Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, March 8, 1992 TAG: 9203090210
SECTION: EDITORIAL PAGE: F-2 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE:
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
He's got a short memory. Some of us remember a campaign based on Willie Horton, the Pledge of Allegiance, attacks on membership in the American Civil Liberties Union and other swipes at his opponent's character.
Alas, are we doomed this year to witness repeat performances?
So far, Bush has been getting a taste of his own medicine. His challenger for the GOP nomination, Patrick Buchanan, fared well in the Georgia primary last week with a sickening ad involving semi-nude gay men. The commercial attacked Bush for having "invested our tax dollars in pornographic and blasphemous art."
Translation: Federal arts funding helped produce a PBS documentary on homosexuals.
This sort of ad's impact is hard to gauge, but consider that, already, many more physical attacks against gay people occur in this nation than against blacks or any ethnic groups.
Who cares? ("I don't care what they do in their garrets," says Buchanan, "with their precious bodily fluids and their bullwhips.") Gay bashing, Mr. Walking Hate-Crime has shown, can win votes.
Democrats are getting into the negative-ad act, too, though not at nearly the gutter level of the Republicans. A Bill Clinton ad falsely accuses Paul Tsongas of having run anti-Clinton attack commercials.
In fact, the Tsongas ad ran in New Hampshire without a murmur from Clinton. It criticized the idea that a middle-class tax cut would be a panacea for the economy - an idea backed by the other Democratic candidates and President Bush, as well as Clinton.
The Clinton ad's most cynical low blow: an announcer's pious plea to voters to "say no to negative politics."
Bush said "no" the other day, at least with a sense of humor. Asked if he would retaliate after Buchanan's ad associating him with support of homosexuality, Bush responded: "No, going to be nice."
by CNB