Bush insists on referring to Kerry's health care plan as "government-run," despite the fact that it relies on the current system of private health insurance. And when a Bush ad says the Kerry proposal would bring "rationing, less access, fewer choices, long waits," it is referring to the existing Medicaid program, which under the Kerry plan would offer coverage to some who now lack insurance.
One Bush ad says Kerry "voted for education reform and now opposes it." But Kerry voted for the No Child Left Behind Act and wants to improve it and boost what he says is the president's inadequate funding of the law.
When Kerry told the New York Times that he wanted to reduce terrorism to a nuisance like gambling and prostitution, another Bush ad cited his remark, adding: "Terrorism -- a nuisance? How can Kerry protect us when he doesn't understand the threat?" But the senator never said terrorism is a nuisance now.
The selection of these closing themes is no accident. In the final weeks of the 2000 campaign, candidate Bush charged in a commercial: "Al Gore's prescription plan forces seniors into a government-run HMO." A Republican National Committee ad said: "Why does Al Gore say one thing when the truth is another? . . . Nonpartisan analysis confirms George Bush's plan sets aside $2.4 trillion to strengthen Social Security." Bush often declared that Gore would "say anything" to get elected.
The then-vice president, for his part, aired a final-week ad in which an expert said Bush's proposal "simply doesn't add up and would undermine Social Security." Sipple dismissed Kerry's 2004 version, saying: "The Social Security fear card has been played so many times in so many election cycles that it's been somewhat discounted."
The president's assault on Kerry as weak on defense also has a familiar ring. Bush's father, running for reelection in 1992, ran an ad criticizing Bill Clinton on the Persian Gulf War and for avoiding the draft. Another ad used footage of the Gulf War and an attempted Soviet coup, saying: "In a world where we're just one unknown dictator away from the next major crisis, who do you most trust to be sitting in this chair? President Bush, commander in chief."
The most effective advertising plays to people's preconceptions about the parties, Stanford's Iyengar said.
"Each side tries to come up with a message that fits the stereotype," he said.
