<font color=brown> I guess the Bushies have the same feeling about what will happen in NYC as I. Its too bad.......Bush will miss most of 'the rock and roll' festivities in the Big Apple!<font color=black>
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Stopping by New York: why Bush won't linger
Elisabeth Bumiller NYT Monday, August 23, 2004
White House Letter
CRAWFORD, Texas More than a year ago, when Karl Rove and President George W. Bush began planning the Republican National Convention, they picked New York City in early September so that the event would flow into the third anniversary of the World Trade Center attacks.
.
Some Republicans said then that Bush might even visit ground zero, despite the risk of appearing to make political use of the tragedy. Most others said the convention's timing would remind voters of what the campaign considers Bush's finest hour - the moment he grabbed the bullhorn in the rubble at the tip of Manhattan and shouted that the people who had knocked down the buildings would hear from him soon.
.
But now it turns out that Bush may not spend a single night in the city that helped transform his presidency. At this point, the unofficial plan is for him to arrive in New York sometime on Sept. 2, the final day of the four-day convention, deliver his acceptance speech that night, then leave immediately for a midnight rally in Pennsylvania.
.
Campaign officials say the schedule could still change, and that Bush may have a brief New York sleepover in the end.
.
But either way, the incumbent president has no plans to visit ground zero, or hang around in his room for days at the Waldorf Astoria watching the party on television.
.
So if it is not the shortest time that a presidential nominee has spent at a nominating convention - President Franklin D. Roosevelt did not even go to the Democratic National Convention in 1944, during World War II - it is close. Senator John Kerry spent two days at his party's convention in Boston last month; Bush's father spent four days at the 1992 Republican convention in Houston.
.
Republicans acknowledge that one reason for the president's quick drop-by is their concern that Bush not be seen as taking advantage of the deaths of 3,000 people. What seemed like a good idea a year and a half ago, before Bush put on a flight suit and declared major combat operations in Iraq at an end, does not seem like such a good idea in the highly charged political environment now.
.
"They are being very sensitive not to exploit 9/11," said one Republican close to the campaign.
.
That doesn't mean that Bush and other convention speakers won't mention it, and often, from the podium.
.
"You can't not have it," said Matthew Dowd, a senior political adviser to Bush. "It would be like Roosevelt not talking about Pearl Harbor."
.
But as Ken Mehlman, Bush's campaign manager, put it: "You talk about it as an important event that the country shared, and you talk about it in an appropriate and tasteful way." Republicans said there are also tactical and logistical reasons for Bush's speedy convention trip. The last time anyone checked, New York was not a swing state, and polls show Kerry trouncing Bush there by double-digits. The president's advisers point out the obvious, which is that it is politically foolish to waste time in New York.
.
The advisers noted that Bush is also likely to alienate the city by lingering and tying up traffic, blocking streets and further inciting what could be the biggest street demonstrations at a political convention since the Democrats gathered in Chicago in 1968.
.
A quick exit would underscore the tone of Bush's campaign, the advisers said, which is that he is running hard in a tied race for his political life. They insisted that his getaway was not an insult to New York, a city Bush never liked before Sept. 11, 2001, but that he warmed to when he met with firefighters and other rescue workers after the attacks.
.
"It's not a statement that he dislikes New York City," the Republican close to the campaign said. "It's a statement that he's going to work."
.
The last time anyone checked, Pennsylvania was indeed a swing state.
.
Overall, Bush's advisers say they remain happy with the choice of New York, which has underwritten many of the costs of the convention. To Rove, the gathering was also an opportunity to journey into the citadel of the Democrats and make an in-your-face statement about the strength of the president and his party.
.
"Karl wanted to go into the heart of the opposition's territory and show that Bush could have a successful convention in New York," the Republican close to the campaign said.
.
In the meantime, Bush is working on his acceptance speech at his Crawford, Texas, ranch, but he plans to start campaigning Thursday for the week leading into New York.
.
As for Roosevelt, he delivered his acceptance speech in 1944 by radio from a private railroad car in San Diego, and said that the war left him no time to campaign.
.
