CINCINNATI - A day after Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry came here and blasted the Bush administration's handling of the war in Iraq, Vice President Dick Cheney arrived to defend his boss and highlight progress in Iraq and Afghanistan.
In a town hall-style meeting at the convention center here, Mr. Cheney likened the current situation in America to those years immediately after World War II when the government reorganized itself to deal with the Cold War threat.
"We are at one of those points in history where the decisions we make now may in fact be the kind of turning point in American history that really sets the stage for some time to come.
"This obviously is a very important election this year,'' Mr. Cheney said. "I really think we're going to make some basic fundamental decisions about the future of the nation, about how we want to function both domestically here at home with respect to our economy, as well as deal with what is clearly an emerging global threat in terms of the war on terror.''
In his Wednesday speech at Union Terminal, Mr. Kerry charged that "wrong choices'' made in managing the war in Iraq have resulted in disorganization and high costs borne mostly by the United States.
Speaking for the Kerry campaign yesterday, U.S. Sen. Joe Biden (D., Del.) lashed out at the Bush administration's handling of the Iraq war, saying "incompetence'' was rampant.
One month before elections are to be held there, "Afghanistan is in real difficulty right now,'' Mr. Biden said.
He was also critical of Mr. Cheney's recent comments that, should voters choose incorrectly in the November election, America could experience more terrorism.
"I find it reprehensible that he would use that fear tactic in an election,'' Mr. Biden said in a conference call with reporters.
Mr. Cheney said a "wrong choice'' at the ballot box could increase "the danger that we'll get hit again'' by terrorists.
"It is vital for us to understand that this is a long-term problem,'' he said yesterday.
Mr. Cheney also criticized Mr. Kerry's economic proposals during an introductory speech before taking questions.
"John Kerry has talked about increasing taxes. His economic program has proposed over two trillion dollars in new spending, at the same time trying to set the target of cutting the deficit in half over the next five years. The only way to get there is with fairly broad, across-the-board tax increases,'' Mr. Cheney said. "We think that's exactly the wrong way to go. We need to make the Bush tax cuts permanent. That's crucial.''
Most of the questions for the vice president had to do with the economy, terrorism, or the war. He reiterated Mr. Bush's proposal to simplify the federal tax system to remove the burden of dealing with the complicated tax code.
He said new economic figures show things turning around, but "we won't be satisfied until everyone who wants to work can find a job.''
Ohio, a key state in the election, continues to win the attention of candidates. In addition to the Cincinnati visits by Mr. Kerry and Mr. Cheney, Mr. Edwards campaigned in the state earlier this week, and President Bush makes two stops today, one in Portsmouth and another in Chillicothe.
Contact Fritz Wenzel at:
fritz@theblade.com
or 419-724-6134.
First Published September 10, 2004, 9:45 a.m.
