The Draft coming back? (not football)

[Mean_Machine]

Originally posted by slpybear the bullfan
1.) President, Congressmen Kerry, and a majority of the rest of the leaders of the country voted to act with force and invade Iraq based on the info they had. Funny how quickly during the election we are supposed to forget that. Don't forget that, no matter how it is spun on here.

2.) The US was hated in the Arab world well before we ousted Saddam last year. It started well before Mr. Bush. BTW, I HAVEN'T FORGOTTEN THOSE LOVELY PALESTINIANS IN GAZA WHO CELEBRATED IN THE STREETS ON 9/11. And it goes on for many years before that. We have been a world power and played in foreign policy in other countries well before Ol Teddy disatched the white fleet abroad before 1900.

The Congress and the American people both got the good old presidential SPIN on the info on IRAQ. I even thought It may have been a good decision based on the info BUSH gave the nation. BUT now we find out the truth from 1) Bushs Terorism expert 2) a and Intelegence people ( remember the fella who spoke up and the white house publicly said his wife was a CIA agent?)who say Bush diliberatly slanted and misrepresented it to the people. " Is that called Lying"?? ( Lets impeach him) to get Congress and the american people to go along. Thats why congress and most of the people went along with it. Its called Missleading people. Or Lying for a better word.

[JasperDog94]

Originally posted by Mean_Machine
WORK WITH THE UN to put presure on other countries who may harbor suspected terorist.
Therein lies the major problem. The UN won't even enforce it's own resolutions. How do you work with a governing entity that can't enforce it's own laws and regulations?

[JasperDog94]

Originally posted by Mean_Machine
The funny thing is He cant prove he went or was there. there should be records of him being in attendance.. Dont you think if there was proof that he was there as he says that there would be a record of it????? of course there would be. ;)
Funny thing is that nobody has been able to prove to the contrary...

BTW - Mr. Kerry, where are your medals?

[JasperDog94]

Originally posted by Mean_Machine
The Congress and the American people both got the good old presidential SPIN on the info on IRAQ.
The president gave them the same info that the CIA gave him. Nice try, but all the president did was hold congress to the action that "they themselves voted for".

[Mean_Machine]

Originally posted by JasperDog94
Funny thing is that nobody has been able to prove to the contrary...

BTW - Mr. Kerry, where are your medals? LOL yeah go ahead and mock the 3 purple hearts and Silver and Bronze. stars. They are Not much compared to Bushs stellar military record are they?:thumbsup:

[Mean_Machine]

Originally posted by JasperDog94
The president gave them the same info that the CIA gave him. Nice try, but all the president did was hold congress to the action that "they themselves voted for". No he didnt and thats why there is a problem now.

[HighSchool Fan]

Britian, Germany, France and Russia all had information that Saddam had WMD's. They all signed a resolution to use force in Iraq. Even John Kerry agreed that we should use force in the late 1990's when loser Clinton was in office. You can spin this anyway you want to MM. The fact is that we now have a President that isn't afraid of polls, like john kerry or al gore.

[HighSchool Fan]

The reason that Germany, France and Russia didn't send in troops is because they had illegal contracts with Saddam. The coalition found the papers to prove it.

[JasperDog94]

Originally posted by Mean_Machine
LOL yeah go ahead and mock the 3 purple hearts and Silver and Bronze. stars. They are Not much compared to Bushs stellar military record are they?:thumbsup:
As far as I'm concerned, when Kerry threw away his medals, he forfeited his right to be called a "war hero". He's nothing more than a self-rightous jerk that has no respect for our military.

[HighSchool Fan]

Originally posted by JasperDog94
As far as I'm concerned, when Kerry threw away his medals, he forfeited his right to be called a "war hero". He's nothing more than a self-rightous jerk that has no respect for our military.


Did he or didn't he throw away his medals. He seems to of forgotten if they were his or not. Oh, they could of been ribbons. Again he seems to of forgotten.