But only up to a point. "I shall, however, feel free to report to the people the facts about matters of concern to them, and especially to correct any misrepresentation," Roosevelt said.
.
Elisabeth Bumiller can be reached at pagetwo@iht.com.
.
Tomorrow: John F. Burns writes about power brokers in Iraq.
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< < Back to Start of Article White House Letter
CRAWFORD, Texas More than a year ago, when Karl Rove and President George W. Bush began planning the Republican National Convention, they picked New York City in early September so that the event would flow into the third anniversary of the World Trade Center attacks.
.
Some Republicans said then that Bush might even visit ground zero, despite the risk of appearing to make political use of the tragedy. Most others said the convention's timing would remind voters of what the campaign considers Bush's finest hour - the moment he grabbed the bullhorn in the rubble at the tip of Manhattan and shouted that the people who had knocked down the buildings would hear from him soon.
.
But now it turns out that Bush may not spend a single night in the city that helped transform his presidency. At this point, the unofficial plan is for him to arrive in New York sometime on Sept. 2, the final day of the four-day convention, deliver his acceptance speech that night, then leave immediately for a midnight rally in Pennsylvania.
.
Campaign officials say the schedule could still change, and that Bush may have a brief New York sleepover in the end.
.
But either way, the incumbent president has no plans to visit ground zero, or hang around in his room for days at the Waldorf Astoria watching the party on television.
.
So if it is not the shortest time that a presidential nominee has spent at a nominating convention - President Franklin D. Roosevelt did not even go to the Democratic National Convention in 1944, during World War II - it is close. Senator John Kerry spent two days at his party's convention in Boston last month; Bush's father spent four days at the 1992 Republican convention in Houston.
.
Republicans acknowledge that one reason for the president's quick drop-by is their concern that Bush not be seen as taking advantage of the deaths of 3,000 people. What seemed like a good idea a year and a half ago, before Bush put on a flight suit and declared major combat operations in Iraq at an end, does not seem like such a good idea in the highly charged political environment now.
.
"They are being very sensitive not to exploit 9/11," said one Republican close to the campaign.
.
That doesn't mean that Bush and other convention speakers won't mention it, and often, from the podium.
.
"You can't not have it," said Matthew Dowd, a senior political adviser to Bush. "It would be like Roosevelt not talking about Pearl Harbor."
.
But as Ken Mehlman, Bush's campaign manager, put it: "You talk about it as an important event that the country shared, and you talk about it in an appropriate and tasteful way." Republicans said there are also tactical and logistical reasons for Bush's speedy convention trip. The last time anyone checked, New York was not a swing state, and polls show Kerry trouncing Bush there by double-digits. The president's advisers point out the obvious, which is that it is politically foolish to waste time in New York.
.
The advisers noted that Bush is also likely to alienate the city by lingering and tying up traffic, blocking streets and further inciting what could be the biggest street demonstrations at a political convention since the Democrats gathered in Chicago in 1968.
.
A quick exit would underscore the tone of Bush's campaign, the advisers said, which is that he is running hard in a tied race for his political life. They insisted that his getaway was not an insult to New York, a city Bush never liked before Sept. 11, 2001, but that he warmed to when he met with firefighters and other rescue workers after the attacks.
.
"It's not a statement that he dislikes New York City," the Republican close to the campaign said. "It's a statement that he's going to work."
.
The last time anyone checked, Pennsylvania was indeed a swing state.
.
Overall, Bush's advisers say they remain happy with the choice of New York, which has underwritten many of the costs of the convention. To Rove, the gathering was also an opportunity to journey into the citadel of the Democrats and make an in-your-face statement about the strength of the president and his party.
.
"Karl wanted to go into the heart of the opposition's territory and show that Bush could have a successful convention in New York," the Republican close to the campaign said.
.
In the meantime, Bush is working on his acceptance speech at his Crawford, Texas, ranch, but he plans to start campaigning Thursday for the week leading into New York.
.
As for Roosevelt, he delivered his acceptance speech in 1944 by radio from a private railroad car in San Diego, and said that the war left him no time to campaign.
