Even though I'm skeptical that this kind of issue is going to pull the rug out from Al Gore, I think it's a plus for the Republicans to be able to talk about foreign policy, to talk about national security and to talk about the failure of the administration of Bill Clinton and Al Gore in this one area.

accomplished a bit more for Bush than for Gore only because there were more question marks for Bush. I think he established that he possesses at least the minimum qualifications for being president.

What we're seeing early on is Democrats rallying around Al Gore, Republicans rallying around George Bush and the difficulty of anybody else to get any room in the race.

Everybody was kind of skeptical

He's a likable guy, a personable guy

For some conservatives, it was like a cold dish towel across their face, reminding them that, 'wait a second, we thought we were totally supportive of this president, now we know, maybe we have to keep an eye on him.' And, conservative groups have become much more animated and activist and second guessing of the president.