Tennessee Waltz Turns Into A Slugfest

You know a primary's getting down and dirty when a politician makes fun of his opponent's clothes. As Tennessee's Aug. 1 primary approaches, the two Republicans running for the chance to replace retiring Sen. Fred Thompson are trading barbs daily, and it all started with a famous red-and-black plaid shirt.

In his successful gubernatorial campaigns in Tennessee during the 1970s and '80s, Lamar Alexander donned a red-and-black plaid shirt to show that he was just a "Regular Joe." He tried it again in his 1996 presidential race, but ditched it in 2000. Neither look won him the nomination, but it's become his trademark.

In a television ad last month, Rep. Ed Bryant - a conservative, four-term lawmaker - bragged about his "solid, conservative leadership," a not so subtle swat at Alexander's clothing style. At the end of the ad, an announcer even urges Republicans, "Don't be plaid. Be solid for Bryant."

Both campaigns have accused each other of "misleading" voters about their records, and the criticism only seems to be getting more stinging with each passing day – and it's not just about clothing.

Bryant's attack ads have including criticism of Alexander's record on taxes - raising taxes has become particularly unpopular in Tennessee in recent years - and comments Alexander made during his brief run against George W. Bush for the 2000 GOP presidential nomination. (He once described Mr. Bush's own trademark – "compassionate conservatism" – as "weasel words.")

Alexander took Bryant's attacks in stride, but quickly started running ads touting his experience as a two-term governor and Cabinet secretary in the first Bush administration.

One of Bryant's favorite riffs has been to harp on Alexander's experience as a negative, and offer himself as a fresh alternative. "It's my turn," Bryant has said.

In a recent speech, Alexander mocked Bryant's criticism. "We're not playing Red Rover here. We're at war and we have a country on the line. The issue is not whose turn it is, the issue is who is best prepared in these serious times and who will offer the strongest support to the president," Alexander said.

This week, Alexander accused Bryant of trying to "fool people" about his record.

In early July, a poll by Public Opinion Strategies, paid for by Bryant's campaign, showed the congressman trailing Alexander by 12 points, 49 percent to 37 percent.

Alexander is also the stronger candidate right now in a general election match-up against the likely Democratic nominee, Rep. Bob Clement. A poll in late June for several Tennessee newspapers showed Alexander beating Clement 48 percent to 37 percent, with 15 percent undecided. Bryant, however, lost to Clement in a prospective match-up by two points, 42 percent to 40 percent, with 18 percent undecided.

Bryant has catered his campaign to Tennessee's large bloc of rural, conservative voters. Gun control is a favorite topic, as is the war on terror, which Bryant claims he's better suited to help with than Alexander since he spent eight years in the Army and Alexander has no military experience.

Voter turnout could be a major factor in the primary. Low turnout is expected, although those who do show up likely will be hard-core conservatives and activists, which may be good for Bryant. But Alexander has a geographical advantage - more than half the state's primary voters should come from eastern Tennessee, especially near Nashville, where Alexander runs strongest – which should offset any edge Bryant gets from low turnout.

Despite some early enthusiasm for Alexander, the White House has stayed out of the race after conservatives balked about choosing sides. Conservatives rallied around Bryant in part because of his strong right-wing credentials – including his role as a House manager in former President Clinton's impeachment – and also due to doubts about Alexander's true ideological colors. So, unlike Minnesota and Missouri, states where the White House was able to clear out crowded primary fields in the name of party unity, the administration was unable, or unwilling, to do so in Tennessee.

Tennessee's incumbent Republican senators, Thompson and Bill Frist, have not weighed in on either candidate's behalf. But Frist, who heads the National Republican Senatorial Committee, urged the pair to tone down their rhetoric late last month. The infighting, Frist said, could make it hard to unify the party on Aug. 2.

"I'd like to see both sides tone down the rhetoric at this point and go to the fundamental issues," Frist told reporters in Tennessee.

Three weeks later, with the primary coming down to the wire and the attacks getting nastier, it seems neither camp is paying much attention.

BY DOUGLAS KIKER