[JasperDog94]

Originally posted by HighSchool Fan
Did he or didn't he throw away his medals. He seems to of forgotten if they were his or not. Oh, they could of been ribbons. Again he seems to of forgotten.
Come on now HighSchool Fan. You're not supposed to question Mr. Kerry's war record or what he did after the war. We're all just supposed to believe what he says now and forget about his voting record or anything he did in the past. What were you thinking?:eek: :D

[spiveyrat]

Originally posted by JasperDog94
Come on now HighSchool Fan. You're not supposed to question Mr. Kerry's war record or what he did after the war. We're all just supposed to believe what he says now and forget about his voting record or anything he did in the past. What were you thinking?:eek: :D

Everything EXCEPT his service in Vietnam. That's what his whole campaign is based on. I think we see where he sits on all the issues which coincides with the direction of the direction of the wind.

[Ranger Mom]

This is something I got in my email from my boss yesterday, don't know where it came from or how reliable it is, but thought it was interesting!


By Byron York

Some critics of Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry have questioned the circumstances surrounding the first of three Purple Hearts Kerry won in Vietnam. Those critics, among them some of Kerry's fellow veterans, have suggested that a wound suffered by Kerry in December 1968 may have made him
technically eligible for a Purple Heart but was not severe enough to warrant serious consideration, even for a decoration that was handed out by the thousands. Whatever the case, Kerry was awarded the Purple Heart, and, along with two others he won later, it allowed him to request to leave Vietnam before his tour of duty was finished.

Kerry was treated for the wound at a medical facility in Cam Ranh Bay. The doctor who treated Kerry, Louis Letson, is today a retired general practitioner in Alabama. Letson says he remembers his brief encounter with Kerry 35 years ago because "some of his crewmen related that Lt. Kerry had
told them that he would be the next JFK from Massachusetts." Letson saysthat last year, as the Democratic campaign began to heat up, he told friends that he remembered treating one of the candidates many years ago. In response to their questions, Letson says, he wrote down his recollections of
the time. (Letson says he has had no contacts with anyone from the Bush campaign or the Republican party.) What follows is Letson's memory, as he wrote it.

I have a very clear memory of an incident which occurred while I was the Medical Officer at Naval Support Facility, Cam Ranh Bay.
John Kerry was a (jg), the OinC or skipper of a Swift boat, newly arrived in Vietnam. On the night of December 2, he was on patrol north of Cam Ranh, up near Nha Trang area. The next day he came to sick bay, the medical facility, for treatment of a wound that had occurred that night.

The story he told was different from what his crewmen had to say about that night. According to Kerry, they had been engaged in a fire fight, receiving small arms fire from on shore. He said that his injury resulted from this enemy action.

Some of his crew confided that they did not receive any fire from shore, but that Kerry had fired a mortar round at close range to some rocks on shore. The crewman thought that the injury was caused by a fragment ricochetingfrom that mortar round when it struck the rocks.

That seemed to fit the injury which I treated.

What I saw was a small piece of metal sticking very superficially in the skin of Kerry's arm. The metal fragment measured about 1 cm. in length and was about 2 or 3 mm in diameter. It certainly did not look like a round from a rifle.

I simply removed the piece of metal by lifting it out of the skin with
forceps. I doubt that it penetrated more than 3 or 4 mm. It did not require probing to find it, did not require any anesthesia to remove it, and did not require any sutures to close the wound.

The wound was covered with a bandaid.

Not other injuries were reported and I do not recall that there was any reported damage to the boat.

[JasperDog94]

I'd be curious to know if that story is true.

[Mean_Machine]

Originally posted by spiveyrat
Everything EXCEPT his service in Vietnam. That's what his whole campaign is based on. I think we see where he sits on all the issues which coincides with the direction of the direction of the wind. That war hero form vietnam is going to be the next President of the United States:D
we will be rid of the spoiled AWOL D student who was born with a silver spoon in his mouth and finaly fix the problem we had when Florida and the supreme court created.
Who els wants in on the little wager Me and Jasperdog and Sinton66 have ?? come on... show how confident you are in Bush..:D

[JasperDog94]

Originally posted by Mean_Machine
That war hero form vietnam is going to be the next President of the United States:D
we will be rid of the spoiled AWOL D student who was born with a silver spoon in his mouth and finaly fix the problem we had when Florida and the supreme court created.
Who els wants in on the little wager Me and Jasperdog and Sinton66 have ?? come on... show how confident you are in Bush..:D
I thought you said AWOL C student...which is it?

FYI - Bush won every possible recount, so the Supreme Court ruling was meaningless.

