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| Bush defeats Kerry in Florida | |
| 2004-11-03 | |
President Bush defeated John Kerry in Florida on Tuesday, staking a claim to the nation's top battleground state four years after it was the epicenter of a turbulent postelection drama. With 7,040 of 7,241 precincts reporting, Bush had 3,596,069 votes, or 52 percent, and Kerry, the Democratic nominee, had 3,270,250 votes, or 47 percent. Independent candidate Ralph Nader had 30,275 votes, or about 0.4 percent. Bush and Kerry's campaigns had prepared for the possibility of a Florida deja vu on an Election Day long anticipated here since Bush defeated Democrat Al Gore by a mere 537 votes in 2000. The election was finally resolved 36 days later by a U.S. Supreme Court ruling.
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| Posted by:Fred |
| #40 TheElectionisriggedbyJeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeews! |
| Posted by: Choling Cheling4599 2004-11-03 1:01:20 AM |
| #39 WooHoo!!! Elle de la Bush el wins el electiono! |
| Posted by: Quarterdeck 2004-11-03 2:46:10 PM |
| #38 Yeah, like the joke goes, i always knew the first Jewish president would be a lapsed Catholic :) which answers your point I think. |
| Posted by: Liberalhawk 2004-11-03 2:43:20 PM |
| #37 I think Liberman, or any moderate, would have beat Bush. I don't agree that his being Jewish was a disqualifier. Kerry's grandparents were Jewish and it was never an issue. Kerry was a deeply flawed candidate; Just like with Gore, the Dems are going to look back and realize they really dodged a bullet on this one. |
| Posted by: 2b 2004-11-03 2:41:14 PM |
| #36 Lex, i dont know about Hillary. She may be just hawkish enough to make getting the nomination hard, but she still grates on red state cultural conservatives. Look at the last nights map. She concedes 90% of the states Bush won, right off the bat. Will hawkishness pull Florida and Ohio? With a Nader or someone like him pulling votes from the left? Nah, i think you need someone with more pull to the cultural right. Lieberman would have been the right idea IF he had been a better campaigner. And the Iraq war had been going better in the primary season. And the WOT hadnt made being Jewish virtually a disqualifier. I like Ed Rendell, but he think hes out for the last reason. Maybe Bob Graham. I dont know. Maybe someone else will emerge. |
| Posted by: Liberalhawk 2004-11-03 2:33:11 PM |
| #35 All controversial and elected more due to Republican weakness than Democrat strength; Goldwater, Watergate and Perot. So - if Dubya had lost that could be attributed to GOP weakness as well - you dont want me to start now, do ya? Suffice it to say Kerry couldnt take advantage of what should have been a major opportunity. |
| Posted by: Liberalhawk 2004-11-03 2:29:22 PM |
| #34 lex - count on it...Nanny state with a strong military....(strong enough to confiscate all those nasty weapons the little people have) |
| Posted by: Frank G 2004-11-03 10:24:51 AM |
| #33 The only decent governor the Dems have is the one from Michigan, and she's a Canuck. Oh well, maybe Hillary will continue to move rightward on defense issues and be positioned as that elusive bird, the liberal hawk, in 2008. |
| Posted by: lex 2004-11-03 10:03:21 AM |
| #32 LH Re the southerners, consider whom they were: LBJ, Jimmah and Clinton. All controversial and elected more due to Republican weakness than Democrat strength; Goldwater, Watergate and Perot. The swing section of the country is now the uper midwest. The Dems have some good governors here, Vilsak (sp?) from Iowa jumps out, but there are others they should consider also. If they go for Hilary, they face 8 more years in the wilderness. |
| Posted by: Mrs. Davis 2004-11-03 9:35:13 AM |
| #31 The real JFK is still the last from the Senate. Prior to him? |
| Posted by: Shipman 2004-11-03 9:23:27 AM |
| #30 1. the dems have not won since 1960 without a Southerner on the top of the ticket. Time to think about that. 2. For years, when moderates said to run a centrist, since you pull the leftists anyway, the response was that running centrists depressed base turnout and running a more clear ideological choice would increase turnout. 2004 has confirmed what should have been clear from state and local races - running a clearer choice increases your base turnout, but it also increases the other guys. 3. Youve got to run FOR something, not just against something. 4. Its VERY hard to get elected Pres. from the US Senate. Even when foreign policy issues are central. |
| Posted by: Liberalhawk 2004-11-03 9:17:52 AM |
| #29 trailing wife..the MSM is of the 20th Century - it's done. It's heartening to know that the children paying attention are watching and learning. Parent's who trumpeted the "selected not elected" in 2000 - will confuse, and eventually disappoint their children when/if they reverse course and get shrill about how unimportant the popular vote suddenly is now. |
| Posted by: 2b 2004-11-03 9:00:03 AM |
