The biggest ad buy of the campaign, apparently. http://www.ashleysstory.com/ http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tm...oday/mostexpensivetvcampaignadgoesforemotions -- Most expensive TV campaign ad goes for emotions Tue Oct 19 By Judy Keen and Mark Memmott, USA TODAY The most expensive TV ad buy of the presidential campaign shows President Bush (news - web sites) consoling a teenage girl whose mother died in the World Trade Center on Sept. 11. The ad, created by the conservative Progress for America Voter Fund, will run until the election on cable stations and in nine key states at a cost of $14.2 million, said the group's president, Brian McCabe. The ad was inspired by a photo of Bush hugging Ashley Faulkner, who is now 16, while campaigning in Lebanon, Ohio, on May 4. The photo, taken by the girl's father, Lynn Faulkner, was widely circulated on the Internet. As Bush shook hands in the crowd, the Faulkners' neighbor told him that Ashley had lost her mom on 9/11. Bush enfolded Ashley in his arms and offered her comfort. "In the midst of all those people and all that noise, it was an intimate and personal moment," Lynn Faulkner, a marketing consultant and a Republican, said in an interview. His wife, Wendy Faulkner, an information-systems executive, was in the South Tower on Sept. 11. The ad features the photo and Ashley and her father talking about Bush. "All he wants to do is make sure I'm safe," Ashley says in the ad. Lynn says in the ad that he saw in Bush "what I want to see in the heart and soul" of a president. Progress for America Voter Fund's eight previous ads have been a mix of attacks aimed at Sen. John Kerry (news - web sites) and positive ads on Bush's record. Its most widely seen ad, "Absolutely Incorrect," shows Kerry saying he has never wavered on Iraq (news - web sites) and highlights his comment that he voted for a bill to spend $87 billion in Afghanistan (news - web sites) and Iraq before he voted against the final version of the bill. McCabe said his group has spent $24.8 million on TV ads, including "Ashley's Story." The new ad will be buttressed by a Web site, www.ashleysstory.com. E-mails, automated phone calls and 2.3 million brochures will go to voters. "Most political messages in October are harsh and negative," McCabe said. "We're going in the opposite direction to ... highlight what everyone knows and likes about President Bush." The fund's ad spending since both parties' conventions has exceeded that of other independent pro-Bush groups. Since Labor Day, when the ad wars intensified, The November Fund, financed partly by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce (news - web sites) and formed to link the Kerry-Edwards campaign to trial lawyers and accuse the lawyers of driving up health care costs, has spent only about $500,000 on ads. Progress for America has also, in recent weeks, outspent two of its most prominent liberal rivals. The Media Fund and MoveOn PAC, two anti-Bush groups, have spent about $1.5 million each since Labor Day to run ads in key states. On the other side, the Planned Parenthood (news - web sites) Action Fund, an arm of Planned Parenthood Federation of America, also is joining the ad wars. The Action Fund's endorsement of Kerry was the first for the family planning and abortion-rights group. The Action Fund will spend about $1 million in the final two weeks of the campaign. The Ashley ad is one of several in this campaign that have told emotional stories. An anti-Bush group called RealVoices.org has spent about $1.3 million on an ad featuring the mother of a U.S. soldier killed in Iraq. She says tearfully that Bush hasn't "been honest with us" about the reasons for the war. Swift Boat Veterans for Truth, an anti-Kerry organization, has spent more than $6 million since Labor Day on ads featuring Vietnam War veterans and their wives talking about what they see as Kerry's betrayal of other Vietnam veterans in his opposition to the war after he returned from serving in it. Elizabeth Theiss-Morse, a political science professor at the University of Nebraska, said emotional ads like "Ashley's Story" are effective. "One of Bush's strengths is that he's considered to be a warm person. Kerry isn't," she said. "This ad reminds voters about that. It also connects him to the 9/11 attacks and his actions right afterward. That's another of his strengths." And the ad could swing at least some undecided voters in Bush's direction, Theiss-Morse said. "What matters most to a lot of people now is whether they can connect with the candidate," she said. The latest report filed by the Progress for America Voter Fund, one of the groups called 527s after the section of the IRS code that governs them, covers the period from May 27, when they were organized, through Sept. 30. It shows total fundraising to date of $30.6 million, more than 90% of it in six- and seven-figure amounts from wealthy donors. The largest contributors are two California business executives, Alex Spanos and Dawn Arnall, who have given $5 million each.