.
But only up to a point. "I shall, however, feel free to report to the people the facts about matters of concern to them, and especially to correct any misrepresentation," Roosevelt said.
.
Elisabeth Bumiller can be reached at pagetwo@iht.com.
.
Tomorrow: John F. Burns writes about power brokers in Iraq. White House Letter
CRAWFORD, Texas More than a year ago, when Karl Rove and President George W. Bush began planning the Republican National Convention, they picked New York City in early September so that the event would flow into the third anniversary of the World Trade Center attacks.
.
Some Republicans said then that Bush might even visit ground zero, despite the risk of appearing to make political use of the tragedy. Most others said the convention's timing would remind voters of what the campaign considers Bush's finest hour - the moment he grabbed the bullhorn in the rubble at the tip of Manhattan and shouted that the people who had knocked down the buildings would hear from him soon.
.
But now it turns out that Bush may not spend a single night in the city that helped transform his presidency. At this point, the unofficial plan is for him to arrive in New York sometime on Sept. 2, the final day of the four-day convention, deliver his acceptance speech that night, then leave immediately for a midnight rally in Pennsylvania.
.
Campaign officials say the schedule could still change, and that Bush may have a brief New York sleepover in the end.
.
But either way, the incumbent president has no plans to visit ground zero, or hang around in his room for days at the Waldorf Astoria watching the party on television.
.
So if it is not the shortest time that a presidential nominee has spent at a nominating convention - President Franklin D. Roosevelt did not even go to the Democratic National Convention in 1944, during World War II - it is close. Senator John Kerry spent two days at his party's convention in Boston last month; Bush's father spent four days at the 1992 Republican convention in Houston.
.
Republicans acknowledge that one reason for the president's quick drop-by is their concern that Bush not be seen as taking advantage of the deaths of 3,000 people. What seemed like a good idea a year and a half ago, before Bush put on a flight suit and declared major combat operations in Iraq at an end, does not seem like such a good idea in the highly charged political environment now.
.
"They are being very sensitive not to exploit 9/11," said one Republican close to the campaign.
.
That doesn't mean that Bush and other convention speakers won't mention it, and often, from the podium.
.
"You can't not have it," said Matthew Dowd, a senior political adviser to Bush. "It would be like Roosevelt not talking about Pearl Harbor."
.
But as Ken Mehlman, Bush's campaign manager, put it: "You talk about it as an important event that the country shared, and you talk about it in an appropriate and tasteful way." Republicans said there are also tactical and logistical reasons for Bush's speedy convention trip. The last time anyone checked, New York was not a swing state, and polls show Kerry trouncing Bush there by double-digits. The president's advisers point out the obvious, which is that it is politically foolish to waste time in New York.
.
The advisers noted that Bush is also likely to alienate the city by lingering and tying up traffic, blocking streets and further inciting what could be the biggest street demonstrations at a political convention since the Democrats gathered in Chicago in 1968.
.
A quick exit would underscore the tone of Bush's campaign, the advisers said, which is that he is running hard in a tied race for his political life. They insisted that his getaway was not an insult to New York, a city Bush never liked before Sept. 11, 2001, but that he warmed to when he met with firefighters and other rescue workers after the attacks.
.
"It's not a statement that he dislikes New York City," the Republican close to the campaign said. "It's a statement that he's going to work."
.
The last time anyone checked, Pennsylvania was indeed a swing state.
.
Overall, Bush's advisers say they remain happy with the choice of New York, which has underwritten many of the costs of the convention. To Rove, the gathering was also an opportunity to journey into the citadel of the Democrats and make an in-your-face statement about the strength of the president and his party.
.
"Karl wanted to go into the heart of the opposition's territory and show that Bush could have a successful convention in New York," the Republican close to the campaign said.
.
In the meantime, Bush is working on his acceptance speech at his Crawford, Texas, ranch, but he plans to start campaigning Thursday for the week leading into New York.
.
As for Roosevelt, he delivered his acceptance speech in 1944 by radio from a private railroad car in San Diego, and said that the war left him no time to campaign.
.