[JasperDog94]

Bush Would Have Won Recount
NewsMax.com Wires
Thursday, April 5, 2001
WASHINGTON (UPI) – President Bush would have almost certainly won the presidency even if the Supreme Court had permitted a hand recount of Florida's disputed ballots to go forward, a newspaper analysis revealed Wednesday.
After reviewing more than 64,000 ballots in all 67 of Florida's counties, USA Today, the Miami Herald and its parent company, Knight Ridder, said that Bush's 537-vote margin of victory over Democrat Al Gore would have increased to 1,665 votes under the counting standards advocated by Gore.

"In the end, I think we probably confirmed that President Bush should have been president of the United States," said Mark Seibel, the Herald's managing editor. "I think that it was worthwhile because so many people had questions about how the ballots had been handled and how the process had worked."

The study is the first comprehensive review of the "undervote" ballots that were at the center of Florida's disputed presidential election.

The undervotes were ballots on which voting machines did not record a vote.

Bush and Gore were informed Tuesday of the new study's results. Both declined comment. White House spokesman Ari Fleischer said: "The president believes, just as the American people do, that this election was settled months ago. The voters spoke, and George W. Bush won."

Copyright 2001 by United Press International. All rights reserved.

[spiveyrat]

Originally posted by Mean_Machine
...the spoiled AWOL D student who was born with a silver spoon in his mouth...

How is Kerry any different with the rich wives, the numerous mansions each worth millions, the haircuts that cost several thousands of dollars, all the SUV's (oh wait, those are not his), etc etc etc...

Yeah, he can relate to the common man. :rolleyes:

[Mean_Machine]

Originally posted by JasperDog94
I thought you said AWOL C student...which is it?

FYI - Bush won every possible recount, so the Supreme Court ruling was meaningless. he is Failing in running the country so his GPA has dropped.

[Mean_Machine]

Originally posted by spiveyrat
How is Kerry any different with the rich wives, the numerous mansions each worth millions, the haircuts that cost several thousands of dollars, all the SUV's (oh wait, those are not his), etc etc etc...

Yeah, he can relate to the common man. :rolleyes: What is the measure of who does what he thinks is the right thing to do?? a Man who by this actions CUTS his own taxes ( because Bush and his family is wealthy ) or a man who Raises his own taxes ?? easy the many who decides to raise his own taxes is doing what is best for the country and showing self sacrifice. the guy who cuts his own taxes is just showing his greed self serving actions.

[Mean_Machine]

Originally posted by Mean_Machine
What is the measure of who does what he thinks is the right thing to do for everyone?? a Man who by this actions CUTS his own taxes ( because Bush and his family is wealthy ) or a man who Raises his own taxes ?? easy the many who decides to raise his own taxes is doing what is best for the country and showing self sacrifice. the guy who cuts his own taxes is just showing his greed self serving actions.

[HighSchool Fan]

Originally posted by Mean_Machine
What is the measure of who does what he thinks is the right thing to do?? a Man who by this actions CUTS his own taxes ( because Bush and his family is wealthy ) or a man who Raises his own taxes ?? easy the many who decides to raise his own taxes is doing what is best for the country and showing self sacrifice. the guy who cuts his own taxes is just showing his greed self serving actions.


what is the measure of a man who won't vote for body armour for our troops, but will vote himself a raise in congress.

[JasperDog94]

Originally posted by HighSchool Fan
what is the measure of a man who won't vote for body armour for our troops, but will vote himself a raise in congress.
ha ha ha ha...ROTFLMBO....good one...:clap: :clap: :clap:

[JasperDog94]

http://moneycentral.msn.com/content/invest/extra/P83006.asp

Case in point about the media. This story is about the jobless claims being at it's lowest point since 2000 and wages are on their way up. Sounds good right? Nope. The media has to stick a little blurb in there about worrying about inflation. Never just the news. Gotta put a negative spin on the economy...:rolleyes:

[JasperDog94]

Here's part of the article for those of you that don't want to read the entire thing:

""The jobless numbers are surprising low. It's more evidence the labor market is recovering quite nicely,'' said David Sloan, senior economist at 4Cast Ltd. in New York.

Grant Wilson, vice president of foreign exchange at Mellon Bank in Pittsburgh, agreed.

"We weren't expecting anything as (good) as this. It bodes well for the unemployment number tomorrow,'' Wilson said.

