Just a note to bring your attention to an article of mine, written this past May, which was posted today to SOLO HQ. “Bush Wins!” is my assessment of the President’s good chances of being re-elected. Here’s an excerpt from the essay:
… if there is anything the last year has shown, it is that events move rapidly, while Bush keeps pace. A parade of authors, whom the administration has labeled disgruntled former employees, has published one exposé after another, illustrating lapses in intelligence, homeland security, and war planning. The economy has not quite recovered from either a recession or the tragedy of 9/11. But Bush continues to give new meaning to the phrase “Teflon President.” …
The Bush tax cuts have not been coupled with anything that might qualify as fiscal conservatism; the President has presided over an exploding federal budget deficit—the largest in U.S. history—and an expanding federal debt. In addition, Bush has signed into law the extension of Medicare prescription drug coverage for senior citizens, thus staking a claim to a traditional Democratic voting bloc. And the cost of the Iraq War alone will soon surpass the nearly $200 billion inflation-adjusted U.S. share of the costs of World War I.
That Iraqi campaign—absent the discovery of any weapons of mass destruction or any formal ties between the Hussein regime and Al Qaeda—may have hurt some of Bush’s credibility, but it has not shaken his resolve. This resolve was first punctuated with evangelical calls for a modern-day “crusade” against the “Evil Ones,” but it has since become a mission to make the world safe for “democracy” (or Halliburton and Bechtel, depending on your perspective). For a man who campaigned against the Clintonistas’ belief in the nation-building enterprise, Bush has picked up the Wilsonian mantle proudly, while extolling the virtues of a PATRIOT Act, which has been used as a weapon against privacy and in the “war on drugs.”…
Other things being equal, voters are not going to choose Kerry, when they’ve already got in Bush a Republican dedicated to all the conventional Democratic planks: an expanding welfare state, budget deficits, and a war abroad. A long and potentially nasty campaign beckons; the race may center on 17 battleground states that are not yet claimed by either candidate and so much can happen between now and Election Day. But, as of this moment, I still think Bush wins.
Read the rest of the piece here and follow the discussion thread here. I hope to post a link to my follow-up piece, “Caught Up in the Rapture,” which has just been published by The Free Radical. That essay examines the troubling fundamentalist Christian cultural forces that are Bush’s political base; it uses some relevant points made by Murray Rothbard years ago about the relationship between pietism and interventionism.
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Bush is Toast, just watch. Even Frank Luntz, a Republican pollster, believes that Bush is going to loose.
Hey, Gary: We’ll see. I think it all depends on what happens over the next few months, and how the voting blocs line up. If Bush gets his fundamentalist base out to vote… I don’t see how he loses.
GOD help us all….
I think the tagline for Alien vs. Predator (the upcoming movie) sums up Election 2004 nicely:
“Whoever wins, we lose.”
Disclaimer: I’m not a Yankee.
In the larger scheme of things, does it really matter much who wins? Both Bush and Kerry support big and ever growing government. While some of the specifics of the Welfare/Warfare state may change modestly if Kerry does win, the overall result will still be the same: more oppressive big government. From a limited government/libertarian perspective, there is little substantive difference between Republicans and Democrats: both parties support and implement statist policies. What our nation needs is more individuals like Congressman Ron Paul; then government may change for the better.
Paul D.: Good comment.
Bush loses. Everyone who voted for Gore in 2000 is lined up ten deep to vote for Kerry in 2004, and more Old Right conservatives will just sit this one out.
Doug, you may be right. My overall point, however, mirrors Dennis’s. In the end, it won’t really matter fundamentally. The war in Iraq is now institutionalized, and the Republicans and Democrats still speak to their constituencies, while keeping all the structural realities of the welfare state intact.
If Prez. Bush is re-elected, we will lose alright. Besides the Bushite attack on the Constitution and the attempt to force evangelical Christian principles on America, there is the issue of the recession on the way.
Recession? Economic prediction? No of course not. Just that when short term rates begin to rise and government spending becomes an issue the party is over.
