"Leaders," a 30-second spot for Bill Clinton, began airing yesterday in 20 states.
SCRIPT: A narrator says: "They're a new generation of Democrats -- Bill Clinton and Al Gore. And they don't think the way the old Democratic Party did. They've called for an end to welfare as we know it, so welfare can be a second chance -- not a way of life. They've sent a strong signal to criminals by supporting the death penalty. And they've rejected the old tax-and-spend politics. Clinton's balanced 12 budgets, and they've proposed a new plan investing in people, detailing $140 billion in spending cuts they'd make right now. Clinton/Gore. For people, for a change."
VISUALS: Friendly images of Mr. Clinton and Mr. Gore together at a rally, shaking hands in crowds, along with shot of Mr. Clinton giving a speech surrounded by police officers. The images are interspersed with words emphasizing the key points.
ANALYSIS: The ad seeks to broaden Mr. Clinton's appeal beyond his Democratic base by emphasizing the candidate's more moderate and conservative stands -- such as welfare reform and support of the death penalty -- where the ticket has broken with the traditional liberal Democratic Party. The spot also tries to send a message of generational change and youthful energy with peppy images of the two baby-boom candidates together.
While the ad is accurate, it neglects to point out that Mr. Clinton has balanced 12 budgets in Arkansas because he's required to do so.
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