Bush skips NAACP, but will talk to Urban League

WASHINGTON - "Hostile rhetoric" from NAACP leaders is to blame for President Bush's rejection of that organization, the White House said Thursday.

"The president welcomes differing views - constructive dialogue about differences. Ways we can work together on shared priorities is an important part of our national discourse. But the current (NAACP) leadership, through their repeated partisan comments and hostile rhetoric, have shown that they are not interested in a constructive dialogue," White House press secretary Scott McClellan said.

The decision by the president to accept an invitation to speak to the National Urban League in Detroit next week not only highlights the differences between the two organizations, but reveals a campaign strategy to connect with some segment of the black electorate.

The contretemps began when the president this month turned down an invitation to speak to the NAACP convention in Philadelphia, citing a scheduling conflict.

In a subsequent interview with the Inquirer and two other Pennsylvania newspapers, Bush described his relationship with NAACP leaders as "nonexistent," adding, "You've heard the rhetoric and the names they've called me."

Addressing the NAACP delegates on Thursday, Democrat John Kerry accused Bush of dividing America by race and riches, taking advantage of a White House feud with the NAACP to declare himself a leader of "all of the people."

"I understand you've been having trouble getting some speakers," Kerry joked at the outset of a 50-minute speech that touched on a range of issues deemed important to the black community, such as the conflict in the Sudan and the disputed 2000 presidential election, which Kerry called the most tainted in history. "The president may be too busy to speak to you now," he said. "He'll have plenty of time after Nov. 2," which is election day.

WASHINGTON - Democratic vice presidential contender John Edwards may not know how much milk costs in New Mexico, but he's got a handle on his local grocery prices.

Edwards has promoted himself as the down-to-earth candidate who can relate to the struggles of working families, while trying to portray Vice President Dick Cheney as out of touch.

Broadcaster Don Imus put those claims to the test Thursday, quizzing the North Carolina Democrat about the costs of a gallon of milk and six-pack of beer in Albuquerque, N.M.

"You were just in Albuquerque, do you know?" Imus asked.

Edwards sidestepped the ale question, saying, "I haven't bought a six-pack of beer in years, so I don't know."

The father of a 4-year-old son and 6-year-old daughter was more confident about milk.

"I know about what it costs. I think a half gallon of milk costs about $2.30, $2.40," he said. "Is that right?"

A half gallon of nonname brand whole milk sells for $2.29 at the Safeway grocery store in Edwards' upscale Georgetown neighborhood in Washington. It's $2.09 at Smith's Food & Drug Centers in Albuquerque.

Hoping to send a warning to churches helping the Bush campaign turn out conservative voters, a liberal group has filed a complaint with the Internal Revenue Service charging that an organization run by the Rev. Jerry Falwell has violated the requirements of its tax-exempt status by endorsing President Bush's re-election.

"For conservative people of faith, voting for principle this year means voting for the re-election of George W. Bush," Falwell wrote in the July 1 issue of his e-mail newsletter Falwell Confidential and on his Web site, fallwell.com. Falwell, who helped lead conservative evangelical Protestants into politics 20 years ago as the founder of the Moral Majority, also asked for contributions to a political action committee run by the social conservative Gary Bauer.

On Thursday, the Rev. Barry Lynn, executive director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, argued in a letter to the IRS that one of Falwell's religious organizations, Jerry Falwell Ministries, disseminated the message in violation of tax rules.

World and national headlines

© 2006 • All Rights Reserved • St. Petersburg Times 490 First Avenue South • St. Petersburg, FL 33701 • 727-893-8111 Contact the Times | Privacy Policy Standard of Accuracy | Terms, Conditions & Copyright