How to beat Bush

Strategies for this campaign season

from JoeUser Forums

    George W. Bush is going down this Fall. Well...at least if Kerry is smart enough to put together a campaign strategy based on statistical analysis. Bush is very vulnerable but not in the ways Kerry seems to think.

    Kerry already has the votes of progressives such as myself. We're all motivated to remove Bush. He doesn't need to do too much to mobilize his base. We'd vote for Kerry no matter what. Anyone but Bush is our mantra. On the other hand, I don't think Republicans are as keen on Bush as Democrats are keen on getting rid of Bush. As long as Kerry doesn't seem scary to them, Bush is vulnerable.

    So...how do you get Republicans to not come out for Bush? Let me count the ways.

1) The deficit. Republicans claim to care about fiscal responsibility. But Bush has let spending go out of control. He has both houses in congress so no Reaganesque blaming of those big spending liberals this time. Bush is a big spender. Talk about the pork and out of control spending that our grandchildren are going to have to pay for.

2) Bush's prescription drug program. Point out that Bush isn't for smaller government. He's for inept corporate controlled government. Talk about how he's in favor of helping seniors but as Americans right now we need to come together and get that debt down and then come up with a sensible way to help assure affordable healthcare for all Americans.

3) Talk about how Bush hasn't been honest about his tax cuts. Point out that the top 25 families (not percent) actually received a huge chunk of that tax cut. How does that help America? Tax cuts are fine when you're not running massive deficits and you're not at war.

4) Hit hard about personal responsibility. Bush isn't resolute, he's obtuse. We need leaders that recognize mistakes and make changes. Everyone knows we need more troops in Iraq. Make a big point about as President, I would send more troops in Iraq so that we can quickly establish a secure Democratic Iraq and then take them out to be replaced by International peace keepers and the Iraqi's themselves. Make it clear that ultimately it will be up to the Iraqi's to determine whether they sink or swim. We're not going to do it for them for the next decade in some sort of Vietnam scenario.

5) Really focus on the outsourcing of jobs. America is losing vast parts of its industrial output. Bush talks about this war on terror even as the United States increasingly is becoming incapable of providing for itself in the terms of industrial might or even the raw materials because Bush's policies reward companies for sending jobs to China and India.

    Pick on these 5 points and you'll soften up Bush's base to lower turn out for his side.

 
democrat
12,184 views 20 replies
Reply #1 from JoeUser Forums Top
I completely agree that Bush is quite vulnerable to attacks on his lack of fiscal conservatism. I just don't think a majority of voters will be able to cast thei vote for Kerry once they walk into the booth. The man is simply inconsistent. He needs to take a page from Bush himself and shut up so his own words stop tripping him. Of course that still leaves the voting record.
Reply #2 from JoeUser Forums Top
This is basically Kerry’s vote in a nutshell, “We want to get rid of that Bush guy that we hate.” I am surprised that a guy can say, “I voted for it before I voted against it,” and still be taken seriously by Americans, especially during a global war against terrorism. Ever notice how people keep calling Kerry the “presumptive nominee” it’s like they can’t believe they are stuck with him, and hopefully someone better will come along. Actually, with the stuff you write Caldor, you should go for the nomination, get up there and run a speech about how Dubya is an imperialist warmonger who is killing kids, fire off rhetoric about how Bush started the war, and how its all his fault. Tim Robbins, Barbara Streisand and all the other Holly weird Kooks would start cheering and opening their purses and bedrooms, they would back you over Kerry.
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Reply #3 from JoeUser Forums Top
I agree with all you said, and would only like to add that the independent swing voters, although a dimishing group, are who really need to be pampered by the left.
Reply #4 from JoeUser Forums Top
What appears to be a direct contradiction to the principals of classical fiscal conservatism is a very cynical end-run attempt to accomplish the same goal. Bleeding the treasury dry will ultimately cause federal programs they couldnt eliminate by legislation to wither and die for lack of funding.
Reply #5 from JoeUser Forums Top
kingbee, I think you make a good point. Although Bush's comments to Bob Woodward ("History? We won’t know. We’ll all be dead’.”) suggest he may be a closet Keynesian, heheheh....

