Republicans on Thursday tried to turn a controversial anti-war newspaper ad against Democratic presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama after neither voted to condemn it.

Survey: Condemn MoveOn

Minutes earlier they turned back a resolution that condemned political attack ads, including those that questioned the patriotism of Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., and former Georgia Sen. Max Cleland, both Vietnam veterans.

The Senate voted 72-25 to pass the resolution condemning a MoveOn ad that asked whether Gen. David Petraeus, the commander of U.S. forces in Iraq, would be "Gen. Betray Us" when he delivered a war progress report to Congress earlier in the month.

The liberal group's full-page ad appeared last week in The New York Times.

Clinton voted against the measure and Obama did not vote.

Meanwhile, the organization condemned the resolution on its Web site as an attempt to "intimidate all of us who care about ending this war."

"They wanted to send a message that anyone who speaks unpleasant truths about this war will pay. To make everyone -- especially politicians -- think twice before they accuse the administration of lying," the group said at MoveOn.org in urging people to sign an online petition.

"This amendment was a stunt designed only to score cheap political points while what we should be doing is focusing on the deadly serious challenge we face in Iraq," Obama said in a statement. "By not casting a vote, I registered my protest against this empty politics."

Among the presidential hopefuls, Republicans Sens. John McCain of Arizona and Sam Brownback of Kansas voted for the resolution sponsored by Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas. Democratic Sen. Chris Dodd of Connecticut voted against it.

Obama, Clinton and Dodd voted for an alternative resolution offered minutes earlier by Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif. That resolution condemned political attack ads, including those that questioned the patriotism of Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., and former Georgia Sen. Max Cleland, both Vietnam veterans. It failed on a 50-47 vote.

McCain and Brownback did not support Boxer's measure. Sen. Joe Biden, D-Del., also a presidential candidate, did not vote on either resolution.

At a news conference Thursday, President George W. Bush criticized Democrats for not immediately condemning the MoveOn ad, which he called "disgusting."