The Swiftboat Hacks never really go away

I mentioned earlier that the right-wing Progress for America, probably best known for its “Ashley’s Story” ads from the campaign, will be spending $1.5 million on television commercials over the next two weeks to help bolster support for the nuclear option.

I wanted to add, however, that Progress for America has tapped Benjamin Ginsberg to help drive the entire initiative. Does the name sound familiar? If not, the group he worked with during the campaign might.

Turning to a proven master of message, the grassroots group Progress for America has recruited lawyer Ben Ginsberg, of Swift Boat Veterans For Truth fame, to help spread the “nuclear option” gospel on judicial nominees.

Yes, this is the same Ben Ginsberg who served as a top lawyer in the Bush campaign while advising the Swift Boat hacks, lending credence to the idea that the president’s campaign was directly involved with the disgusting smear effort against John Kerry.

It’s hard to say for sure exactly what this will mean for the pro-nuclear option message, but it’s safe to assume the Republicans’ already-nasty rhetoric is about to get worse.

The good news is that Bush’s tactics are becoming so predictable that their impact may be less effective than during the election, as witnessed by the total failure of his Social Security roadshow.

Plus the fact that MoveOn.org has already staged a very successful nationwide series of public rallies to get the word out about the threat to American democracy as we know it, so the good guys aren’t starting out flat footed and unprepared as Kerry’s people were with the Swift Boat blockheads.

It’s going to get ugly, no question about it, but it will be more of a stand-up fight this time and the outcome is by no means a foregone conclusion.

  • I agree – the Swiftboats campaign was effective because Kerry did little about it for weeks. In this case, there have already been ads running extolling the virtue of retaining the filibuster. I don’t think they walk away with this one…thekeez

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