Bush campaigns “on the basic pitch that you don't change leaders during a time of war”

WASHINGTON, March 5 (IslamOnline.net & News Agencies) – U.S. President George W. Bush came under fire for using images from the September 11 attacks in his campaign advertisements.

Bush, meanwhile, went on the offensive against Democratic contender Senator John Kerry saying the Massachusetts lawmaker was incapable of defending America against “terrorists”.

Relatives of the dead from the 2001 attacks on New York and Washington, along with firefighters, accused Bush of using pictures of firemen working in the debris of the twin World Trade Center towers for political gain.

“For anyone to use 9/11 for political gain is despicable,” Monica Gabrielle, whose husband died in the attacks was quoted by Agence France-Presse (AFP) as saying.

Two of the three new adverts show the devastation after the twin towers' collapse and include a U.S. flag flying over the debris and firemen working in the wreckage at Ground Zero.

Hundreds of firefighters and police were among the 3,000 dead from September 11, and families of some of the dead firemen were furious at the adverts.

Hypocrisy

Tom Roger, whose daughter was a stewardess on one of the hijacked planes, called the adverts “some advertising agency's attempt to grab people by the throat”.

Many fire fighters were also angry. Harold Schaitberger, head of the International Association of Fire Fighters, said: “The use of 9/11 images are hypocrisy at its worst”.

“Bush is calling on the biggest disaster in our country's history, and indeed in the history of the fire service, to win sympathy for his campaign,” Schaitberger said in a statement carried by AFP.

The Kerry campaign called the spots a “new multimillion-dollar revisionist history ad campaign”.

“Most astonishing, George Bush's ad features a shot of the wreckage of that tragic September day almost three years ago and the firefighters who so bravely worked to save lives,” said Kerry spokeswoman Stephanie Cutter.

“What he doesn't tell you is that only 10 percent of fire departments across the nation have personnel and equipment to respond to a building collapse,” she said.

No War Change

On the other hand, White House spokesman defended the election ads, saying they emphasized Bush's leadership at a time of terror.

“September 11th was a defining moment for our nation,” spokesman Scott McClellan said.

“It was an experience that all Americans shared. It is the reason we are still at war on terrorism,” he added.

President Bush is campaigning “on the basic pitch that you don't change leaders during a time of war,” the BBC News Online said.

But this controversy shows it is a pitch that will have to be handled with sensitivity if it is not to backfire, the BBC added.

Polls had showed Bush enjoyed sky-high support for his handling of the “war on terror” campaign against Afghanistan.

The invasion of Iraq was, touted as part of this war, has drawn massive outcry as no international terrorists or weapons of mass destruction – the main justification for striking the Arab country – have been found there.

But Bush's approval ratings slumped from their high levels after the 9-11 attacks, amid growing skepticism about his domestic programs and concern about the U.S.-led occupation of Iraq.

In his election-year State of the Union speech on January 21, Bush urged Americans to re-elect him to pursue the so-called war on terror.

“We face a choice. We can go forward with confidence and resolve, or we can turn back to the dangerous illusion that terrorists are not plotting and outlaw regimes are no threat to us,” he said.

“It is tempting to believe that the danger is behind us,” Bush said, describing such hope as “understandable, comforting - and false”.

‘Course Of War’

Bush heightened his attacks on Kerry, giving him little time to savor his victory in Tuesday's primary votes that secured the Democratic nomination.

“Great events will turn on this election," Bush told a campaign fundraising luncheon in Bakersfield, California.

“The man who sits in the Oval Office will set the course of the war on terror and the direction of our economy. The security and prosperity of America are at stake,” he said.

In a swipe at Kerry, Bush said, “My opponent has not offered much in the way of strategies to win the war, or policies to expand our economy”.