Posted on: Thursday, May 6, 2004

EDITORIAL
Presidential campaign must skip small stuff

Some weeks ago, when it became apparent that John Kerry would be the Democratic nominee for president against incumbent George Bush, we made a plea:

Could the candidates get past the personality fights and red meat "litmus" test issues such as abortion and cut to the real concerns of American voters?

Could we hear some substantive talk about economic growth, about foreign policy and about America's place in the world?

Well, there has been some talk along those lines. The president recently held a rare news conference in which he sought to outline his view of America's place in a world beset by terrorism.

Kerry has been in the heartland, talking about jobs and protecting the American worker.

So far, so good.

But the temptation to slip into side issues appears to be nearly overwhelming.

The back and forth over the matter of military service is a classic case in point.

Kerry has based part of his candidacy on his war record, as a decorated hero in Vietnam who came home to oppose the war. So his opponents have a right to look into that record and decide what it says about the candidate.

But pointless debate over whether Kerry "deserved" each and every medal he received or whether he threw away his medals in protest or just the ribbons serves no one.

Also completely out of line is a speech made by Republican Rep. Sam Johnson of Texas on the House floor, in which he called Kerry "Hanoi John" who was aiding and abetting the enemy.

But Kerry and his backers are also out of line when they respond to criticism by President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney by dragging out the fact that neither man served in Vietnam 30 years ago.

Is the fact that Cheney found (legal) ways to avoid service or that Bush had a spotty record in the National Guard really the substance of the moment?

When Cheney gave a major speech attacking Kerry's record on defense and foreign policy, the response focused on Cheney's draft deferments.

That doesn't advance the debate either.

The country needs serious discussion on what is happening today, not what happened 30 years ago.