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Politics : PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Richard S who wrote (434347)	7/27/2003 1:40:27 PM
From: calgal	Respond to of 769667

Bush campaign strategist says 'election will be tough' He believes divided electorate may make race as close as 2000 07/27/2003 By DAVID JACKSON / The Dallas Morning News URL:http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dallas/nation/stories/072703dnnatgop.a91f3.html NEW YORK – One of President Bush's top campaign strategists warned fellow Republicans on Saturday that the 2004 race could be every bit as close as the overtime contest of 2000. "Ladies and gentlemen, this next election will be tough," campaign manager Ken Mehlman told the summer meeting of the Republican National Committee. "It will be an incredible challenge. It will include difficult days." Some of those days have already arrived, as Democrats pound Mr. Bush over unemployment, the rising death toll in Iraq, and the use of intelligence to justify the war on Saddam Hussein. AP >Campaign manager Ken Mehlman told members of the Republican National Committee to take nothing for granted. Mr. Mehlman and other campaign officials said they keys to a victory are defending Mr. Bush's successes in fighting terrorism and reviving the economy and building a strong organization down to the local level As the RNC wrapped up the weekend meeting in the city that will host next year's convention, the Republicans face what many analysts see as a still-closely divided electorate, despite GOP successes in the 2002 congressional races and Mr. Bush's high-but-slipping approval ratings. Democrats are seeking to dent that popularity by questioning whether Mr. Bush exaggerated intelligence to justify the invasion of Iraq. They are challenging the administration's credibility on a variety of fronts, such as the higher-than-projected budget deficits and costs of occupying Iraq. "When George W. Bush ran for president three years ago, he promised us an era of responsibility in Washington," said former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean, a presidential candidate. "Instead, we've got an era of irresponsibility unparalleled in our history." Mr. Mehlman said many of the Democratic critics supported military action against Mr. Hussein, calling their criticism a reversal designed "for short-term political gain among Democrat primary voters." "If they're willing to sacrifice principle on this, just imagine what they'll say and do to try to get elected," Mr. Mehlman said. Mr. Bush's job approval ratings remain well over 50 percent, normally a threshold for re-election. But Republican officials said they want to ward off any notion of complacency, especially as the Democratic field narrows to a single challenger early next year. "Our numbers look good today," Mr. Mehlman said. "But as we've predicted for some time, those numbers will come down. We must prepare for an election every bit as close and every bit as hard fought as the 2000 election." To an extent, the Republicans are going up against history. No president who lost the popular vote, as Mr. Bush did against Al Gore, has won a second term in the White House. Mr. Mehlman pointed out the Republicans have not re-elected a president and kept a congressional majority in the same election since 1924. "The last time that happened, Calvin Coolidge was sitting in the Oval Office," Mr. Mehlman said. As for the divided nature of modern politics, Mr. Mehlman pointed to states that went for one party or the other in at least three of the last five presidential elections. The result: 273 electoral votes for Republicans, 265 for Democrats. A candidate needs 270 to win. Mr. Mehlman said that next year's election presents both "an opportunity" and "a challenge" and that Republicans need to be in position to seize the moment. RNC officials said a new get-out-the-vote effort keyed their successes in November, when Republicans re-captured the Senate and increased their majority in the U.S. House. They said they will need an even better effort to translate that into a full Republican realignment. "2004 will show us if the incremental gains in 2002 are enduring," said Nicolle Devenish, communications director for Mr. Bush's campaign. "And anyone who says they know the answer to that doesn't know."