DENNIS SHINES IN DEBATE

Dennis Kucinich stood out in yesterday's NPR debate. You can listen to it at:

http://www.npr.org/programs/specials/debate2004/index.html

On that page, NPR describes the debate in these terms: "An exit strategy for Iraq. Tax policy for the middle class. Campaign finance reform. Spirituality and faith in public service. Gay marriage. Obesity in America. Snowmobiles. Those were among the issues confronted -- and in some cases deflected -- by six Democratic candidates for president, who gathered Tuesday in Des Moines, Iowa, for a radio-only debate moderated by NPR's Neal Conan.

Of course, only one of the candidates participating has been raising the issue of an exit strategy for Iraq. Only one has an exit strategy. Dennis has now cemented his position as the candidate who would get us out of Iraq and stop the hemorrhaging of our resources for this illegal ongoing war. Only a President Kucinich can open up new possibilities at home in education, health care, and housing, because only he will end the occupation and cut wasteful spending at the Pentagon.

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News From MoveOn.org

As the New Year begins, we'd rather be talking about positive things, and there are plenty of good things happening. But MoveOn.org has come under attack from the Republican National Committee (RNC), which has launched a campaign of malicious misinformation to divert attention from the creativity and power of the Bush in 30 Seconds contest. We need your help to make sure the media don't fall for it.

RNC Chairman Ed Gillespie launched the attack on "Fox News Sunday," and the RNC followed it with press releases and calls to reporters. The charges centered on two ads posted on the Bush in 30 Seconds website which compared President Bush's tactis with those of Adolf Hitler. Mr. Gillespie repeatedly referred to the ads as 'the MoveOn ad' or 'MoveOn's ad,' implying that we had sponsored or perhaps even commissioned the ad. And he also claimed that we might spend $7 million to run it on TV.

This is a lie. MoveOn.org hasn't sponsored such an ad, and we never would -- we regret the appearance of these ads on the Bush In 30 Seconds site. The two ads in question are from more than a thousand posted by members of the public, and they were voted on by MoveOn members through December 31st. Obviously the few hundred of you who viewed these ads agreed that they were not worthy of further broadcast or recognition, because they got low ratings. Yesterday we announced the 15 finalists -- all good, hard-hitting and fair appraisals of the Bush record, in the judgment of the members and others who rated them. The two offending ads can only be found one place now -- on the RNC website!

When we've explained this to journalists, most have understood that this is a game of gotcha politics, not news. But even our statement for the press below, which goes through the entire process in detail, hasn't stopped the right wing from working this angle as hard as they can.

That's why we're asking you to please watch for stories on this as they appear, and let us know. Call the news outlet yourself and give them hell for falling victim to such political baloney. Please let us know so we can contact the outlets directly.

You can help us track inaccurate reporting on this story at:

http://moveon.org/smear/?id=2234-2148547-aOz919srfDLtWvCc1HP5sg

Second, we need you to get the press back on the right track. After you've corrected the negative accounts, write an upbeat letter to your local paper about the exciting and positive aspects of the contest and the finalists. These ads reflect the courage, hope, and deep patriotism of our membership. They're creative, passionate, and totally unlike most of the political ads that are out there. And perhaps most importantly, they were picked in a democratic way. Now that's a story!

The finalists are online at:
http://www.bushin30seconds.org/

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Check out this fascinating article [A Fistful of Kryptonite Against SuperGeorge] by Thom Hartmann, which is published by CommonDreams website.
http://www.commondreams.org/views04/0106-13.htm