Bush Team Prepares Net Assault

 

(AZ (Andrew Zito) notes this already occurred a long
time ago it has merely become institutionalized thru official
channels directly connected on the highest levels of government)

 

By Louise Witt

02:00 AM Sep. 30, 2004 PT

 

For the millions of television viewers who tune in to the first
presidential debate in Miami Thursday night, the event will probably
seem scripted, familiar and maybe even cordial. And for good reason.
The Republican and Democratic parties worked out detailed ground
rules, all but promising that the televised debates will be
uneventful. But both campaigns plan to take off their gloves on the internet. In
some respects, the real debate, or a better semblance of one, will
take place in cyberspace.

 

 Today's the Day. The Bush campaign threw the first punch. Earlier
this week, it launched a massive rapid-response effort called Debate
Facts to rebut challenger John Kerry's assertions during the debates.
The campaign will provide a live feed to about 5,000 conservative
blogs that subscribe to its news alerts.

 

Debate Facts is similar to the "war room" the Bush campaign and the
Republican National Committee set up in Boston during the Democratic
convention - only much larger and more sophisticated.
 
"Our rapid-response effort is based on the premise that no attack or
no misstatement will go unchallenged," said Michael Turk, director of
the internet campaign. His team of four programmers has been working
on the software for Debate Facts for the past six weeks.

 

The Bush campaign already had a war room to handle day-to-day
communication. The campaign and the RNC set up a second war room to
specifically handle the debates.

 

The offices will work closely together to coordinate responses to
Kerry's claims during the debates. In addition, each will be in
contact with a ground team of Republican luminaries -- including Karl
Rove, Karen Hughes, Rudy Giuliani and John McCain -- who will be on
hand in Miami after the debates to answer reporters' questions, using
the same carefully crafted talking points.

 

The new war room is equipped with 15 computers and two TVs, which
will be monitored by about 25 policy wonks, communications managers
and technology professionals. Using a 150-page book called The John
Kerry Attack Matrix, Bush supporters will shape responses to Kerry's
statements. The Bush campaign has been compiling the so-called matrix
on Kerry's statements and public record since the primaries.

 

The document is alphabetized by topic. For instance, if Kerry makes a
remark about the jobless, the Bush campaign has a ready response. If
he makes a statement that he hasn't made in the past, and there isn't
a response in the matrix, the policy experts on hand will create one
to send out to campaign officials and through the Debate Facts live
feed.

 

"It's us working to anticipate the false statements, misstatements
and false claims that he will make during the debates on a number of
issues, and having responses ready to go, so we can get the
information up on the website," Jones said. "When he makes a
particularly egregious false claim in the debate, we will
send Debate Facts messages directly to the press."

 

The rapid-response effort by the Kerry campaign apparently won't be
as comprehensive. When asked about Kerry's response operations early
Wednesday afternoon, a representative said the campaign was still
working on it. Amanda Michel, a member of Kerry's internet team, e-
mailed members of its Media Corps -- supporters who contact
newspapers, radio stations and TV shows -- telling
them that the campaign would provide a response after the debate.

"Please make sure you check your e-mail the moment the debate ends,"
Michel's e-mail stated. "We can't provide you any more detail until
the debate is over, except that all you'll need is access to e-mail
and/or a telephone." Michel also wrote that the Kerry campaign's blog
will provide live commentary on the debates.

 

Political observers said coverage of the debates on blogs and
websites and in chat rooms and e-mails could shape the public's
perceptions of which candidate won. Mainstream media outlets are no
longer the sole source for political coverage and analysis.

 

Page 2 »

 

 Today's the Day. An adviser to Al Gore in 2000 said his campaign's
failure to answer President Bush's attacks immediately on the
internet hurt his image.

After the first debate, Gore advisers thought he had handily won. But
a few hours later, the Bush campaign was able to change that
perception by disseminating press releases on its websites, through
faxes and in e-mails.
 
"The rapid-response operation from the other side was very successful
at shifting the focus away from Bush's real mistakes, and onto Gore's
perceived ones," he said.

 

Michael Krempasky, one of the founders of the conservative blog site
RedState.org, said he plans to monitor the Bush campaign's releases
during the debates and will post those he thinks are of interest to
his readers. "It's a great resource," he wrote in response to written
questions. "But we're not an arm of the campaign or the party."
Brooks Jackson, director of FactCheck.org at the Annenberg Public
Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania, said he doesn't
think either campaign will shed new light on the debates. "The
purpose is to make the other guy look like a liar," he said.

 

Jackson said FactCheck.org will monitor the debates. If he or his two
researchers think one of the candidates has made a false statement,
they will research it and post their findings on their site. But that
could take days. "I don't think anyone is under the illusion that
what the campaigns put out is evenly balanced, factual statements,"
Jackson said. "They're putting out spin and everyone knows they're
blowing smoke."

 

Jackson said most of the people who receive releases from either the
Bush or Kerry campaigns have probably already made up their minds,
but he hopes FactCheck.org's coverage of the debates will help
undecided voters make their decisions.

 

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