Kerry takes up Urban League offer to debate with president

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DETROIT -- John Kerry appeared before the National Urban League here yesterday and agreed to a debate with President Bush sponsored by the civil rights organization.

"The issues we're grappling with today are especially important and I'm happy to discuss them anywhere, any time, with any American," Mr. Kerry said.

The offer, which will be extended to Mr. Bush when he addresses the largely black group today, could cause some political anxiety for the president, who polls poorly among blacks and just last week declined to speak before the NAACP convention because he considers the group too partisan.

Scott Stanzel, spokesman for the Bush campaign, said they "look forward to a vigorous debate on the issues," but declined to commit to any specific date or forum.

Former Clinton advisor Vernon Jordan, who headed the Urban League during the 1970s, introduced Mr. Kerry and hinted at last week's controversy involving Mr. Bush and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.

As president of the Urban League -- which, like the NAACP, is a non-profit organization that could lose its tax-exempt status if it engages in partisan politics -- Mr. Jordan said he sometimes felt "enslaved" by those tax rules.

But now, no longer officially associated with the group, he felt "emancipated" and could freely share his political views.

"Free at last, free at last," he said to cheers and applause.

Mr. Jordan then employed his freedom.

"I have been around long enough to know a failed presidency when I see one," Mr. Jordan said before welcoming Mr. Kerry to the stage.