"We're all Keynesians now" - Richard M. Nixon
Reply #6 from JoeUser Forums Top
I tend to follow the rule that we have to pick the lesser of two evils when it comes to politics and voting. It is true no one is perfect, however I wish that we could have a way for politicians to be totally truthful and stop all the bull(*&%. I definitely don't feel that Bush has the people's best interest at heart in his decision making. It seems when someone becomes president it is their chance to further themselves and not the nation as a whole. Our nation is going down the toilet. There isn't anyone who really wants to change things in a position to do so, it takes money. The rich get richer, the poor get poorer.... its the way of the world.
Reply #7 from JoeUser Forums Top
i wonder if people felt the same way when jefferson or jackson were the candidates?
Reply #8 from JoeUser Forums Top
Am I the only one who finds it odd that apparently so many people are willing to vote for anyone just to get President Bush out of office? I can understand if they are not happy with the job Mr. Bush has done, but wouldn't it seem to make more sense to elect someone you thought would do a better job, rather than just a warm body?

I've listened for Mr. Kerry's platform and it doesn't seem to consist of anything but (1) George Bush is doing a bad job and (2) Various general platitudes that don't really give the voters a sense of what he specifically would do to improve the country.

I mean, the guy is all over the place on his voting record so it's hard to tell how he would perform when actual bills come up for passage. He seems too concerned with saying the right thing for the current listener or group to get a feel for what he stands for.

I just think when push comes to shove, when people are actually in the voting booth, they are going to be unable to support such an unknown.
Reply #9 from JoeUser Forums Top
Am I the only one who finds it odd that apparently so many people are willing to vote for anyone just to get President Bush out of office? I can understand if they are not happy with the job Mr. Bush has done, but wouldn't it seem to make more sense to elect someone you thought would do a better job, rather than just a warm body?


I'm going to have to agree with that. I think it's just plain irresponsible to vote "against" anything. Remember how the US decided "against" communism in the Korean War? A lot of good that did us; what we ended up was something even worse than communism. I'm going to stand by the one who at least is consistent in his actions rather than blindly head in the direction of who-knows-what.

~Buddha
Reply #10 from JoeUser Forums Top
South Korea is worse than communism Dan? Or is it that North Korea is *not* communist? Not trying to troll, I just am not sure what you meant there.
Reply #11 from JoeUser Forums Top
North Korea was not communist, so we sided with them based on that fact alone.

~Buddha
Reply #12 from JoeUser Forums Top
1. Kerry will increase taxes on everyone. I don't care if that takes care of the budget or not. Cutting spending in the House and Congress will cut spending.

2. The prescription drug plan was initially a Democrat proposition. Tort reform and shooting lawyers will cure the health care woes, not Kerry.

3. The top 25 families got a tax cut? Good for them. So did I. It's my money, I busted my ass, and I'll be glad to give it over to defend my country, not to pay for your relatives.

4. Too many feet on the ground makes for confusion. Your lack of faith in our troops and their leaders is worrisome. Marshall plan.

5. More countries are outsourcing to us than we are to them.
Reply #13 from JoeUser Forums Top
1. I don't like the deficit, but I don't think we can tax our way out of it. What spending is Kerry going to cut?

2. I didn't agree with this, but I'm sure whatever Kerry comes up with for health care will be more expensive.

3. How has Bush lied about his tax cuts?

4. Where are you going to get international peacekeepers? Draginol had a good article earlier explaining that there isn't a large non-US source of troops that is likely to enter Iraq.

5. I doubt Kerry will stop outsourcing. What policies reward companies for sending jobs to India/China?
Reply #14 from JoeUser Forums Top
"Kerry already has the votes of progressives such as myself."

Why do liberals have such a problem with calling themselves liberal? Why obfuscate who you are? Could it be that no one would listen to you if you told the truth? Seems Clinton and Kerry sure are validating that thought.
Reply #16 from JoeUser Forums Top
DAN i think you mean South Korea, not North...north is the communist state with nukes that can reach Alaska the less than (i forgot the precise number, but it was very fast), and one of the three member nations of Bush's "Axis of Evil" with Iraq and Iran.

and although im for kerry (although i still wish lieberman or edwards were the front runners and main canidates), i do think he should cut down on the critisms of bush, and start being consistent and forming a game plan of policies and issues he wishes to deal with

also, has anyone noticed Bush seems to have some sort of speech problem or minor impediment when giving speeches? he sounds like some slow second grader reading from a passage of David Copperfield
Reply #17 from JoeUser Forums Top
also, has anyone noticed Bush seems to have some sort of speech problem or minor impediment when giving speeches? he sounds like some slow second grader reading from a passage of David Copperfield