Ah yes, what was it called again? Compassionate conservatism? Give me a freaking break. If you asked Bush about her today, he'd say "Ashley who?" and then remark how we need to stay on course.
I feel bad for Ashley but come on. Bush. He gives warm hugs. This is the reason that we should re-elect this clown? My goodness.
Bush embracing an underage girl while her father takes pictures! Sorry. I don't really have anything substantial to contribute.
I saw this ad, (flash animated, not the televised version,) on a news website. All it has is the single photo with Ashley's quote. I think this is going to be a great ad for the Bush campaign. It's a very good picture of him- he looks nothing like he normally does, he really looks sincerely warm in the picture comforting that girl. It's an emotional ad, it helps you connect with the person (at least makes you think you are.)
"John Kerry has a plan to hug every little girl in the United States, not just the little girls from rich and powerful families" It's a joke not trying to trivialize Ashley and her loss
This is the biggest ad buy of the campaign? Can we infer by that that the best reason to elect Bush is that he's a good hugger? It's a bit of a theme with this guy and it's more than a little creepy. Check it out: http://gadflyer.com/articles/?ArticleID=195 Hugger-in-Chief The softer side of George W. Bush by The Gadflyer, 9.03.04 Recently, both the New York Times and Washington Post have run articles about "cuddle parties," in which urban dwellers seeking a little human warmth get together for a platonic session of hugging and cuddling. You might think our president would be just about the last guy in the world to whom something like that would be appealing. After all, George W. Bush loves to get dressed up in macho costumes and talk tough. Yet Bush also has a softer side, a side that wants nothing more than to hug, and be seen hugging. So for those who think the President is just about smokin' 'em out and gettin' 'em runnin', we offer a window into his warmth and tenderness: Generalized hugging "They've seen me make decisions, they've seen me under trying times, they've seen me weep, they've seen me laugh, they've seen me hug." - August 26, 2004 "Yesterday, in Cleveland, Ohio, at the International Children's Games, I was able to hug and say hello to a young girls' soccer team from Afghanistan." - July 31, 2004. "I want to thank the thousands of you who are here who understand we can save somebody's life by showing them love. We can help somebody who hurts by hugging a neighbor in need." - April 3, 2003. "If you're dissatisfied with the quality of education, do something about it. If you're satisfied, go hug a teacher and thank him or her for doing such an important job." - October 14, 2002 "When you tell your child you love them, and give them a hug, that's part of making sure the future of the country is as strong as it can be." - April 15, 2002 "What government can't do is change people's hearts, or put a sense of purpose in people's life. That's done when loving, decent, kind Americans hug a neighbor in need." - September 5, 2002 "I saw a sign coming in that said, Mr. President, thanks for the $600. I felt like stopping the limo and giving her a big hug." - September 3, 2001 "Give the President a hug and a kiss." February 15, 2001, to Nancy Reagan on the occasion of Ronald Reagan's birthday. Sports-related hugging "So when you make right choices, set out the right examples, hug somebody who hurts, you're really helping our country. And if you're from Canada or other countries, you're helping your country, too." - September 29, 2003, to Stanley Cup champion New Jersey Devils "I don't know if any of you have ever had a chance to go to see the Special Olympics, but if you do, and somebody offers you a chance to be a hugger -- which means you're standing on the other side of the finish line to hug somebody who comes running across -- do it." - June 7, 2001, to Super Bowl champion Baltimore Ravens War- and terrorism-related hugging "One of my hardest parts of my job is to console the family members who have lost their life. It is a -- it is -- it's a chance to hug and weep and to console and to remind the loved ones that the sacrifice of their loved one was done in the name of security for America and freedom for the world." - April 13, 2004 "See, I understand the consequences of war. I understand the risks of war. I