The stock market is a place to leave and has been for a few months now.
And anyone who believes that Greenspan “raised interest rates” needs to educate themselves. Short terms rates are rising because investors are demanding higher returns as they begin to react [finally] to reckless monetary and fiscal “policy”.
I love the yield curve. It tells an objective story and is still considered arcane. I also like the Major Currency Index.
The party was swinging while the curve was inclining and so very inclined.
I like the MCI not because it tells as clear a story as the YC, but because it confirms rising commodity prices.
Where are the voices declaring that much of the oil price rise is attributable to the loose monetary policy followed by the Bush Administration?
And I say the Bush Administration because Greenspan openly declared many months ago that they would inflate in order to assist.
Mr. Greenspan betrayed his rational principles of years ago.
GEORGE W BUSH IN NOT A BORN-AGAIN CHRISTIAN!
There’s no account of him being baptized either in water or the Holy Spirit. The following is an account of his spiritual path:
1984 – Mark Leaverton (a founder of Midland’s Community Bible Study) … I think he probably came in 1984 to our Bible study that preceded Community Bible Study (CBS). He was the vice president’s son.
1984 – George W. Bush, the oilman I prayed with to receive Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord on April 3, 1984 has gone on to become President of the United States of America. All glory to God. What to do Now! – Confess Christ Openly and Be Baptized. *THIS NEVER HAPPENED! – Arthur Blessit at:
http://www.blessitt.com/
1985 – From GWB: Reverend Graham planted a mustard seed in my soul, a seed that grew over the next year.
1985 – His heavy drinking was threatening his marriage so Bush began attending a community Bible study group in Midland. Before long, he was working on his father’s 1988 presidential campaign (where he was assigned to consult with leaders from the religious right) and turning an eye toward the governorship of Texas.
Don Poage (One of the group leaders in Midland’s Christian Bible Study): “… What I can talk about [is] .. I saw that transformative process beginning. Whether he was then quote, “saved” or not, or “born again” or not — he made a couple of comments in core group that would lead me to believe that he was.
1986 – At Bush’s 40th birthday party (July 6, 1986), with the wine flowing freely, he once again “couldn’t shut it off,” says Don Evans, Bush’s friend and campaign finance chairman. Karen Hughes, Bush’s spokeswomen said … He has said he gave up drinking the day after his 40th birthday.
CNN:Bush acknowledges 1976 DUI charge – November 2, 2000
Bush said, “I was able to share with some of the men and women here that I quit drinking in 1986 and haven’t had a drop since then.”
The Jesus Factor:
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/jesus/interviews/wead.html
Doug Wead’s advise to GWB’s Dad in 1987 Presidential Race: “So, [in] my memorandum I was saying to him, “Look, Mr. Vice President, if you’re asked the question, “Are you a born-again Christian?” you can’t say no. You can say anything else, but you can’t say no.
US News Online, “George W. Bush: Running on His Faith”
GWB: “Would you call your experience born-again? I call it a renewal of faith. But I could say that. I would say that. But you’ve got to understand, a born-again experience connotes a moment. And I would say my experience was the planting of a seed, where something grew, grew quite rapidly. But I got back to Midland. I remember reading the Bible. The words in the Bible made–you know, the same words–I began to have a better understanding. And so I would call it a renewal, an acceptance of Christ.”
Interview with the Baptist Press, the national news service of the Southern Baptist Convention, August 31, 2000
GWB: “I would describe myself as a man who was raised a Christian, who sought redemption and found it in Jesus Christ. And that’s important [to admit the need for redemption] by the way, for someone running for public office. It’s a humbling experience to make that admission. I admit I’m a lowly sinner. It’s that admission that led me to redemption and led me to Christ. Without making that admission, I don’t think there’s such a thing as redemption.”
