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

To: Kenneth E. Phillipps who wrote (653698)	10/29/2004 11:10:23 PM
From: Wayners	Respond to of 769670

right when the polls you used to trump don't support your own twisted thinking, Switch Polls!

To: Kenneth E. Phillipps who wrote (653698)	10/29/2004 11:33:36 PM
From: Hope Praytochange	Respond to of 769670

Daschle in Tough, Costly Election Fight By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Filed at 10:53 p.m. ET REDFIELD, S.D. (AP) -- In the nation's most dramatic -- and most expensive -- Senate race, Minority Leader Tom Daschle of South Dakota is scrambling to maintain his political life as Republicans argue the Democrat is out of touch with people in a state that solidly supports President Bush. Daschle and Republican John Thune had spent $26.3 million, more than $50 apiece for each of the state's 502,000 registered voters, as of mid-October. That doesn't include the millions of dollars being spent by outside groups, most of them opposed to Daschle. The race is a dead heat. In many ways it is a rerun of Thune's first try for the Senate in 2002, when he lost by just 524 votes to Tim Johnson, South Dakota's other Democratic senator. That race was seen by many as a surrogate battle between Daschle and Bush, who helped recruit Thune. Daschle, however, is a much juicier target as one of the most visible Democrats in government and as the one in the best tactical position to block Bush's initiatives in the Senate. Of the eight or nine pivotal races determining which party will control the Senate -- now divided 51-48 in favor of the GOP, with one independent -- this one is the most watched. Despite an unending string of attack ads on television, on radio and in full-page newspaper spreads, both candidates agree the contest probably will be decided by who has the best get-out-the-vote effort. It could be decided on the state's nine Indian reservations, where Democrats have traditionally fared better than Republicans. ``I believe this election, like the one two years ago, is going to be decided by a handful of votes,'' said Thune. ``It's going to be a close election, so every single vote is going to matter.'' Election officials anticipate a record turnout of about 375,000 voters. Record numbers have already flocked to county auditors' offices across the state to cast absentee ballots. About 10,000 remained undecided in the campaign's final weeks. Daschle campaign staffers said they know most of those persuadable voters by name, and have been working to get their votes. Republican Party officials said about 7,000 volunteers and staff members will participate in the GOP's get-out-the-vote effort. Both sides point to precedents. The last party leader in the Senate who lost a bid for re-election was Ernest McFarland of Arizona, a Democrat who was majority leader when Barry Goldwater turned him out of office in 1952. Republicans prefer to look back only to 1994, when voters in eastern Washington state took away Democratic House Speaker Thomas Foley's seat and the GOP gained control of the House for the first time in four decades. Bush campaigned for Thune four times two years ago but has stayed away from South Dakota this year to focus on his own re-election effort. To avoid retirement, Daschle once again needs significant support from Republicans in a state where the GOP has a 5-4 advantage over Democrats in registered voters. In speeches on the campaign trail, where crowds are often treated to pie and coffee, Daschle, 56, tells voters that his position as his party's leader in the Senate has brought them water projects, highways and drought aid. ``I sit at one of the most powerful desks in the world, and right now that desk belongs to the people of South Dakota,'' Daschle told The Associated Press. ``Right now we're at the front of the line in the Senate, in the Congress. The question is whether we want to go to the back of the line or stay at the front.'' It's an argument that many South Dakotans buy. At Saks Family Restaurant, retired teacher and lifelong Republican Ronald Nielson talked about how Daschle had helped get a grant to save Redfield's hospital and money to help build a footbridge in a town beautification project. ``How can we give that position up?'' Nielson said in introducing Daschle to a crowd of about 100 people. ``It's just economically unthinkable we wouldn't return him.'' Thune, 43, counters that the election isn't about clout, but rather about which candidate best represents the views of most South Dakotans. ``Clout is a double-edged sword with Senator Daschle,'' Thune said. ``His arguments will be that somehow if we don't have him that we'll just fade into the sunset. The reality in my view is that any senator worth his salt is going to get their fair share of the federal dollars.'' Hosting pancake feeds across the state, Thune tells supporters that Daschle has misused his clout to block Bush's judicial appointments and is out of touch with most South Dakotans on issues like abortion, gay marriage and flag burning. ``It became clear to me he needed to be challenged because he wasn't listening to South Dakota any more. He was listening to Washington interests,'' Thune said. ``We want to get rid of the gridlock, get rid of the partisanship, get rid of the political games.'' ------ An interactive look at Senate races is available at: wid.ap.org