understand firsthand, particularly when I go and hug the moms and dads and brothers and sisters and sons and daughters of those who died. " - November 17, 2003 "See, I was there right after September the 11th. I saw the smoke. I saw the devastation. I heard the grief. I hugged the firefighters whose -- the families of the firefighters who rushed in to save. " - November 14, 2003 "And a mother -- a fine looking couple walked up, a mom and dad, said, you've got to know, our daughter died in Bali. And tears in his eyes. And I gave him a big hug." - October 18, 2003. "Laura and I had the honor of going to the site there in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, the other day to hug and cry and visit with and smile with if they wanted to smile, with the family members of those brave souls who were on that airplane." - September 17, 2002 "I was able to pin the Purple Heart on a number of people upstairs. I was able to hug their parents and thank them." - September 11, 2003 "I don't know if you remember the speech I gave in front of the Congress right after the attacks of September the 11th, but I held up the badge of one of the brave who were killed. It was the badge of Arlene's son. I'm honored you're here, Arlene, I appreciate you coming -- I can't wait to give you a hug." - August 26, 2003 "I hug the mothers and the widows of those who may have lost their life in the name of peace and freedom." - February 10, 2003 "I'm the person in this country that hugs the mothers and the widows if their son or husband dies." - February 10, 2003 "I understand what it means to put somebody into combat. I know what it means to hug mothers and wives." - January 29, 2003 "There's only one person who hugs the mothers and the widows, the wives and the kids on the death of their loved ones...Having committed the troops, I've got an additional responsibility to hug." - December 2002 "As I have met the heroes, hugged the families, and looked into the tired faces of rescuers, I have stood in awe of the American people." - January 29, 2002 "A soldier in the war on terror is a mom or a dad who surrounds -- who hugs their children on a daily basis and says to the child, I love you more than anything in life." - January 15, 2002 "Americans are asking: What is expected of us? I ask you to live your lives, and hug your children." - September 20, 2001 "I wish I was visiting under better circumstances. But it will be a chance for all three of us to thank and hug and cry with the citizens of your good area." - September 17, 2001, to Rudolph Guiliani and George Pataki "Flight 93 -- I had the honor of going to the site and hugging the families of the 40 who were on that airplane." - September 16, 2002
I personally think it is disgusting that Bush is using images from 9/11 as political advertisements. But it is also valid for me to point out that you seem to be a supporter of the out and out lies told by the Swiftvets in response to your comment about this "powerful and positive" ad. I didn't call you a name, I just pointed out your history, something that you and Bush seem to want to run from.
Bush was a great leader after 9/11. Not many will disagree with that. He's not exploiting anything but his excellent leadership after the tragedy occurred. His leadership is a great asset that should be advertised. By the way - you attacked me again in your last post. Please keep the D&D civil.
I will agree with you that in the days immediately following 9/11, Bush showed the ability to be a very good leader and carried that leadership into and through the action in Afghanistan. Since then, however, he has proven conclusively that he cannot lead this country, much less the world, in the GLOBAL fight against terrorism, a fight that will only be won if we have GLOBAL support. His lack of leadership regarding Iraq FAR outweighs any positives that happened immediatly after 9/11. It was an accurate statement.
For the sake of the nation, would you guys cut out the fighting and just hug? That's what leaders do. They hug.
I will give you the fact that George is probably a very nice guy and gives great hugs to little girls. If we had no issues AT ALL that might be enough to let him slide and get re-elected. Then again if that was the case, I would rather have Elmo as President.
You sound like you could use a hug too. Too bad you threw away your vote on Beltran. I've never seen him hug the nation. Not even once.
