] WASHINGTON, Oct. 7 - From the beginning of the year, the
] White House has charted new ground with the sweep of its
] negative campaigning, starting with an $80 million wave
] of attack advertisements directed at Senator John Kerry
] that began the moment he effectively won his party's
] nomination last spring.
]
] But the scathing indictment that Mr. Bush offered of Mr.
] Kerry over the past two days - on the eve of the second
] presidential debate and with polls showing the race
] tightening - took these attacks to a blistering new
] level. In the process, several analysts say, Mr. Bush
] pushed the limits of subjective interpretation and
] offered exaggerated or what some Democrats said were
] distorted accounts of Mr. Kerry's positions on health
] care, tax cuts, the Iraq war and foreign policy.