When Sen. Joseph Lieberman entered a crowded third-floor hallway Saturday night at City Hall in Nashua, N.H., for a question-and-answer session, he touted his belief that “Joe-mentum” would carry the day Tuesday.
But not everyone was feeling the love for the Connecticut senator’s candidacy, especially a woman in the front row who was spoiling for a fight.
“You knew about Al Qaeda and did nothing about it,” the woman said as she stood to meet Lieberman face-to-face.
“Is this in a commercial?” Lieberman asked. The woman nodded her head affirmatively.
Lieberman is running a televised campaign spot in which an announcer says the senator was “warning about Al Qaeda long before George Bush knew who they were.” The woman thought Lieberman had advance knowledge of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and did nothing to stop them.
Lieberman tried to convince the woman that Al Qaeda had been around long before Sept. 11 and that he had long pushed for more intensive anti-terrorism intelligence and activities. But by her reaction, it was clear the ad backfired.
“That’s a very interesting reaction,” Lieberman said. “I’m going to have to talk to the people that made that commercial.”
–Rick Pearson
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EATING WITH THE ENEMY
New Hampshirites walking through a bitterly cold wind to a rally for John Kerry in Nashua were not wary of Howard Dean supporters bearing gifts.
Dean supporters offered doughnuts, coffee and “Dean for America” pamphlets from the back of a mini-van parked outside a high school before Kerry’s speech Sunday afternoon.
“Look!” a woman wearing a Kerry sticker on her jacket said. “Doughnuts for Dean!”
A Dean volunteer quickly reassured those who might hesitate to accept treats from the enemy. “We’re all Democrats here,” the volunteer said. “We’ll all support whoever wins.”
–Dan Mihalopoulos