ARDEN CITY, N.Y. - A Long Island breast cancer advocate who recorded a radio ad for Republican presidential candidate George W. Bush is being criticized by fellow activists who questioned whether the issue should have been politicized. Senator John McCain has said the campaign commercial falsely accused him of opposing women's health programs, including those for breast cancer research. Geri Barish, who heads the group ''1 in 9: the Long Island Breast Cancer Action Coalition,'' said yesterday that she is prepared to ''take the heat'' over the ad. Other Long Island activists objected. ''We campaign for causes, not people,'' said Karen Miller, who heads the Huntington Breast Cancer Coalition. (AP)
Bush decried for view on census methods
WASHINGTON - House Democrats blasted George W. Bush yesterday, equating what they called the Republican presidential candidate's stance against the use of statistical methods for the upcoming census to an ''anti-minority position.'' On the eve of Super Tuesday, with primaries in states with high concentrations of minority populations such as California and New York, Bush's critics cited a news conference Sunday in California in which a reporter asked his position on sampling, a statistical method the GOP is generally against. ''Yeah, so am I. I think we need to count, an actual count. I think we need to spend the money, make the effort and work hard to get an actual count,'' Bush said. ''By stating that he is against using modern scientific methods, Bush is clearly letting Americans know that, if elected president, he would prevent the Census Bureau from releasing population data that include more accurate information about America's minorities and poor communities,'' said Representative Carolyn Maloney, a New York Democrat. (AP)
McCain backer questions mailings
ALBANY, N.Y. - One of John McCain's few big-name New York supporters, state state Senator John Marchi of Staten Island, publicly asked yesterday that the Arizona senator stop his campaign from sending mailings talking about Texas Governor George W. Bush's visit to a controversial South Carolina college, Bob Jones University. ''Such campaign tactics are inconsistent with my perception of your impressive record as a military man and as a leader in the US Senate,'' said Marchi, a Roman Catholic. (AP)
