- The second presidential debate turned into a bare-knuckle
battle for the White House last night, with George Bush and John Kerry
dropping all pretence at civility as they savaged each other's
records.
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- In an encounter that bristled with animosity, both
candidates
were on almost constant attack, setting out sharply opposing positions
from Iraq to the economy, supreme court judges, abortion, and the
environment.
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- Last night's debate - the second of three encounters
- caps a difficult week for Mr Bush, with opinion polls showing a
tightening
of the race for the White House after his lacklustre performance in last
week's televised contest.
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- On Wednesday, the CIA chief weapons inspector discredited
the administration's rationale for the war on Iraq by saying that Saddam
Hussein had no weapons of mass destruction. Mr Bush also suffered a setback
on the domestic front yesterday with the release of disappointing new job
figures.
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- An AP-Ipsos opinion poll published hours before the
debate
put Mr Kerry slightly ahead with 50% support compared to 46% for Mr Bush,
raising the stakes of the encounter.
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- For Mr Bush, under deepening pressure to make up for
the shaky performance and angry scowls of last week's debate, the rematch
was his chance to reassure Americans that he was of presidential material.
Strategists for Mr Kerry were hoping for a forceful appearance to build
on the momentum of their first contest.
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- Unlike their previous encounter, last night's contest
was a town hall debate, with voters posing questions that had been vetted
earlier in the day by a moderator. The candidates paced across a vast red
carpet, making occasional attempts to bond with the spectators, but mostly
focussing their fury on each other.
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- For campaign operatives, the intensity of last night's
engagement was designed to give voters a clear idea of the differences
between the candidates.
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- "The president's view of the world is black and
white and there is no grey at all," said Tad Devine, a senior adviser
to the Kerry campaign. "John Kerry showed that he understands these
very complicated issues and could negotiate them."
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- Dan Bartlett, the White House communications chief, said:
"There were some key moments where I think the president highlighted
in a very effective way the problems in Senator Kerry's
record."
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- In practical terms, that meant that Mr Kerry used his
portion of the 90-minute encounter to drive home his argument that Mr Bush
- because he won't acknowledge his mistakes on Iraq - is dangerously out
of touch with reality.
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- Mr Bush, in turn, focused on portraying Mr Kerry as a
liberal who would raise taxes, and who was naive on national
security.
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- But neither candidate gave ground willingly.
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- The first question, to Mr Kerry, echoed a Republican
charge that has followed the Democratic challenger throughout the campaign:
that he is wishy-washy, and tailors his opinions to the prevailing
political
winds.
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- Mr Kerry immediately turned the question into an attack
on Mr Bush's conduct of the war on Iraq. "The president didn't find
weapons of mass destruction in Iraq so he has turned his campaign into
a weapon of mass deception," he said.
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- And so it went, with Mr Kerry and Mr Bush trading barbs
on taxes, jobs, Osama bin Laden, and the deficit.
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- When Mr Kerry promised he would not raise taxes on the
middle classes, Mr Bush sneered: "Of course he is going to raise your
taxes."
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- When Mr Bush unveiled his plan to trim a deficit that
had ballooned under his watch, Mr Kerry replied: "He's added more
debt to the debt of the United States in four years than all the way from
George Washington to Ronald Reagan put together. Go figure."
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- After the debate, Republican and Democratic strategists
both predictably proclaimed outright victory, but neither side appeared
overly confident, and the outcome was not as clear as in last week's
debate.
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- That contest was decided by Mr Bush's angry grimaces
and evident impatience, broadcast to 65 million television viewers.
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- By last night's debate, the president had his temper
mostly under check, but his anger was evident as he scribbled frantically
in a large notepad, or jumped out of his seat to answer questions. He also
interrupted the moderator to angrily denounce Mr Kerry's charge that he
had failed to build a coalition for the war in Iraq.
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- "You tell Tony Blair we're going alone," he
said. "Tell Silvio Berlusconi we're going alone. Tell Alexander
Kwasniewski
of Poland we're going alone. We've got 30 countries there."
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- Mr Bush also appeared more in control of his material
- unlike the first debate when he clung relentlessly to a few poll-tested
slogans - although he faltered in his answers on the environment and the
appointment of supreme court judges. He also provoked muffled laughter
from the audience when he mentioned the "internets".
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- Guardian Unlimited © Guardian Newspapers Limited
2004
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- http://www.guardian.co.uk/uselections2004
- /story/0,13918,1323605,00.html
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