I liked in that last speech when he tried to pronounce Abu Ghraib. He saw it coming up on the TelePrompTer, paused, wilted as if to say "Aw, man, there it is," then proceeded to massacre it. He said it three times and pronounced it differently each time.
Reply #18 from JoeUser Forums Top
Fifty years from now when we are trying tot explain George W. Bush to a younger generation, we'll tell them "Americans disdained intelligence in the early 21st century. They wanted a president who looked, sounded, and acted stupid."
Reply #19 from JoeUser Forums Top

Here is how the vote broke down in 2000 by state IQ and income, BTW:

AVG IQ AVG Income '00 Electoral
(1) Connecticut..................113 $26,979 Gore
(2) Massachusetts................111 $24,059 Gore
(3) New Jersey...................111 $26,457 Gore
(4) New York.....................109 $23,534 Gore
(5) Rhode Island.................107 $20,299 Gore
(6) Hawaii.......................106 $21,218 Gore
(7) Maryland.....................105 $22,974 Gore
(8) New Hampshire................105 $22,934 Bush
(9) Illinois.....................104 $21,608 Gore
(10) Delaware....................103 $21,451 Gore
(11) Minnesota...................102 $20,049 Gore
(12) Vermont.....................102 $18,834 Gore
(13) Washington..................102 $20,398 Gore
(14) California..................101 $21,278 Gore
(15) Pennsylvania................101 $20,253 Gore
(16) Maine.......................100 $18,226 Gore
(17) Virginia....................100 $20,629 Bush
(18) Wisconsin...................100 $18,727 Gore
(19) Colorado.....................99 $20,124 Bush
(20) Iowa.........................99 $18,287 Gore
(21) Michigan.....................99 $19,508 Gore
(22) Nevada.......................99 $20,266 Bush
(23) Ohio.........................99 $18,624 Bush
(24) Oregon.......................99 $18,202 Gore
(25) Alaska.......................98 $21,603 Bush
(26) Florida......................98 $19,397 Bush
(27) Missouri.....................98 $18,835 Bush
(28) Kansas.......................96 $19,376 Bush
(29) Nebraska.....................95 $19,084 Bush
(30) Arizona......................94 $17,119 Bush
(31) Indiana......................94 $18,043 Bush
(32) Tennessee....................94 $17,341 Bush
(33) North Carolina...............93 $17,667 Bush
(34) West Virginia................93 $15,065 Bush
(35) Arkansas.....................92 $15,439 Bush
(36) Georgia......................92 $18,130 Bush
(37) Kentucky.....................92 $16,534 Bush
(38) New Mexico...................92 $15,353 Gore
(39) North Dakota.................92 $16,854 Bush
(40) Texas........................92 $17,892 Bush
(41) Alabama......................90 $16,220 Bush
(42) Louisiana....................90 $15,712 Bush
(43) Montana......................90 $16,062 Bush
(44) Oklahoma.....................90 $16,198 Bush
(45) South Dakota.................90 $16,558 Bush
(46) South Carolina...............89 $15,989 Bush
(47) Wyoming......................89 $17,423 Bush
(48) Idaho........................87 $16,067 Bush
(49) Utah.........................87 $15,325 Bush
(50) Mississippi..................85 $14,088 Bush
Reply #20 from JoeUser Forums Top
Some true gems here....

2. I didn't agree with this, but I'm sure whatever Kerry comes up with for health care will be more expensive.


Hehehehe, don't you just love blind faith.

4. Too many feet on the ground makes for confusion. Your lack of faith in our troops and their leaders is worrisome.


Why is that worrisome? Is it a sign of the writer being a traitor?
Again, blind faith in your leadership, amazing. His whole point is that there's not enough feet on the ground, which prevents the US from securing Iraq.

Why do liberals have such a problem with calling themselves liberal? Why obfuscate who you are? Could it be that no one would listen to you if you told the truth?


Well, doesn't that sound like a damn good reason? If you are surrounded by people who switch off when they hear the L-word, then yeah, it makes perfect sense to avoid that word.

All that being said, I think George W. Bush is a terrible, terrible president. I also think John F. Kerry is just about the most unattractive (and I mean this in the political sense of the word) democratic candidate ever, well, since Walter Mondale anyway. Voting between the two is quite a simple matter though. With Bush, it's hard to have a middle-ground, you either like & agree with the guy or you don't. If you do, by all means vote for him. If you don't, vote for Kerry. Sure, he might be complete crap as well, however at least with him there's a chance he's more to your taste. It's not likely Bush will turn out to be more to your liking in a second term.

I will never understand the "better the evil that you know than the one you don't know" way of thinking. It's to depressing to live in such negativity.