April non-farm payrolls are set for release at 8:30 a.m. EDT on Friday and are forecast to show 173,000 new jobs created. That would be a marked moderation from March, when 308,000 were added, but still evidence that labor conditions are tightening.

Last week's jobless claims data will make no difference to the April report, which was drawn from a survey in the middle of last month. But the upbeat tone chimed with a broad sense that the outlook was bright. "



...oh no, not a bright outlook on the economy....oh no...
:clap: :clap: :thumbsup: :thumbsup: :cheerl: :cheerl:

[JasperDog94]

For us non math majors, that's almost a half million (481,000) jobs created in 2 months.:D

[Ranger Mom]

Originally posted by HighSchool Fan
what is the measure of a man who won't vote for body armour for our troops, but will vote himself a raise in congress.

Here is a site that was sent to me today!!

Vietnam Veterans against John Kerry. (http://www.vietnamveteransagainstjohnkerry.org/)

[Mean_Machine]

Originally posted by JasperDog94
For us non math majors, that's almost a half million (481,000) jobs created in 2 months.:D Boy. Bush better Pick it up because he has the worst job creation record of ALL presidents since HOOVER. INFACT IT COMES TO NEGATIVE #s ...SO he has some making up to do before November.

BTW. The estimate that the UNEMPLOYMENT RATE will rise this as compared to last . THAT info is due next week. we will see if your optomisim pays off. YOU GUYS SEE THE LATEST POLL??? It said ONLY 37% of americans believe the countries headed in the right direction.. 56% believe its headed in the wrong direction

[Ranger Mom]

Originally posted by Mean_Machine
YOU GUYS SEE THE LATEST POLL??? It said ONLY 37% of americans believe the countries headed in the right direction.. 56% believe its headed in the wrong direction

That brings a question to mind....how many people do they talk to get those percentages?? Where are these people that are polled??

I have never been polled, nor has anyone I know been polled.

Everytime I see a poll like that, I wonder about it. Is it like a poll on a website, are the outside the local Wal-mart??

[Mean_Machine]

Originally posted by Ranger Mom
That brings a question to mind....how many people do they talk to get those percentages?? Where are these people that are polled??

I have never been polled, nor has anyone I know been polled.

Everytime I see a poll like that, I wonder about it. Is it like a poll on a website, are the outside the local Wal-mart??

wall street journal nbc news poll

[Ranger Mom]

Originally posted by Mean_Machine
wall street journal nbc news poll

Thanks!! I will admit I still don't understand how people "vote" for lack of a better word.

Here is something else I just got in my e-mail!!



KERRY STUMBLES - HILLARY TO THE RESCUE?
by Gary D. Halbert
May 4, 2004

Introduction

John Kerry’s presidential stock has sagged recently amidst numerous gaffs in his campaign. Among others, there’s the controversy over whether he did, or didn’t, throw away his Vietnam war medals or ribbons. Kerry got so frustrated over the media frenzy about the medals that he stooped to questioning whether President Bush actually served his time in the National Guard, which Kerry previously promised he would not do. The Kerry campaign is clearly floundering.

The Democrats are understandably having “buyer’s remorse” at this point. As you will read below, some liberals are actually calling for Kerry to step aside! While that is not likely to happen, there are those who are quietly (or not so quietly) urging Hillary Clinton to get into the race. I have written about this possibility on several occasions in the past in this weekly E-Letter.

Could it really happen? Would Kerry’s delegates jump ship at the August convention? Would Kerry step aside, for anyone? Would Hillary actually take the risk of running against Bush, rather than waiting until 2008? These are all very interesting questions. But before I tackle them, let’s read the following column which appeared last Friday in the Washington Times. (It is included in its entirety and completely unedited by me.)

“ The ‘Presumptive’ Candidate . . .
by Cal Thomas

Often when John Kerry is referred to in the media, it is with the modifier ‘presumptive’ before the word ‘nominee.’ Mr. Kerry has enough delegates to win the Democratic nomination in Boston in July, but will the delegates stay with him if it appears by summer, or even sooner, that he can't beat President Bush?
Democrats' hatred of the president is so strong they might be willing to return to the days of the smoke-filled room and stage a coup in order to run a stronger candidate in November.

