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Inside, president is cheered; outside he is jeered
By Michael Daigle, Gannett New
Jersey
Published in the Asbury Park Press 12/02/03
HANOVER -- While President Bush was cheered by more than 500 supporters at a fund-raising dinner yesterday, 75 protesters exercised their right to disagree outside.
The president's speech at the Hanover Marriott hotel in the Whippany section highlighted his record on the war against terrorism, education reform, a Medicare prescription drug program and the economy. The $2,000-a-ticket event raised an estimated $1 million for his 2004 re-election campaign.
Several hundred feet from the hotel entrance, protesters found fault with Bush's conduct of the war, his campaigning for abortion restrictions and his faith-based initiatives.
"If we were where we wanted to be, we'd be in the lobby," said Susan Waldman, vice president of the Morris County NOW chapter. NOW opposes the president's position on the late-term abortion procedure opponents call "partial-birth" abortion, the war and the recently enacted Medicare reform bill.
Members of NJ Peace Action, a group that has opposed the war in Iraq, demonstrated outside the hotel, as did American Atheists, a national group headquartered in Cranford that opposes Bush's faith-based initiatives, and members of the New Jersey chapter of the National Organization for Women.
Bush opened his Morris address with a story about the New Jersey Devils, who last spring won the National Hockey League's Stanley Cup and later visited the White House.
"They way they are playing, they might win another trip to the White House," Bush said. "I have the same plan myself."
Bush was introduced by Rep. Rodney Frelinghuysen, R-N.J., who praised his Thanksgiving Day trip to Iraq, and by Bush-Cheney state committee co-chairmen Lewis Eisenberg and former Gov. Christie Whitman.
"I want you to remind people that during the last three years, our nation has acted decisively to confront great challenges," Bush said. "You see I came to this office to solve problems, not pass them on to future generations. I came to seize opportunities instead of letting them slip away."
The audience, largely local, county and state elected officials, cheered Bush at nearly every turn, especially when he spoke about his record on terrorism, the economy, the Medicare plan and education reform. One issue that received little response was Bush's call for support for his initiative to allow faith-based groups to support government social service programs.
Bush was at times funny, folksy, serious and passionate as he highlighted his administration's programs. He took Congress to task several times for stalling his programs, especially on judicial appointments and the recently failed energy bill.
The audience cheered as Bush said his administration changed the rules that had allowed the spread of corporate corruption.
Although Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney lost New Jersey decisively in the 2000 election, David Rebovich, a Rider University political scientist, said the devastating impact on New Jerseyans of the Sept. 11 attack, as well as the state's dependence on market fluctuations, mean the Garden State could still be fertile soil for Bush in terms of more than just fund-raising.
"It doesn't hurt Bush that the economy has bounced back, that he had this positive appearance in Iraq," Rebovich said. "It may not be bad idea to visit a state like New Jersey."
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
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