Bush Compares Himself To Gore

(CBS)  The CBS News Political Unit is tracking the latest campaign commercials. Jane Ruvelson analyzes a new George W. Bush campaign ad that compares the two presidential candidates on a number of key campaign issues.

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The Ad: The Bush campaign has begun airing its newest commercial, which compares elements of the Bush and Gore plans for prescription drug coverage, education, and tax reduction. The spot, called Compare will go up in 18 states in a "multimillion-dollar buy." The states Compare will run in are: Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Michigan, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Washington, Wisconsin and West Virginia.

Audio: Announcer: Al Gore's prescription plan forces seniors into a government-run HMO. Gov. Bush gives seniors a choice. Gore says he's for school accountability, but requires no real testing. Gov. Bush requires tests and holds schools accountable for results. Gore's targeted tax cuts leave out 50 million people - half of all taxpayers. Under Bush, every taxpayer gets a tax cut and no family pays more than a third of their income to Washington. Gov. Bush has real plans that work for real people.

Visual: Lots of shots of Bush campaigning and key text against a white background. Compare also shows lots of people of varying ethnicity and ages.

Fact check: Compare relies on some misleading assertions about Gore’s plans that the Republicans have made in previous ads. Gore’s voluntary prescription drug plan would allow seniors to get coverage through Medicare, which though federal, is not an HMO. Next, Gore would in fact require student testing – but not as often as Bush would and Gore doesn’t make school funding contingent upon testing results. Finally, under Gore’s economic plan, the wealthy does not receive a tax cut; instead, only low-income Americans and those paying for college tuition and day care would receive a refund.

The Strategy: Compare is a classic "contrast" ad, portraying Gore’s proposals in inflammatory terms and Bush’s in glowing ones. It uses the three big campaign issues of health care, education and taxes to make its points and runs in tandem in Florida, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, New Mexico, Oregon and West Virginia with an RNC ad hammering Gore on allegedly forcing seniors into federal HMO.