Click Here To See RealVideo™ Of "Jericho"

By Meg Kinnard, NationalJournal.com
© National Journal Group Inc.
Thursday, Feb. 3, 2005

As President Bush hits the ground running today to promote his Social Security revamp, one Washington-based advocacy organization is on the air anticipating the president's upcoming budget proposal.

On Tuesday, the Center for Community Change launched "Jericho," a 30-second TV spot produced by Squier Knapp Dunn. The ad features snippets from Bush's first inaugural address in 2001, in which the president said, "Many in our country do not know the pain of poverty, but we can listen to those who do." Statistics on poverty, homelessness and hunger appear on screen as an announcer says the new budget will show if Bush's "actions live up to his words."

"Jericho" airs through today during local and national network news broadcasts throughout Missouri and Tennessee, as well as on the Fox News Channel and CNN in the Washington area. A spokeswoman for the Center's "Actions Speak Louder" campaign, of which this ad is a part, said the two states were chosen because they voted for Bush in 2004. The organization is in touch with grassroots groups in both states, and additional buys are planned in other areas, she added. The current buy totals $50,000.

According to its Web site, the Center's "central project is to support the emergence of one or more movements for social and economic justice in the U.S." Since 2003, the group has aired ads criticizing Bush's stance on the child tax credit and the administration's temporary worker program.

Bush, who is traveling in Montana and North Dakota today, will unveil his 2006 budget proposal on Monday. In his State of the Union address Wednesday, the president said the package "stays on track to cut the deficit in half by 2009" and "substantially reduces or eliminates more than 150 government programs that are not getting results, or duplicate current efforts, or do not fulfill essential priorities."

Ad Spotlight has the latest commercials from the 2005 campaigns and issue/advocacy groups, as well as searchable archives dating back to 1997.

Script of "Jericho" (TV)

(Text on screen: Paid For By The Center For Community Change)

PRESIDENT BUSH [in Jan. 20, 2001 inaugural address]: Many in our country do not know the pain of poverty, but we can listen to those who do.

(Text on screen: 13 million children in America go to bed hungry; 7.6 million families live in poverty; Hundreds of thousands of veterans live on the street)

ANNOUNCER [v/o]: President Bush's new budget will show if his actions live up to his words. See what's at stake. Visit ActionsSpeakLouder.org.

(Text on screen: www.ActionsSpeakLouder.org)

PRESIDENT BUSH [in Jan. 20, 2001 inaugural address]: When we see that wounded traveler on the road to Jericho, we will not pass to the other side.

ANNOUNCER [v/o]: In his budget, will Bush choose our side?

(Text on screen: Find out at: www.ActionsSpeakLouder.org; Center for Community Change)

To access the ad, you will need a current version of RealPlayer™, which is available for free from the Progressive Networks Web site.