But only up to a point. "I shall, however, feel free to report to the people the facts about matters of concern to them, and especially to correct any misrepresentation," Roosevelt said.
.
Elisabeth Bumiller can be reached at pagetwo@iht.com.
.
Tomorrow: John F. Burns writes about power brokers in Iraq. White House Letter
CRAWFORD, Texas More than a year ago, when Karl Rove and President George W. Bush began planning the Republican National Convention, they picked New York City in early September so that the event would flow into the third anniversary of the World Trade Center attacks.
.
Some Republicans said then that Bush might even visit ground zero, despite the risk of appearing to make political use of the tragedy. Most others said the convention's timing would remind voters of what the campaign considers Bush's finest hour - the moment he grabbed the bullhorn in the rubble at the tip of Manhattan and shouted that the people who had knocked down the buildings would hear from him soon.
.
But now it turns out that Bush may not spend a single night in the city that helped transform his presidency. At this point, the unofficial plan is for him to arrive in New York sometime on Sept. 2, the final day of the four-day convention, deliver his acceptance speech that night, then leave immediately for a midnight rally in Pennsylvania.
.
Campaign officials say the schedule could still change, and that Bush may have a brief New York sleepover in the end.
.
But either way, the incumbent president has no plans to visit ground zero, or hang around in his room for days at the Waldorf Astoria watching the party on television.
.
So if it is not the shortest time that a presidential nominee has spent at a nominating convention - President Franklin D. Roosevelt did not even go to the Democratic National Convention in 1944, during World War II - it is close. Senator John Kerry spent two days at his party's convention in Boston last month; Bush's father spent four days at the 1992 Republican convention in Houston.
.
Republicans acknowledge that one reason for the president's quick drop-by is their concern that Bush not be seen as taking advantage of the deaths of 3,000 people. What seemed like a good idea a year and a half ago, before Bush put on a flight suit and declared major combat operations in Iraq at an end, does not seem like such a good idea in the highly charged political environment now.
.
"They are being very sensitive not to exploit 9/11," said one Republican close to the campaign.
.
That doesn't mean that Bush and other convention speakers won't mention it, and often, from the podium.
.
"You can't not have it," said Matthew Dowd, a senior political adviser to Bush. "It would be like Roosevelt not talking about Pearl Harbor."
.
But as Ken Mehlman, Bush's campaign manager, put it: "You talk about it as an important event that the country shared, and you talk about it in an appropriate and tasteful way." Republicans said there are also tactical and logistical reasons for Bush's speedy convention trip. The last time anyone checked, New York was not a swing state, and polls show Kerry trouncing Bush there by double-digits. The president's advisers point out the obvious, which is that it is politically foolish to waste time in New York.
.
The advisers noted that Bush is also likely to alienate the city by lingering and tying up traffic, blocking streets and further inciting what could be the biggest street demonstrations at a political convention since the Democrats gathered in Chicago in 1968.
.
A quick exit would underscore the tone of Bush's campaign, the advisers said, which is that he is running hard in a tied race for his political life. They insisted that his getaway was not an insult to New York, a city Bush never liked before Sept. 11, 2001, but that he warmed to when he met with firefighters and other rescue workers after the attacks.
.
"It's not a statement that he dislikes New York City," the Republican close to the campaign said. "It's a statement that he's going to work."
.
The last time anyone checked, Pennsylvania was indeed a swing state.
.
Overall, Bush's advisers say they remain happy with the choice of New York, which has underwritten many of the costs of the convention. To Rove, the gathering was also an opportunity to journey into the citadel of the Democrats and make an in-your-face statement about the strength of the president and his party.
.
"Karl wanted to go into the heart of the opposition's territory and show that Bush could have a successful convention in New York," the Republican close to the campaign said.
.
In the meantime, Bush is working on his acceptance speech at his Crawford, Texas, ranch, but he plans to start campaigning Thursday for the week leading into New York.
.
As for Roosevelt, he delivered his acceptance speech in 1944 by radio from a private railroad car in San Diego, and said that the war left him no time to campaign.
.
Continued.............
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