Reply #5: This seems like an uncomfortably reasonable summary: [View All]

[Igel]

http://www.answers.com/topic/michael-dukakis

"The most controversial of Bush's attacks involved Dukakis's support for a prison furlough program that resulted in the release of convicted murderer Willie Horton, who committed a rape in Maryland after his escape. Al Gore was the first candidate to publicly raise the furlough issue, in a debate held in New York prior to the Democratic primary in that state, although Gore never mentioned Horton by name.

"Bush did mention Horton by name in a speech in June, 1988 and his campaign brought up the Horton case repeatedly. An independent group, the National Security Political Action Committee, aired an ad entitled "Weekend Passes" which used a mug shot image of Horton, who is African American. That ad campaign was followed by a separate Bush campaign ad, "Revolving Door," criticizing Dukakis over the furlough program without mentioning Horton. Dukakis was unable to refute criticism of his veto of a bill passed by the Massachusetts legislature to limit the furlough program, and his refusal to apologize to Horton's victims.

Almost forgotten in the furor, however, was that Dukakis himself ran a furlough advertisement in the Southwest that featured a Hispanic killer, Angel Medrano. Dukakis was trying to accuse Bush of hypocrisy since Medrano escaped from the federal furlough program under President Ronald Reagan. But the commercial backfired when it caused the public simply to see Dukakis as just as negative a campaigner as Bush was."