Overland Park ? Vice President Dick Cheney continued his assault on John Kerry’s voting record and stumped for Republican congressional hopeful Kris Kobach during a stop Tuesday morning in Overland Park.

Cheney’s visit to a $250-a-plate breakfast at the Ritz Charles Hotel conference center raised about $200,000 for Kobach’s campaign, part of a war chest that campaign officials know they’ll need to break Democratic incumbent Dennis Moore’s hold on the 3rd District.

Kobach, a law school professor, a former Overland Park city councilman and a former counsel to U.S. Atty. Gen. John Ashcroft, said he welcomed the reinforcement.

“It’s a reflection of judgment the White House has made,” Kobach said after Cheney warmed up 325 supporters with his speech. “The vice president’s time is very valuable; they’re not going to send him to a race where the Republican (candidate) doesn’t have a very good chance of winning.”

Cheney’s 15-minute speech briefly highlighted Kobach as a candidate experienced in national security, dedicated to keeping taxes low and “one of the best candidates on the ballot anywhere in the country this year.”

But most of Cheney’s speech was dedicated to spouting support for President Bush and emphasizing his efforts in national security and the war on terror.

“This election could not come at a more crucial time in our history,” Cheney said. “Today we face an enemy every bit as intent on destroying us as the Axis powers were in World War II, or the Soviet Union during the Cold War. … This is an enemy that we must destroy, and with Kris Kobach in Congress and President George W. Bush as our commander in chief, that is exactly what we’re going to do.”

Sizing up the enemy

Cheney also poked at Kerry for waffling on issues.

Vice President Dick Cheney addresses supporters during a fund-raising breakfast for Kansas Republican 3rd District Congressional candidate Kris Kobach, background.

“(Kerry) said, and I quote, ‘I actually voted for the $87 billion before I voted against it,” Cheney said. “Well, that clears things up.”

The vice president made no mention of Moore, who has represented the overwhelmingly Republican district in Congress since 1999. But he received a round of laughs after making a crack about Kerry’s running mate, John Edwards.

“People keep telling me Senator Edwards got picked because of his good looks, his charm and his great hair. I say to them, ‘How do you think I got the job?'”

Kobach launched his own attack on Moore, labeling him a “radical liberal” with a voting record that does not reflect the values of the 3rd District, which includes the portion of Lawrence east of Iowa Street, the rest of eastern Douglas County and all of Wyandotte and Johnson counties.

“He voted against the Patriot Act. He’s voted against putting troops on the border,” Kobach said. “These are important common sense steps we need to take in the war against terror. Dennis Moore doesn’t want to talk about his record.”

Democrats respond

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In a prepared statement, Moore’s campaign spokeswoman Christie Appelhanz said, “Kris Kobach has a problem with the facts. The facts are that Congressman Moore has not only supported President Bush’s efforts in the war on terrorism, but he has taken on a leadership role in Congress to discuss implementing the findings of the 9-11 commission.”

Responding to Cheney, a spokesman for the Kerry campaign said Kerry and Edwards would “restore our respect around the world by rebuilding our alliances and make us stronger at home with an economic policy that works for everyone, not just the wealthy.

“Dick Cheney has been thumping his chest for four years, and every time he does, the Bush administration loses a little more credibility,” Michael Golden said. “They rushed to war without a plan for winning the peace, and our troops continue to pay the price.”

Campaign no cakewalk

Kobach said that while he thought Cheney’s endorsement was important, he was well aware that big-name backing was not always the key to campaign success.

“At the end of the day,” Kobach said, “it’s contact with voters, it’s a grass-roots campaign effort, it’s having that campaign army that will win the battle on Election Day.”

The Republican nominee hopes to raise at least $1 million for his general election campaign. As of mid-July, Moore had more than $1.1 million in cash in his campaign fund.

Kobach won the Republican primary over Adam Taff, the 2002 nominee, by only 207 votes out of nearly 89,000 cast.