On April 27, James Ridgeway in his Mondo Washington column for the liberal New York newspaper the Village Voice made a case for just such a scenario. It began, ‘With the air gushing out of John Kerry’s balloon’ and referred to the ‘Democratic establishment’ as ‘arrogant and out of touch.’

It didn't get better for Mr. Kerry or the Democrats: ‘With growing issues over his wealth (which makes fellow plutocrat Bush seem a charity case by comparison), the miasma over his medals and ribbons (or ribbons and medals), his uninspiring record in the Senate (yes war, no war), and wishy-washy efforts to mimic Bill Clinton’s triangulation gimmickry ... Kerry sinks day by day. The pros all know that a candidate who starts each morning having to explain himself is a goner.’

Again, this appeared in a liberal newspaper inclined toward Democrats, not a conservative publication like National Review or the Weekly Standard.
Mr. Ridgeway urged ‘Democrat biggies, whoever they are these days, to sit down with the rich and arrogant presumptive nominee and try to persuade him to take a hike.’

This is remarkable stuff. While Mr. Ridgeway suggested the possibility of resurrecting John Edwards, that won't happen. The only possible candidate who could replace Kerry -- should delegates pledged to him abandon his sinking ship -- is (drum roll and ruffles and flourishes, please) Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (presumptuous of New York).

It’s hard not to see the conspiratorial hands of Bill and Hillary behind Mr. Kerry’s decline and the tumble of Howard Dean before him. Hillary Clinton could not afford to have Mr. Dean, who had a solid but not large enough base, win the nomination. Had Mr. Dean won the presidency, Hillary would not have a clear field in 2008 and she might be too old or her time might have passed by 2012.

Bill Clinton's book ‘My Life’ (it’s always about him) is to be published in June. It is certain to fire up nostalgic Democrats who would like nothing better than to return to those thrilling days when Clinton flummoxed Republicans, even while presiding over the loss of Congress and having to declare himself still ‘relevant.’

Mr. Kerry’s biggest problem is it’s apparent not too many people are for him. He flunks the ‘likability test.’ The motivation of most of his supporters seems to be their hatred of President Bush, not love for Mr. Kerry. That is probably not enough to win an election, especially when one must attract swing voters who respond more to a positive message than a negative one.

Enter Hillary Clinton. The Democratic Party would swoon if she stepped in and replaced Mr. Kerry. Bill would campaign with her, further energizing Democrats. The media would go into orbit, treating her as a presumptive queen, who deserves the nomination and the presidency because of all Bill put her through. It would be one of the few media stories that could knock Michael Jackson and Kobe Bryant from the headlines.

Even if Hillary lost to President Bush, she would run again unopposed, and grateful Democrats would hand her the nomination four years later.
The Village Voice column concluded: ‘If things proceed as they are the dim-bulb Dem leaders are going to be very sorry they [kicked] Howard Dean.’ Not if they redeem themselves in the eyes of the party faithful by selecting Hillary for president.”


Will Hillary Run?

Before we can speculate on that question, we must first ask if John Kerry would step down. I believe the answer is a solid NO. Kerry has reportedly wanted to be president ever since he played around the Kennedy compound as a teenager. I don’t see him stepping down. The only way the Dems get rid of John Kerry, in my opinion, is for his delegates to abandon him at the July convention in Boston. That would be rare, but it has happened before.

Now back to Hillary. As I have written in this E-Letter in the past, I don’t believe Hillary would allow herself to be nominated unless it is all but certain that she would defeat Bush. Unless Bush makes some huge mistake, I believe Hillary will wait until 2008. That let’s her keep her promise to serve her first Senate term, raise LOTS of money and run against who-knows-who will be the Republican nominee in 2008.

I could be wrong, though. Bill, Hillary and Terry McAuliffe still run the Democrat party. If they really want Kerry out, he will be out. But that brings us, front and center, to the question I raised back in the September 23 issue of this E-Letter, which is: Do the Clintons want ANY Democrat to win in 2004, or do they prefer that Bush wins, thus leaving the door wide open for Hillary in 2008?

Bill Clinton has not been active in campaigning for Kerry. They haven’t thrown their influential money machine behind him. So you have to wonder if the Clintons are happy to see George Bush re-elected in November. Maybe that is the plan after all.

