that, and a very controversial one to boot, to guarantee Bush's reelection.

[Platypus]

I hate this sentiment that seems to be making the rounds that if you didn't support the war, and you don't support Bush or his policies post-war, then you are guilty of treason.

[MarkDel]

Nym90,

You say that protesting against a war is not indicative of a failure to support the troops...ok...have you ever talked to the actual soldiers? The VAST majority of them will tell you that the anti-war protests damage their morale and makes them feel unappreciated. I currently have an uncle, two cousins and two very close friends serving in Iraq, and they tell me that the anti-war protests and all of the negative talk about the war have a MAJOR impact on morale, and that this is widespread among the troops, and contrary to what you Democrats think, it's not just the Republican soldiers who feel this way.

And as for your comment that it is the "anti-war" crowd that really care about the troops...that's a LAUGH. There are exceptions (you may be one) to every rule, but most of the anti-war people I know LOATHE the military and everything that it stands for. Many of them, and you might be an exception, only care about the troops to the extent that they can score political points off their plight. And if you think I'm off base here, talk to some of the Vietnam vets who when they returned to this country were SPIT ON and called BABY KILLER and suffered other humiliation at the hands of anti-war demonstrators. And look carefully at the signs at the anti-war rallies for the Iraq War, the ones that called President Bush a Nazi, the ones that carried a sign saying "We'll support our troops when they shoot their officers", not to mention other anti-american slogans extolling the virtues of Palestinian terrorists.

As for my commercial...and my boast that it would guarantee Bush's election...I guess we'll never know if I was right, because the Republican Party would never have the courage to do such an ad, at least not since Lee Atwater's death. But I guarantee you that such a commercial would be met with a far more positive reaction than you might think. Most people are unaware of Kerry's antics in the early 1970's, and the average Republican or Independent voter would be heavily swayed by that information.

[MarkDel]

Hughento,

Such behavior does NOT make you guilty of treason, but depending on the harshness of your rhetoric (calling Bush a Nazi, etc...) it does make you guilty of undermining the morale of US armed forces. That's not a crime like treason would be, but it's disgraceful nonetheless.

[opebo]

I think Mark Del's commercial sounds great.  I also think that this election will be tipped by advertising, and I hope that Rove goes as negative as necessary to win.  The only thing I'm wonder is - will 150-200 million be enough?  Seems like Bush could raise more.

[M]

I, for one,want them to stay positive and honest.

Elcorazon, of course Kerry and anyone else may say whatever they wish. If they run for public office, however, they must surely anticipate that they will be criticized. A right under the constitution means that the thing cannot be a crime. It is hardly criminal punishment to run an effective campaign against the man. If Bush tried to LOCK UP Kerry now, I'd be the first one to take to the streets with a torch and pitchfork and demand his impeachment.

It is ridiculous to say that the funeral had content other than the blatant politicization of a tragic accident. That is not the point. You may remember that Jesse Ventura, the Independent governor, got up and left in disgust, and was roundly booed. Scary.