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David Halbfinger

• November 4 -- Bush's "Code Words" to Christians
Bush's successful reelection strategy was based partially on transmitting "code words" to evangelicals, says Elisabeth Bumiller.

• November 2 -- Emotional Kerry Wowed by Crowds, While Bush Aides Are "On Edge"
An emotive Kerry ("John Kerry was halfway through his stump speech under a driving rain in Milwaukee on Monday when he stopped and surveyed his drenched but dauntless crowd") is pitted against nervous Bushies ("Bush's aides, after asserting for weeks that they were confident and calm, finally admitted in the last marathon stretch that they were on edge").

• October 29 -- "Louder, Longer" Cheers for Kerry; "Nervousness" from Bush Camp
David Halbfinger and Elisabeth Bumiller show enthusiasm for Kerry's campaign: "With Bruce Springsteen singing Mr. Kerry's praises and his campaign theme song, 'No Surrender,' the Democratic candidate told huge crowds, who may have traveled to see the rocker but cheered longer and louder for the candidate, that he was impatient to relieve Mr. Bush of his 'hard work.'" The article's tone became more negative when turning to Bush: "The assault on Mr. Kerry reflected the nervousness in the Bush campaign five days from what is widely expected to be an exceptionally close election."

• October 27 -- "Explosive" Scoop: Firecracker or Fizzle?
The Times tries to rebut the White House counterattack to its dubious "missing explosives in Iraq" story.

• October 27 -- Blowback from the Times' "Explosives" Scoop
David Halbfinger enlists Tom Brokaw in a defense of the Times' deflating "Ammo-Gate" scoop, and the paper pats itself on the back for roiling the Bush camp.

• October 19 -- The Times Nails Kerry's Anti-Bush Exaggerations
The Times fact-checks Kerry.

• October 15 -- The Pro-Kerry Truth Squad Rides Again
The Times again defends Kerry from a Bush criticism. After Bush accused Kerry of having a "global test he would administer before acting to defend America," Elisabeth Bumiller and David Halbfinger riposte: "Mr. Kerry's actual words in the debate in Tempe were these…."

• October 4 -- Swing Voters "Liking What They See" In Kerry
The Times stresses optimism in the Kerry camp and worries among Bush partisans: "If Ms. Curtis and a few other previously undecided Ohioans who came to Mr. Kerry's town-hall meeting here and some new polls are any indication, swing voters are giving Mr. Kerry a second look after his strong showing in the first presidential debate. And they are liking what they see."

• September 8 -- NYT Clips Cheney's War on Terror Quote
A misleading headline tops a misleading front-page story by David Sanger and David Halbfinger on Cheney's recent remarks about the war on terror.

• September 7 -- "Questioning Kerry's Patriotism," Again
David Halbfinger claims Kerry's patriotism was questioned at the Republican convention: "But he returned to the offensive after his character, voting history and even his patriotism were questioned by Republicans in New York this week, and after Democrats faulted him for a hesitant, halting response last month to televised attacks on his military record." Halbfinger also dashes cold water on polls showing Bush with a substantial lead.

• September 7 -- "Polls on the Move"? More Like: "Clear Lead for Bush"
Bush and Kerry campaigned in Ohio after the Republican convention, leading David Halbfinger and Richard Stevenson to file "With Polls on the Move, Bush and Kerry Take Their Economic Message to Ohio." More accurate would be: "Polls Show Clear Lead for Bush as Candidates Take Their Economic Message to Ohio."

• September 1 -- Kerry Slow to Respond to "Unsubstantiated" Assaults
David Halbfinger and Jodi Wilgoren hint at changes to come in the suddenly faltering Kerry campaign and again bash charges from the Swifties: "Mr. Kerry was slow to respond to an assault on his Vietnam combat record and character, with largely unsubstantiated accusations, by the group Swift Boat Veterans for Truth."

