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Politics : Those Damned Democrat's -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: calgal who wrote (755)	11/5/2002 1:22:52 AM
From: calgal	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1604

Bush Makes Final Appeal to Voters URL: story.news.yahoo.com Mon Nov 4, 8:40 PM ET By DAVID ESPO, AP Special Correspondent President Bush (news - web sites) barnstormed through four battleground states on Monday in a final appeal for Republicans in Congress who will vote to make tax cuts permanent and confirm conservative judges. Democrats worked for a strong voter turnout to tilt key races their way. Election Special Coverage News, tools, results and more. Go now. "We'll see what the voters and the Good Lord has in store tomorrow," said Republican gubernatorial candidate Mark Sanford in South Carolina, summing up the hopes — and anxiety — of candidates everywhere. While Bush and the Democrats focused their energies on dozens of races, Minnesota Senate rivals Walter F. Mondale and Norm Coleman staged the final debate of the campaign season. They were partially upstaged by the governor's appointment of an interim replacement for the late Sen. Paul Wellstone. In the House, where all 435 seats are at stake on Tuesday, Democrats need a gain of seven to win control. But it was the Republicans who sounded upbeat — suggesting they could even defy historical trends and pick up a seat or two at Bush's midterm. "To be on the edge of breaking that historical trend is a significant accomplishment," said White House press secretary Ari Fleischer (news - web sites). The Senate is divided 49-49, with two independents, and the battle for control hinged on six or eight races judged as tossups or nearly so in the late polls. South Dakota was home to one, pitting Democratic Sen. Tim Johnson (news, bio, voting record) against GOP Rep John Thune. Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle, the state's other senator, worked to preserve Johnson's Senate tenure — and his own grip on power as leader of the Democratic majority. In Minnesota, Mondale and Coleman vied for Wellstone's seat in their only debate of a one-week campaign. Mondale, 74, took the offensive early. "You have a campaign here that is a poster child for what is wrong in politics," he said to Coleman, seated a few feet away. "You've taken not thousands, but millions of dollars from the special interests, from the Enrons. ..." "Mr. Vice President, let me say very, very, very respectfully, when we talk about special interest and support from corporate America, that's been your world," Coleman rebutted. "That's the world in which you've lived, serving on boards of Cargill" and other firms, he said. The two men debated as Gov. Jesse Ventura was announcing his selection of Dean Barkley, an independent, as interim replacement for Wellstone. Wellstone died late last month in the crash of a small plane. Bush, his approval ratings over 60 percent, worked his way from Iowa to Missouri, Arkansas and Texas, the end of an intense effort to elect Republican governors and members of the House and Senate. "I'll be voting in Crawford, Texas, tomorrow morning," the president said in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. "I'm not undecided." As he has at dozens of rallies, he stressed the importance of the war on terrorism, criticized Iraqi President Saddam Hussein (news - web sites) and renewed his call for a Department of Homeland Security built to his specifications. Turning to domestic issues, he said, "The best way to encourage job growth is to let you keep your own money. And therefore I need people in the Senate and the House of Representatives who will make the tax cuts permanent." Bush said judicial appointments were "a defining issue. ... And we got a problem because the leadership in the Senate has done a lousy job with my nominees." The Democratic-controlled Senate has blocked passage of bills to make portions of last year's tax cuts permanent, citing the reappearance of budget deficits. Democrats have confirmed dozens of Bush's judicial appointees, but have blocked others they deem too conservative. While Bush was barnstorming, Democrats put their hopes in a large turnout of key constituencies, blacks and members of union households among them. "If we get the vote out, we'll win this election," Democratic gubernatorial candidate Bill McBride said in Florida, where polls showed him trailing Gov. Jeb Bush. Democrats elected governors in Georgia, South Carolina and Alabama four years ago, in large measure because of strong support from black voters. Two years ago, presidential candidate Al Gore (news - web sites) ran better in several Southern states than anticipated. "I would say that minority turnout will be most influential in Louisiana, Georgia, Texas and even Colorado" in the Senate races, said Sen. Bill Frist (news, bio, voting record), the head of the GOP senatorial campaign committee. Donna Brazille, a consultant to the Democrats, said the turnout effort this year includes paid radio advertisements, flyers delivered to churches over the weekend, and recorded messages from Bill Clinton, Bill Cosby and others that are dialed by computer into millions of targeted households. "When it comes to African-Americans, there is no better motivator, no better closer than Bill Clinton," she said. She estimated that Clinton's voice would be heard in as many as 15 million households on Election Day through a technique known as "robo-calls." Democrats also ran radio advertisements recorded by politicians and non-politicians alike, including one by a prominent rap producer aimed at young blacks. "Yo, this is Russell Simmons, check this out," it said. "Your forefathers died to give you the right to vote. Most of you young people are not voting."