| #28 I just heard on the radio that there MIGHT be 110k prov ballots out there. Not all of those will be deemed a 'real' vote. Even if they ALL go Kerry's way he still would not win Ohio. The best Kerry can do is delay it in courts, but the fat lady is singing in my ear this morning. |
| Posted by: Cyber Sarge 2004-11-03 8:41:23 AM |
| #27 If the Dems had put up a decent war-time candidate, 2b, the fight would have been on domestic issues, and it wouldn't really have mattered who won -- because the WoT would have been continued the way Bush started it. But because they couldn't -- the Dems as a party haven't yet grasped that this war is not of our choosing -- they put up a pseudo-warrior. Kerry was the left/liberal Dems best shot at fooling the rest of us, and he flopped. God willing, the core of the party will return to the real world, and give the country the functional loyal opposition our system needs to work most effectively. As for the MSM, according to Drudge their market share continues dropping steadily, as the blogs' share of eyeballs continues to grow. My 14-year old explained to her daddy last night all about Dan Rather's little schemes, and how ABCNBCCBS are Kerry-loving weasels who slant the news as much as possible. It may well take the media a generation to recover their reputation -- if they work really, really hard to be worthy. |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2004-11-03 8:34:10 AM |
| #26 2b, I agree w/you. It's disheartening that there are so many ignorant or just plain stupid folks running around. |
| Posted by: Jarhead 2004-11-03 8:28:49 AM |
| #25 I'm not going to get cocky. In 20 years in the Senate, Kerry had passed no meaningful legislation. His entire chain of command stated he was "unfit" for command and it's becoming clear that he was dihonorably discharged and committed acts of 'treason'. If the Dems had put up a real candidate, Bush would have lost. What this election showed us was that the Democratic Party is diseased. It exposed the MSM as a lying, propaganda machine. Neither of these two groups will recover from the damage they inflicted on themselves. I'm shocked that the American people were willing to throw so much support behind such a flawed candidate. |
| Posted by: 2b 2004-11-03 8:02:40 AM |
| #24 Well, if the EU media does not like it, they can always move to Vancouver, heh heh. |
| Posted by: Alaska Paul 2004-11-03 7:49:55 AM |
| #23 Heh. Did you see the smug French woman on Newsnight last night (the one who called us 'rosbifs' and US lackeys when 'cheese-eating surrender monkeys' got tossed into the conversation by Dimbleby)?, Howard? She was fully anticipating a humble Kerry coming cap-in-hand to his Franco-German betters early next year, because they're just, well, so morally superior. They'll still be waiting in four years, I expect, but the rest of the world will have left them even further behind. This morning, the earth's still turning, the Beeb's still spinning. Heard one reporter actually saying words to the effect of 'if Kerry had won, this would have been seen as a referendum on Bush's aggressive/unilateral/whatever leadership'. Apparently that's only the case if Bush lost. Don't know what it is if Bush wins, but definitely not a referendum, apparently. Something else. No one at the Beeb I've heard has suggested that the Dems lost the race because their candidate was pathetic. Big media lost despite 'all they have tried to do'. Was the web instrumental in turning MSM propaganda just enough to ensure a Bush popular vote? WELL DONE BUSH!!! |
| Posted by: Bulldog 2004-11-03 5:21:28 AM |
| #22 Heck I'm no foreign policy pundit unlike some - but I wouldn't be surprised if this administration shifted America away from leftist Europe. Good luck to you - I think we've all learned a lot post 9/11. |
| Posted by: Howard_UK 2004-11-03 4:21:23 AM |
| #21 The final tally will be: Bush 286 EV, Kerry 252 EV (IA, NM, OH to Bush, WI to Kerry) Bush +3.75 million votes Now back to bed. |
| Posted by: ed 2004-11-03 4:19:05 AM |
| #20 Howard I just came from the BBC website. They are hoplessly behind on the electorial vote count. The BBC have your say on the election was full of bleating and moaning about how horible and NAZI the US is because Bush was winning. The Question has to be now do we need friends like Europe anymore? The UK and Italy are the only major counrties in the EU that are even remotely supportive. The anti-US propaganda the EU press puts out will have that little support fall away soon as they can manage. US citizens are caricatured as ignorant uncultured and NAZI. Do we need friends like that? I am not up for tolerating it much longer. |
| Posted by: Sock Puppet of Doom 2004-11-03 4:10:00 AM |
| #19 Go Georgey-boy! The BBC started last night euphoric with the strong Kerry show early doors. This has now subsided to plaintive sobriety. Ha ha! F*ck 'em.. |
| Posted by: Howard_UK 2004-11-03 3:58:03 AM |
| #18 It's real clear.. |
| Posted by: Mark Espinola 2004-11-03 3:52:30 AM |
