Friday, September 17, 2004
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

GOP RALLY: Cheney visits Reno

Vice president defends Bush as steadfast, paints Kerry as inconsistent

Vice President Dick Cheney speaks to Republicans during a campaign rally Thursday at the Reno-Sparks Convention Center. Flanking Cheney to the left are Nevada Gov. Kenny Guinn and Sen. John Ensign. Photo by THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Vice President Dick Cheney pauses during Thursday's speech, which focused largely on Iraq and the war on terrorism and touched only briefly on domestic issues. Photo by THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

RENO -- As his supporters shouted "flip-flop," Dick Cheney on Thursday said Democrat presidential candidate John Kerry is unfit to be president because he changes his political positions frequently.

"These are not the times for leaders who shift with the winds of polls," the Republican vice president told a partisan crowd of 1,500 gathered in the Reno-Sparks Convention Center. "John Kerry says one thing one day and another the next day."

Cheney and President Bush have been hammering away on what they call Kerry's flip-flops for weeks.

The vice president said Kerry voted for U.S. troops to invade Iraq but then opposed funding the war.

Kerry also has said he backs the No Child Left Behind Act and the Patriot Act, but at other times declares he opposes them, Cheney said.

"I have never seen a candidate go back and forth on so many issues," Cheney added as the crowd again shouted "flip-flop."

Cheney noted that Kerry, who had spoken in Las Vegas three hours earlier, told members of the National Guard Association that U.S. troops deserve no less than the best.

"I am stunned by the audacity of that statement since Senator Kerry voted to send the troops into combat and then to deny them the support they needed once they were at war," he said.

In contrast, Bush has held consistent positions in the wake of opposition and demonstrated the strength a leader needs, Cheney told the crowd that cheered frequently through his 25-minute speech.

"He has made hard choices and kept his word, and that is exactly how he will govern America the next four years," he added.

The visit was the sixth by Cheney to Nevada this year. His daughter, Liz Perry, and granddaughter, Elizabeth, joined him on stage.

"You will see plenty more of us," Cheney promised his supporters. "With your help, we will win this state and this election."

He expressed confidence that he and Bush are pulling away in the race.

"The signs are good, here in Nevada and even in Massachusetts," he said.

The most recent Review-Journal poll, released July 22, showed Bush and Cheney with a lead of 3 percentage points in Nevada. A KVBC-TV poll on Monday gave them a lead of 4 percentage points in the state.

Cheney spoke only briefly on domestic issues, saying the administration wants to end lawsuit abuse and bring medical malpractice liability reform.

"American doctors should spend time healing patients, not fighting off frivolous lawsuits," he said.

Cheney never mentioned the Yucca Mountain nuclear repository, which would be built about 100 miles northwest of Las Vegas. Neither did Republican Gov. Kenny Guinn, who sued the president over his decision to place nuclear waste in Nevada.

Instead Guinn, who talked at the rally before Cheney's arrival, said that the No. 1 issue is "safety from terrorism" and that Bush and Cheney have his support.

Many at the Cheney rally were teenagers, including some who said they received the afternoon off as part of a government class project.

Seventeen-year-old Dina Carano said she opposes Kerry and Democratic vice presidential candidate John Edwards because "they don't say what they mean. They don't stick to it."

"I think think (Kerry) will raise taxes, and that is ridiculous," added Amber Barker, who turns 18 before Election Day. "Some of their ideas are way too far-fetched."

Outside the convention center, about 150 protesters conducted their own rally.

Pam DuPre, executive director of the Washoe County Democratic Party, walked with the other protesters.

"I bet he didn't tell you the administration has no plan for peace in Iraq," said DuPre about Cheney's address, which she didn't hear because she was outside the building. "He didn't tell you thousands more Nevadans today don't have health insurance. He didn't tell you working families in Nevada are making less than they did in 2000 and paying more for gas, for college tuition and health care. I don't know what he said, but he didn't talk about those things."

Protester Dennis Smith, of Truckee, Calif., said that under Bush the United States "has gone in a very bad direction."

"We have alienated ourselves through the world community," he said.