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On Campaign Stop, Bush Rallies Loyalists
President Bush waves to troops at Charleston Air Force Base in South Carolina, where he traveled to after campaigning in Indiana.
(By Pablo Martinez Monsivais -- Associated Press)
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Indiana, a heavily Republican state, is shaping up as a critical battleground in next week's elections, with at least three GOP incumbents high on the Democrats' target list. In the 9th District, which includes Sellersburg and other southern parts of the state, Sodrel ousted Democratic incumbent Baron Hill by 1,425 votes in 2004. He now faces a fierce rematch with the former high school basketball star.
Many high-profile figures of both parties have been here on behalf of the candidates, with former president Bill Clinton appearing for Hill and first lady Laura Bush and Vice President Cheney helping Sodrel raise campaign funds. Sodrel told the crowd Saturday that he was "proud to stand" with the president.
Hill used Bush's visit to attack Sodrel as a "rubber stamp for the administration."
In Washington, meanwhile, Senate Democratic leader Harry M. Reid (Nev.) reacted sharply to Bush's latest attacks on Democrats, saying that this Halloween the Bush administration was "running its national security policy like a Charlie Brown special" and was disguising the "scary facts" about the war.
Although the Indiana crowd was wild in its enthusiasm, at least one backer of the president voiced some anxiety about Iraq. Samantha Grimm, a registered nurse, said she "absolutely" supports the president on the war but asked: "When is it going to be over -- when do you say enough is enough?"
Bush reprised familiar themes about taxes and the war. However, he employed a new rhetorical device, as he once again accused congressional Democrats of repeatedly trying to block his anti-terrorism policies. Democrats say they simply want to carry out such policies while safeguarding rights.
"In all these vital measures for fighting the war on terror, the Democrats in Washington follow a simple philosophy: Just say no," Bush said. "When it comes to listening in on the terrorists, what's the Democratic answer? 'Just say no.' When it comes to detaining terrorists, what's the Democrat answer?"
"Just say no," the crowd replied.
