While Bush was speaking in Kansas City, a newly formed organization called Freedom’s Watch launched a month-long $15 million pro-war advertising campaign. The group described its efforts as a grassroots campaign, but it is being led in part by President Bush’s former spokesperson, Ari Fleischer. In an interview yesterday, Fleischer said: “There’s been a three-year silence from conservatives and others who believe in peace through strength. The cavalry is coming, we’re going to help to get that message out.” The first ad by Freedom’s Watch links the attack on 9/11 to the war in Iraq.

Freedom’s Watch ad: “Congress was right to vote to fight terrorism in Iraq and Afghanistan. I re-enlisted after 9/11 because I don’t want my sons to see what I saw. I want them to be free and safe. I know what I lost. I also know that if we pull out now, everything I’ve given and sacrificed will mean nothing. They attacked us, and they will again. They won’t stop in Iraq. We are winning on the ground and making real progress. It’s no time to quit. It’s no time for politics.”