GOP Group To Air Pro-Nader TV AdsBy Laura MecklerAssociated Press WriterFriday, Oct. 27, 2000; 11:59 a.m. EDT

WASHINGTON –– Hoping to boost Ralph Nader in states where heis threatening to hurt Al Gore, a Republican group is launching TVads featuring Nader attacking the vice president.

The ads by the Republican Leadership Council will begin airingMonday in Wisconsin, Oregon and Washington, all states that are partof Gore's base and where Nader is polling well. The group plans tospend more than $100,000 at first and hopes to raise more over theweekend.

While the ads boost Nader, they are a clear attempt to help Bush.

Gore's supporters fear that Nader, who is more liberal than either Bushor Gore, will throw the election to the Texas governor if voters whomight otherwise vote for Gore vote for Nader instead. In a tightnational race, one or two states could make the difference in who iselected president.

The ads feature clips of Nader from a National Press Club speech onTuesday, where he laid into both Bush and Gore, though the ad onlyincludes his criticism of Gore.

"Al Gore is suffering from election year delusion if he thinks hisrecord on the environment is anything to be proud of," Nader says. Anannouncer interjects: "What's Al Gore's real record?" Nader says:"Eight years of principles betrayed and promises broken."

Nader has been equally critical, if not more so, of Bush, calling him "abig corporation running for president disguised as a person." But theRLC ads are a clear attempt to help Bush, not Nader.

A Gore spokesman suggested that the ads may backfire. "Voters aregoing to ask why these shadowy groups are running attack ads onbehalf of George Bush," said Doug Hattaway.

He added that there are stark differences between Bush and Gore onabortion and the environment, and "people who are thinking aboutvoting for Nader care deeply about those issues and would not want tosee them put at risk by George Bush."

Nader, running a low-budget campaign, is not airing any televisioncommercials of his own and it's possible that the RLC will end upspending more on pro-Nader media that Nader himself.

A spokeswoman for the Green Party nominee said that his campaignhad no control over what other organizations do with Nader'sspeeches.

"The tactics of the other two parties are not our concern," saidspokeswoman Laura Jones.

Asked if the campaign welcomed the outside help, she added: "Notreally because they (the ads) are misleading in that they don't indicatethat we are campaigning against Al Gore and George W. Bush."

Nader has had to repeatedly defend himself against people arguing thathis candidacy will help Bush. He has responded that it makes littledifference whether Bush or Gore is elected and has said he is runningto give voters an alternative.

"We're building a progressive political movement. That's the mostimportant thing," Nader said Friday on ABC's "Good MorningAmerica." "Whether Gore or Bush gets into the White House doesn'tmean that much, because the permanent corporate government inWashington is really determining policy."

The Republican Leadership Council, a centrist GOP group, has beenhelpful to Bush before, airing ads during the Republican primariescritical of challenger Steve Forbes. Several members of the RLC boardwere early Bush supporters.

The RLC ads will run initially in four markets: Eugene and Portland,Ore.; Madison, Wis., and Seattle.

Mark Miller, the group's executive director, said the ads are partly aresponse to commercials being run by the National Abortion andReproductive Rights Action League, which argue that a vote forNader is a vote for Bush.

"Ralph Nader doesn't believe that," Miller said. "Ralph Nader and hissupporters are not backing down because they believe Al Gore hashad numerous broken promises."

Miller added that some of Nader's supporters have bragged that Naderhas never had help from "soft money," the unrestricted donations usedby parties and interest groups.

"We'll put an end to that," Miller said.

© Copyright 2000 The Associated Press

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