Posted on 11/03/2004 3:25:57 AM PST by Happy2BMe
WASHINGTON Nov 3, 2004 — President Bush crept close to re-election early Wednesday, leading challenger John Kerry in a campaign cliffhanger framed by war in Iraq and joblessness at home. Ohio held the key, stirring echoes of Florida in 2000, but this time Bush's advantage was substantial.
With a majority of the popular vote in hand, the Republican president planned to declare victory early Wednesday. "We are convinced that President Bush has won re-election," White House chief of staff Andrew Card said shortly before dawn in the East.
Ceding nothing, Kerry went to bed without conceding. "We will fight for every vote," his running mate, Sen. John Edwards, told supporters in Boston, where he and the four-term Massachusetts senator waited out the late, long count.
Card said Bush not only won a second term but Republicans added "to our majority in the House and … to our majority in the Senate."
As Bush made plans to declare victory, his high command dispatched a 10-person political and legal team to Ohio in the event Kerry triggered a Florida-like fight. Card said Bush delayed his own public statement to "give Senator Kerry the respect of more time to reflect on the results of this election."
That was a veiled request for Kerry to bow out gracefully, and avoid the rancor that accompanied a 36-day recount in Florida four years ago.
That margin was small, but Bush's lead in Ohio is substantial Card called it "statistically insurmountable, even after provisional ballots are considered."
With Bush leading by 145,000 votes and roughly 190,000 yet to be counted, one top Kerry adviser said the Democrat's chances of winning Ohio, and with it the White House, were difficult at best.
Michael Moore and Jesse Jackson were here around the time folks were getting out of work to vote.
There was no disenfranchisement - only fraud perpetuated by the Dems.
If they want to go there, some pretty high profile Dems could be looking at jail time.
I'm thinking Kerry may have no choice to but concede.
Just announced on Fox: The AP is going to Ohio to canvass all the votes to see if the vote is indeed insurmountable.
In keeping with their outrageous behavior as handmaidens of the DNC.
http://election.sos.state.oh.us/Results/RaceSummary.aspx
http://election.sos.state.oh.us/ProvBallots.htm
Why is the AP involved? Isn't the state smart enough to count their own votes? MSM arrogance!
The AP handled the exit polling data yesterday, too.
John Podhoretz wants an investigation into attempts to manipulate the election AND the stock market.
And If the results were reversed, they'd be leading the charge to call on President Bush to just concede already (of course, the Bush team doesn't engage in fantasy votes).
Has anyone checked the total number of votes (absentee included) to the actual amount of people living in Ohio? I want to make sure when they start counting all these votes, that they are actually legitimate votes.
What the hell is going on in the upper midwest?
They looked on their Kinko's bill.
He is 136,000 shy in Ohio. Too bad so sad.
20,000 shy in NV.
12,000 shy in NM.
And 16,000 shy in Iowa.
Now what I want to know is WHICH freeper posted that thread about "I am not going to sleep until W is declared winner"...I bet they are pretty darn sleepy...
Well it figures. I went to bed last night at 3 am after Bush had won, and this morning, according to the AP, he has "crept close to re-election."
With those groups of 35,000 nad 27,000 fraudulent registrations, Kerry will not prevail!
It is IMPOSSIBLE for Kerry to steal Ohio!
Wanna bet?
True..but I believe it doesn't work that way.. The provisional ballots are first verified, or excluded, WITHOUT being opened. Then, next week, the ones that are deemed kosher, they're opened along with the overseas/absentee ballots, at the same time. This way one side doesn't know how many votes it needs..
I'm wondering if Bush can pick up some of these other close states that have been called for Kerry like PA and NH if there are enough absentee & absentee military votes not counted. Does anyone have numbers on uncounted absentee votes in NH, PA, and OH? We are hearing all this noise about the provisional ballots in OH, but how many uncounted absentee votes are there? Do the absentee votes keep coming in for days in those states?
I heard a member of Skerry/Edwards rapid response legal team this morning on the radio in Boston, and he said it is impossible for Kerry to win, even though he could be called up to advocate for the losers. I think Boston freepers ought to come out and make some noise if he doesn't concede quickly. Also, Boston ought to get on Jay Severeigns case, a radio personality who could have done much more to help us in the state races and for the President in NH, but he chooses to be a pompous jerk, overly critical of President Bush. I believe this guy had much to do with Romney's success 2 years ago. Also, let's beat Kerry in 2006 (I think he is up then). Weld could beat him now.
I also noted that Kerry got a whopping 27% of the vote in Utah. Maybe he should send his teams of lawyers there...
I like your attitude! Are you Texan?
So, when's the first 2000-style protest if Kerry decides to try and steal the election this year? :-/
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