To: calgal who wrote (755)	11/7/2002 1:02:27 AM
From: calgal	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1604

David Limbaugh URL:http://www.townhall.com/columnists/davidlimbaugh/ November 6, 2002 Democrats in disarray Regardless of the actual vote tallies from Tuesday's elections, the big story is that the Democrats are a party in serious disarray. Just look at how the odds are stacked against Republicans going into these elections. Consider: -- Historically, the president's opposition party has made major gains in midterm congressional elections. -- Republicans hold 20 of the 34 Senate seats at issue, so they'll have to win 59 percent of these races just to stay where they are today. -- Four sure-fire winner Republican incumbents chose not to pursue re-election (Phil Gramm -- Texas, Fred Thompson -- Tennessee, Jesse Helms -- North Carolina, and Strom Thurmond -- South Carolina). -- Until quite recently, the economy has been lethargic at best and the stock market disastrous. Indeed, not long ago, Democrats were smug about solidifying control of both the House and Senate in 2002. But even if they retain control of the Senate, which is by no means guaranteed, few seriously believe they'll take back the House. To complete our perspective here, don't forget that before his tragic death, Senator Paul Wellstone was having some trouble in the polls in Minnesota. And had New Jersey Democrats not thwarted the rule of law to allow Frank Lautenberg to replace the corruption-stained Robert Torricelli, Democrats would surely have lost a Senate seat in New Jersey. So what accounts for the Democrats' implosion? The most obvious explanation is that the nation rallies around its president during times of war (at least before things go negative, a la Vietnam and L.B.J.). George Bush got a double boost from the war because it also afforded him the opportunity to show his presidential mettle. Before Sept. 12, Democrats and the liberal punditocracy wore out the word "gravitas" in their ceaseless observations that Dubya didn't have any. He couldn't have proven them more wrong -- and he did it by being himself, not by protesting for recognition and respect in the spirit of his narcissistic predecessor. He not only demonstrated his presidential fitness but also earned the people's trust. Competence is one thing, but competence coupled with trust is killer. On a subtler level, people also appreciate that in the process Bush restored dignity to the office. But the Democrats' problems transcend President Bush's manifest statesmanship. After all, polls reveal that Iraq and terrorism aren't the voters' only concerns. Why haven't Democrats been able to capitalize on the woes of Wall Street, the relatively sluggish economy and the "return" of budget deficits when it appeared we had turned the corner and were headed for surpluses? The short answer is that Americans know that President Bush isn't responsible for our economic problems. The recession had already begun during the last year of Clinton-Gore, and many believe the bursting of the tech bubble was inevitable to cap the "irrational exuberance" that dominated the preceding years. More importantly, they understand that the terrorist attacks seriously damaged our economy and that the resulting war against terrorism is burdening our budget. But there is an even more devastating factor weighing against Democrats. They are bankrupt of ideas on the major issues. We don't expect them to be strong on defense, so it's not surprising they had to be dragged kicking and screaming into supporting the Iraq resolution. But what about "the economy, stupid?" While Democrats point with nostalgia toward the phenomenal growth of the Clinton years, they have no plan to recapture economic expansion today. They brag about Clintonomics, but in the present climate they wouldn't dare try it again. Even most of them know you can't tax yourself into economic growth, especially without a Gingrichian Congress simultaneously restraining federal spending. But neither do they offer tax cuts, except those skewed so much against the major producers they would result only in socialist redistribution of wealth and no appreciable growth. When they finally surrendered on the president's tax plan, it was only after diluting its best pro-growth features and affixing to it a 10-year expiration date. Sure, they also clamor about balancing the budget, yet they never explain how their proposals for increases in spending across the board, save defense, could possibly result in fiscal balance. Besides, despite the virtues of balanced budgets, they don't, by themselves, stimulate growth. The bottom line is that Democrats have no solutions for economic stagnation, unbalanced budgets and threats to our national security, so they're reduced to obstruction and negativity, and the public smells it, which will have major consequences in the elections. David Limbaugh is author of Absolute Power: The Legacy of Corruption in the Clinton-Reno Justice Department. Available through ©2002 Creators Syndicate, Inc.