POLITICS A tale of 2 Georges: Bush's charm wins over Youngstown's mayor

McKelvey said he's backing Bush because the president is his friend.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
President Bush and the mayor of Youngstown could have been eating hot dogs at a tailgate party instead of having dinner at the most powerful residence in the world.
He and George McKelvey didn't discuss the economy or Youngstown's nearly 12-percent unemployment rate while dining together earlier this year at the White House.
The two Georges talked college football.
"We talked about Coach Jim Tressel, YSU and the Ohio State Buckeyes," McKelvey recalled. "We never once talked politics. It never even came up."
About three months later McKelvey, a Democrat, endorsed Bush. A few days later he told Ohio delegates at the Republican National Convention why he made the decision.
"I endorsed George Bush because I know him. He's my friend," McKelvey said.
Bush's history
It was the latest political friendship forged by Bush, who has a history of winning over Democrats dating back to his days as Texas governor. His methods are simple, say those who know him or have followed his career.
"Bush is a charming fellow," said Bruce Buchanan, a professor of political science at the University of Texas at Austin. "He treats people like people and he doesn't act like a statue of himself. He acts like a regular guy."
Bush uses common language and genuinely enjoys meeting with people one-on-one or in small groups, which is when he's at his best, said Tony Proffitt, a media consultant who previously worked for Texas' late Democratic Lt. Gov. Bob Bullock, who became close friends with Bush.
"He can make you feel like he's one of you," Proffitt said.
The president's friendship with McKelvey started when he visited Youngstown during the 2000 campaign, the mayor said. McKelvey didn't endorse a candidate that year.
While Bush reached across party lines, the Ohio Republican Party followed suit and started building a relationship with McKelvey, a self-described political maverick who has a history of surprising people with his outspokenness. He's an animated, fiery speaker who often raises his voice while making his point.
"Mayor McKelvey was always an independent mayor in the sense that he's never toted the line of the Democratic Party," said Ohio GOP Chairman Bob Bennett.
McKelvey and Bush met again when the president visited Northeast Ohio for Labor Day 2003. They had dinner last May after the president promoted community health centers during a visit to Youngstown.
"They met on several occasions and I think it was astute of him to woo George McKelvey and others," said Dave Johnson, a state GOP leader and former Columbiana County Republican Party chairman.
Absent from Kerry's visit
A month before the White House dinner, McKelvey was noticeably absent from the stage when Sen. John Kerry visited Youngstown in April.
U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan, who introduced Kerry that day, said the Republicans simply won McKelvey over.
"I'm sure the bottom line was they gave him more attention than the Democrats and George liked the attention. But impact on the race -- zero," Ryan said. "He didn't get any commitments from Bush or any promises for our area."
But McKelvey insists that he was the one who went to the Republicans when he decided to support Bush.
"I reached my hand out to them," he said, later adding, "It was a principled decision based on my sincere belief that President Bush was the better candidate."
His endorsement followed one by Sen. Zell Miller, D-Ga., and preceded a less notable endorsement from Ohio Rep. Derrick Seaver, D-Minster.
"I don't know that I would call this a groundswell trend on Bush's part because he doesn't get a lot of Democratic votes in the polls," said Buchanan, whose specialty is presidential politics. "I really don't think it's a silent predictor of the outcome [of the election]."