• August 11 -- Halbfinger Omits the Union Label
Reporting on campaign courting of the elderly, David Halbfinger spreads around more Kerry optimism and leaves out the AFL-CIO origins of a "three-year-old political organization that claims three million members" that's endorsing Kerry.

• August 10 -- The Centering of John Kerry
David Halbfinger positions Kerry's campaign in the political center: "Indeed, while Democrats note that Mr. Bush continues to talk about banning gay marriage and late-term abortions, and to visit bedrock Republican areas of the country like Michigan's Upper Peninsula, Mr. Kerry, the Democrat from Massachusetts, is rolling through the Great Plains and the high plateaus of the Southwest preaching fiscal responsibility, tax cuts, gun owners' rights and national security."

• August 9 -- Kerry's Campaign Trail "Bounce"
Relying on anecdotal evidence, David Halbfinger sees a successful Kerry campaign and a struggling Bush: "The polls may not show much of a post-convention bounce for Mr. Kerry, but his crowds tell a different story."

• August 2 -- "Successful" Democratic Convention? Says Who?
Adam Nagourney and David Halbfinger assert: "News of the terror threat on Sunday also stirred renewed suggestions from some Democrats that the White House was manipulating terror alerts for Mr. Bush's political gain. They said the alert had been issued just as Mr. Kerry emerged from a convention that was described by Republicans and Democrats as a success." But conspiracy theories aside, polls have yet to discern much "success" from the Democratic convention.

• July 27 -- "Social Conservatives" vs. "Inclusion"
David Halbfinger knows what went wrong for the Republicans in 1992.

• March 19 -- Praising the “Outdoor John”
Kerry beat reporter David Halbfinger explained the phenomenon of “Outdoor John” Kerry, who “acts boldly” as he snowboards and swigs “from a bottle of vitamin-fortified water.”

• March 16 -- No Bursting of Kerry's Bubble
The bubbly, pro-Kerry tone of David Halbfinger's article from inside the campaign reminds Times Watch and Mickey Kaus of the "liberal cocoon."

• March 11 -- Cutting Kerry Slack On His Bush Attack
John Kerry attacked George Bush, saying: "These guys are the most crooked, you know, lying group that I've ever seen." But the Times front-page story on the Kerry campaign chooses to emphasize the positive--from the Kerry point of view, anyway.

• March 8 -- John Kerry, "Deficit Hawk"?
At the Times, Kerry's liberalism is still an open question.

• February 4 -- "Striking Contrasts" Between Bush and Kerry
As Sen. John Kerry piles up Democratic primary victories, "Military Service Becomes Issue in Bush-Kerry Race" frames a potential Kerry-Bush contest to Kerry's advantage.

• January 28 -- Questioning Kerry's Patriotism
David Halbfinger on Sen. John Kerry's raucous New Hampshire victory speech: "This was a martial-sounding speech from a Democrat whose rationale for his own electability--that he is best prepared to withstand an expected assault on his patriotism by Republicans in a general election--has always begun with and come back to his service in Vietnam." What assaults?

• January 6 -- Balanced Campaign Coverage? Times Batting 0-for-'04
Two sets of headlines offer an ominous preview of the presidential campaign. On the left: "Clark and Kerry Offering Plans to Help Middle Class….Gearing proposals to appeal to everyday Americans." On the right: "Bush Pushes Education as Election Year Opens….Defending Programs that Democrats say he underfinanced."

• August 5 -- South Carolina’s Jewish Problem?
The retirement of Sen. Ernest Hollings included this out-of-nowhere bit on the chances of potential Democratic candidate Inez Tenenbaum: “South Carolina has not elected a woman to a top post like senator or governor, and it is unclear whether the state is ready for one, let alone a woman who once lobbied for abortion rights and has a Jewish surname, said Brad Gomez, a political scientist…Ms. Tenenbaum is Methodist. Her husband is Jewish.” Thanks for clearing that up, guys!