Kerry’s VP Dilemma

Kerry’s best hope, short of a major blunder by Bush, is his choice for Vice President. He desperately needs a running mate who can recharge the Democratic base and hopefully deliver a swing state or two. As I wrote in these pages in February, the leading contenders still are Dick Gephardt, John Edwards, Iowa governor Tom Vilsac and Hillary.

As I wrote in February, Dick Gephardt remains the safest choice. He might be able to deliver his home state of Missouri; he has credentials; but let’s face it, Gephardt is not exactly Mr. Charisma (yawn). John Edwards, who is very charismatic, would likely upstage Kerry; and Bush would still very likely win North Carolina, Edwards’ home state, handily.

For the same reasons I cited in February, I don’t believe Hillary would accept the nod for VP. Kerry doesn’t want her anyway, but he could become so desperate that he makes the offer. In any event, I still believe that if Hillary is on this ticket, she will be at the top and not the bottom.

So, Kerry is now said to be seriously leaning toward Tom Vilsac who is also very liberal. But Vilsac is not well-known, and Kerry already has a beyond-the-margin-of-error lead in Iowa. Gephardt still looks like the safest choice to me. In any event, we should know before the end of this month. Here's why....

*Ranger Mom note - OUT OF ROOM - CONTINUED ON NEXT THREAD

[Ranger Mom]

*CONTINUED FROM PREVIOUS THREAD

Clinton’s Book Due Out In June

Bill Clinton has reportedly been working on his memoirs ever since he left office. As noted in the editorial above, his publisher (Random House which advanced $10 million to Clinton) recently announced that the book, entitled “My Life,” will be released in June. If you’re John Kerry (and others in the Dem party), you have be asking, WHY NOW?

The Clinton book is expected to top the charts as soon as it is released. Random House has scheduled an initial printing of 1.5 million copies – that’s 500,000 more than the first run for Hillary’s book, “Living History.” Clinton’s new book will suck all the air out of Kerry’s campaign for several weeks when it is released. Again we ask, why now? Why not wait until after the election? It’s not like Clinton needs the money.

This again raises the question of whether the Clintons’ plan is to see Kerry defeated and Bush re-elected in November, thus leaving the door wide open for Hillary in 2008. This also explains why Kerry is in a rush to name his VP before the Clinton book produces that giant sucking sound in June.

Former Clinton advisor, Dick Morris, had the following to say in his New York Post column yesterday:

“The impact of Clinton’s memoirs on the Kerry campaign cannot have escaped so astute a political observer as our 42nd president. He knows full well what he is doing and what its effect on the Kerry campaign will be.

When Clinton’s book hits the shelves, Kerry will not be able to get a word in edgewise. All the stories will be about Clinton, just as the Democratic candidate for president is trying to define his themes and get out his message… nothing will deflect from the attention Clinton will get and Kerry will not. There is only so much oxygen in the room and the president will suck it all up.

Clinton is deciding to publish now because he wants to deprive Kerry of momentum. He realizes that if Kerry wins, Hillary will probably never be president. He knows that she won’t be able to run in 2008 because a victorious Kerry would undoubtedly seek re-election. Even in 2012, it is Kerry's vice president who would be the likely nominee. And, if he or she wins, he'll run for a second term in 2016. By 2020, Hillary will be 73.

Or is Clinton publishing in June to generate momentum to force Kerry to put his wife on the ticket?

Either way, Clinton must know the impact his publication is likely to have. Kerry did not have a very good introduction to the American people. His post-primary period has been, thus far, a disaster, with his own flubs emphasizing Bush's accusation that he is unready to lead America during wartime.

The Democratic National Convention, in early August, is his chance to re-introduce himself. He needs all of June and July to build momentum. But instead, he will face all Clinton all the time.

After the Democratic Convention, Kerry faces two events that will leave him gasping for breath - the Republican Convention at the end of August and the third anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. He desperately needs a good summer to prepare and fortify his vote against these shocks.

But now Clinton is robbing him of the chance. And that is not by chance.”

LATE NOTE: Just as we are about to post this E-Letter on our website, FOX News ran a story saying that Clinton is still not finished writing his book. The suggestion is that the book release could be delayed 2-3 weeks. If true, that’s even worse for Kerry. That would put the release of Clinton’s book right on top of the Democratic convention. So, where the June release would have at least allowed a few weeks for the Clinton hoopla to subside before the convention, the book delay could be an even bigger distraction.