| #17 they're down by 125,000 votes with only another 250,000 left to count in OH. They know that only legal chicanery can possibly reverse that margin. On top of this, Bush is clearly going to win the popular vote by a margin of about 3 million, or six times the margin that Gore won the popular vote by in 2000. There's simply no excuse for games this time around. All we can hope for is that Kerry, who still has a senate seat to return to, will find it in him to show some dignity, or at least some respect for all of us and for our process. The breck boy trial lawyer OTOH is a lost cause. Do the right thing, John K. There's a war on, remember? |
| Posted by: lex 2004-11-03 2:53:14 AM |
| #16 What I'm left to wonder is "What is AP waiting for in calling NM for Bush?" Oh and an update to my previous Ohio update: the lead in Ohio has increased to nearly 125,000. Cayahoga county is DONE (finally). Hamilton County is still being counted, where Bush has had a consistent 5-6 point lead all night. |
| Posted by: eLarson 2004-11-03 2:47:58 AM |
| #15 lex - gotta say your prognostications are pretty much on the mark. A big hats off there, and to all the RB folk. All along it's been a tough road. We're not done, but we are nearing the end of this very tough fight. This is one chapter. After this, we move to clean house on the Old Media for their monstrous betrayel of the trust of the American people. We must continue to expose Kerry for the Manchurian candidate he truly was. The Dhimmicrats need to embark on a 4 year anal exam in order to right their boat. Right now, the Republicans carry this country. I'm both thankful, and watchful. I'm a firm believer in the tradition of the loyal opposition. |
| Posted by: Rex Mundi 2004-11-03 2:31:33 AM |
| #14 4 more years-- On this side of the pond we don't "crown" our leader. He's elected by the people and serves them with their consent. |
| Posted by: lex 2004-11-03 2:12:09 AM |
| #13 Bush will take Iowa as well. Only judges and lawyers can save Kerry at this point. Let's hope he has more class and courage than Gore did four years ago. Time to concede, John. |
| Posted by: lex 2004-11-03 2:08:09 AM |
| #12 NM is definitely over. Bush up by five percent, with ninety-six percent of the vote in. |
| Posted by: lex 2004-11-03 2:06:19 AM |
| #11 It's not over yet by a long chalk. Ohio will end with kerry roughly behind; there are 150,000 provisional ballots to count. Bearing in mind that the vast number of these will probably be democratic the state is still wide open. Kerry will take hawaii, Min, Wis and possibly Nevada and iowa. Theres still a very good chance Kerry will take the crown. |
| Posted by: 4 more years! of kerry! 2004-11-03 1:57:23 AM |
| #10 Update: Bush still has a lead of just over 100,000 votes in Ohio with 92% counted. I don't consider that state over yet. (New Mexico looks more over than Ohio, IMO) |
| Posted by: eLarson 2004-11-03 1:38:31 AM |
| #9 New Mexico is looking awfully good: with 87% of precincts counted its 52% to 47% for Bush. In Iowa, now with 90% in, Bush is ahead by more than 4400 votes. (50% to 49% Bush) The late momentum has been for Bush after an early lead for Kerry. In Ohio, with 89% counted, it is 51% to 48% for Bush, a lead of 129,425 votes. I'd sure hope that's outside the margin of litigation. In Florida the Betty Castor has NOT conceded to Mel Martinez. Thanks a lot, Al "Al" Gore. |
| Posted by: eLarson 2004-11-03 1:32:20 AM |
| #8 The lesson for Dems is crystal clear: nominate a hawkish liberal, and you've got a better-than-even shot at winning the white house. Nominate a McGovernite joker and make Mikey Boy your belle o da ball, and you're toast. Rove's evangelicals will always--always-- trump the non-existent youth/afr-amer mass turnout. Dems, repeat after me: lefty kids do not vote. poor african-american bush-haters do not vote. |
| Posted by: lex 2004-11-03 1:13:15 AM |
| #7 Fox has Bush 1 electorial vote from winning -- SWEET! |
| Posted by: CrazyFool 2004-11-03 1:08:50 AM |
| #6 Kerry will still lawyer up in OH if it's close. But, as in 1864, it looks like America reelected a leader in wartime despite setbacks both real and perceived. Our enemies should take notice. This is a powerful mandate. |
| Posted by: JAB 2004-11-03 1:03:39 AM |
| #5 [Off-topic or abusive comments deleted] |
| Posted by: Choling Cheling4599 TROLL 2004-11-03 1:01:20 AM |
| #4 **BREAKING NEWS** AP CALLS OHIO FOR BUSH--BINNY BEGINS TO SPIN IN HIS SHALLOW GRAVE--DEVELOPING |
| Posted by: 2% 2004-11-03 1:00:05 AM |
| #3 I was all geared up to watch either CNN or CBS implode but so far they have kept their composure. I suppose I will have to settle for the win and forget about the gravy. |
| Posted by: 2% 2004-11-03 12:53:51 AM |
| #2 Fox called Ohio for Bush! It's basically over. All we need is either NM or a AK/HI and Bush has 271! |
| Posted by: Cyber Sarge 2004-11-03 12:42:20 AM |
| #1 If he can hold onto Ohio this race is over! Crossing fingers, toes, and eyes. |
| Posted by: Cyber Sarge 2004-11-03 12:32:21 AM |