When I saw this in the Sunday paper, my blood began to boil.

Sen. John F. Kerry vowed Saturday to "fight tooth and nail" to ensure every African American vote was counted in the November election, saying Democrats would not "stand by and allow acts of voter suppression."

The Democratic presidential nominee stepped up criticism of President Bush for declining invitations to meet with black lawmakers and civil rights groups.

...

What they did in Florida in 2000, some say they may be planning to do this year in battleground states all across this country," he said. "Well, we're here to let them know we will fight tooth and nail to make sure that this time every vote is counted."

These lies are really disgusting. The fact that the Kerry campaign can make these types of charges without a little outrage from the media -- after all, he's accusing Republicans of racism -- demonstrates what passes for "normal" political debate in the newsroom.

Just imagine for a moment that President Bush went to a military base and told the troops that he would make sure that every servicemember's ballot would be counted and he would not stand by as Democrat lawyers attempted to get them thrown out on technicalities. (That's something that Democrat lawyers actually attempted in Florida in 2000 as it became apparent that the election was going to be decided by a razor-thin margin.) You'd hear the screams of outrage ("You're questioning my patriotism!") from the Kerry campaign and the pages of The New York Times for months.

Double standard? Yep.