Bush Pulls Ahead Despite Problems

After weeks in which his administration’s policies were pummeled - from the 9-11 Commission hearings to the streets of Fallujah, and now the prison abuse scandal in Iraq - President Bush has pulled ahead of Kerry in the latest polls. The swing is roughly 10 points, with Bush moving for 4-5 points behind to 4-5 points ahead. The latest poll as we prepare to post this E-letter has Bush 51.9 to Kerry 46.1.

The Kerry camp responded that the swing is the result of Bush’ early attack ads that have been running for the last several weeks. Certainly, the ads have had an impact, but Bush’s campaign ads have not had nearly the airtime of, say, Richard Clarke before the 9-11 Commission or the recent problems in the war in Iraq. Something else is going on here.

Despite the 9-11 hearings, most Americans do not blame Bush for the terror attacks and are willing to forgive the President if the war in Iraq was not planned properly. Increasingly, they see Mr. Bush as the man most committed to enhancing the country’s security today.

The latest polls on the presidential election show Bush comfortably ahead in most of the so-called “red states.” Only in FL and OH is the race close. Bush is also gaining ground on Kerry in several of the “blue states.” (MI, WI, OR).

The Bush campaign has to focus on holding on to FL, where their lead has shrunk in the latest polls. They also need to “flip” a large blue state, and they are focusing on PA. Interestingly, Bush hit MI this week as the first stop on his bus trip. Imagine if a Republican won MI which is historically a Democrat stronghold!

John Kerry just launched the largest single ad buy in Democratic party history - $27 million. Kerry’s ads are targeting 17 states including the battleground states, but also AK, CO and WA. Kerry has to make sure he holds onto WA and OR, which are now believed to be margin-of-error states.

A Different Election This Time

Several things will be different in this year’s presidential election. First, there will be no exit polling until after the polls close in California. The Voter News Service no longer exists in the wake of the Help America Vote Act which was passed in 2002. The major networks will have to sit on their hands until 7:00 p.m. on the West Coast. This will be most interesting to watch, since the networks will know the polling results in states that close early, but they can’t report it.

While the TV outlets are supposed to be silent, you can bet that Internet outlets will be buzzing with exit polling information on election night. Matt Drudge, to be sure, will be posting polling information as fast as he can collect it! So will other Web outlets. So those of us who are Internet savvy may know a lot more about how the election is going than those who only watch on TV.

Whatever the outcome, this will be the most expensive presidential election in history. President Bush is almost certain to raise at least $250 million to $300 million. Kerry decided this week not to take federal matching funds, so he is free to raise as much as he can. While very uncertain, most analysts figure Kerry can raise $150 million or more. Plus, he is likely to benefit from 527 groups like Americans Coming Together (George Soros), MoveOn.org and others that are also raising hundreds of millions of dollars, much of which will be aimed at defeating Bush.

It’s being called The Billion Dollar Election . It will be interesting, for sure, but not worth it!

All the best,


Gary D. Halbert

Copyright 2004 Gary D. Halbert. address: GaryHalbert@InvestorsInsight.com.

[pinecone]

Politics has turned into a sickening mess! It's not about the issues, but about who hates who the most.:mad:

[spiveyrat]

Thanks for sharing that RangerMom. Interesting reading. We definitely have some things to watch with interest this year!

[slpybear the bullfan]

Well, I guess we won't be able to hear MMs latest spin on how the numbers are wrong and unemployement is growing...

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,119274,00.html

Payrolls Surge, Unemployment Dips to 5.6 Percent


WASHINGTON — Employers added 288,000 jobs to their payrolls in April as the nation's unemployment rate slipped to 5.6 percent, reinforcing hopes for a sustained turnaround in the jobs market that had lagged for so long.

Payrolls have risen now for eight straight months, with 867,000 new jobs created so far this year, the Labor Department (search) reported Friday.

The U.S. unemployment rate (search) fell 0.1 percentage point to 5.6 percent last month, after reaching a high of 6.3 percent in June 2003 during the economic slowdown.

[Ranger Mom]

Originally posted by slpybear the bullfan
Well, I guess we won't be able to hear MMs latest spin on how the numbers are wrong and unemployement is growing...



Well.............Shucks!!:thumbsup:

[sinton66]

How about we let it fade away?