Kerry rules out delaying tacticOK's Hub nomination; may challenge FEC ruleSEATTLE -- John F. Kerry announced yesterday he would accept his party's presidential nomination at the Democratic National Convention in Boston on July 29, ending a five-day flirtation with the idea of a delay that could have helped him financially but had sparked criticism from Mayor Thomas M. Menino, ridicule from Republicans, and questions among Boston-area residents facing a jam of convention-driven inconveniences.
The Massachusetts senator, who considered the delay to help close a fund-raising gap with President Bush, instead will seek greater grass-roots political support, assistance from state and local parties, and may request a rules change from the Federal Election Commission to help him compete in the final phase of his quest for the White House. Kerry's decision came partly in response to widening concerns about the postponement scenario from political allies such as Menino, Senator Edward M. Kennedy, and Democratic National Committee chairman Terry McAuliffe. Former president Bill Clinton spoke with McAuliffe on Sunday about the pros and cons of delaying the nomination but did not take a position during the conversation, party officials said yesterday. Under the current law, candidates cannot spend privately raised money once they are formally nominated, after which they each get $75 million in public financing. Since Bush will not accept the Republican Party's nomination until Sept. 2, he will have to make his $75 million last only eight weeks until Election Day; Kerry will have to make his last 13 weeks, beginning on July 29. One idea under consideration within the Kerry campaign is petitioning the FEC for permission to continue raising and spending private funds until Bush receives his federal allotment in early September, according to campaign spokesman Michael Meehan. The FEC has not indicated how it would rule on Kerry's campaign spending options. But Republicans are almost certain to oppose a rules change in the midst of a campaign. Having the Democratic national and state parties spend on Kerry's behalf could help Kerry close the gap, but the presidential nominee would have no control over their advertising because of rules limiting formal coordination between the parties and the campaign. Noting that his campaign has already raised over $100 million, including $2.2 million last night, Kerry encouraged Democrats to remain vigilant. ''The decision that I made today raises the bar, because there will be a five-week period when I'm living under different rules than the Republicans are, which is not sensible, but it's the way it is," he said last night at a Seattle fund-raiser, several hours after issuing a statement announcing the decision. ''And we have two things going for us they don't: We have people and ideas, and we have a passion about how we're going to change our country, and I think that will overcome their Pioneers and their Eagles and their money and their special interests, and we're going to prove to them that we are on the march to the beginning of the end of the Bush administration." Continued... |