Town Meeting. Columbia, South Carolina, February 12, 2000
GWB: “Well, I appreciate that. As you know, during a debate, one of the debates in the public arena, I was asked about a philosopher who influenced my life. I didn’t spend much time thinking about an answer. It just came out, and I said it was Christ, and it was Christ. “What does that mean? Why?” he said. And I said, “Because he’s changed my heart.” And the man said, “Could you explain it further?” And basically what I said is it’s kind of hard to explain it in 30-second sound bytes. It’s hard to explain unless you have witnessed it yourself, and so it is hard to explain.”
Wead: “But with the son, it was just instant. In 1998, 1999, 2000, within five minutes of any meetings with evangelicals, within minutes, they instantly knew he’s a born-again Christian.”
Wead: “I remember him (GW) reviewing the memorandum on Texas, and he just lit up. He said, “Ah, you know, I could do this in Texas. I could make this work in Texas.” There was no secret he was talking about running for governor. But he’d see this, and said, “Whoa.” To me, it was like the missing piece for him. Now he had become an evangelical Christian himself. So he’s reading this strategy, and he’s thinking, “Whoa, this could certainly work for me.”
US News Online, “George W. Bush: Running on His Faith”
GWB on being an evangelical: “I’m not even sure what the characteristics of an evangelical are in common parlance. I think if someone prays– I pray. I do. I believe in the power of prayer. I can’t tell you how comforting it is to me to hear people say, “I pray for you.” And it happens a lot. It does. And I say, “Thank you.” I think an evangelical believes in the power of prayer.”
Wead: “We won the [election] in 1988 with the largest percentage of evangelical support ever in American history, more than Reagan got in 1984 when he had the landslide that carried every state in the nation but Minnesota — by far more than George W. Bush had in 2000.”
Wead: “I think it might’ve been 1997, before his re-election as governor — George W. Bush was going to meet with some evangelical leaders. I called him to warn him of this surprise question that they occasionally pop. I repeated the question, which is, “If you were to die and suddenly appear before the pearly gates, and Peter said, ‘Why should I let you in?’ what would your answer be?”
He cut me off. He interrupted me before I even finished the question, and said, “I know, I know, I know. Because of the blood of Jesus Christ and because of his death for my sins,” which is the argument evangelicals make — that no one can be good enough to go to heaven, that the death of Christ is a sacrifice for our sins and you accept it in faith. That’s the whole idea. So, no problem for him. I mean, he understood where evangelicals were coming from.”
Wead: “Well, my advice to George Bush Sr. was, “Signal early, signal often.” My advice to George W. Bush would be, “Signal early.” The reason George Bush Sr. needed to signal often was because he was not known as someone who had sympathies towards evangelicals, or even understood them. So he needed to drive that home. …”
GWB Signals toooo often to mention.
1999 – “Pastor Craig said that America is starved for honest leaders. He told the story of Moses, asked by God to lead his people to a land of milk and honey.” … “He was talking to you,” my mother later said. … “hearing this rousing sermon, to make most of every moment, during my inaugural church service, I gradually felt more comfortable with the prospect of a presidential campaign” Bush sees his presidency as willed by God.
GWB IS NO MOSES!
John 3:5 – Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.
Matthew 5:1 – And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain: and when he was set, his disciples came unto him: 2 And he opened his mouth, and taught them, saying, 3 Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4 Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted. 5 Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth. 6 Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled. 7 Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy. 8 Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God. 9 Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God. 10 Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
1 John 2:4 – He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.
2 John 1:7 – For many deceivers are entered into the world, who confess not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist.
I think you will find this interesting. I checked the facts and sadly this is all true.
http://superchango.com/stuff/The_United_States_of_Mammon-memo.pdf
At the risk of sounding “fanatical”, the Book Of Rev is really starting to scare me. I feel as if we are following the Devil.
Thanks and God Bless America!
Amber
Look at this as another opportunity to let the people unite. A lot can happen in 4 years.
If you’re against the re-appointment of the President, then you should look at this situation. If Kerry had won, then people would sit back down with a “we won” attitude and the progression of the people would slow. At least now we can stay mad, and make changes within ourselves.
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