GOP Warns of Impact on Voter Turnout

Yahoo-AP ^ | July 23, 2002 | DAVID ESPO

[MHT]

Media spin--pure and simple. Greenspan, Kudlow, Samuelson, etc. are right--the economy is fundamentally solid and on-track. Like the general economy, most companies are fundamentally sound and many have reported higher than expected profits. Both unemployment and interest rates are low--a nice co-incidence. Those firms which are basically good companies with accounting problems will take the hit, have a couple of bad quarters re-adjusting, and bounce back in a year.

The problem is that fundamentals are slow and boring. Market technicians who have become seers and prophets are the popular talking heads of all-day cable. Throw in a few gallons of fuel on the fire, provided by the means-spirited, hateful ilk of Gephardt and Gore, and what could anyone expect?

The media, with Fox as the exception rather than the rule, is doing all it can to fan the gloom-and-doom fire. The only thing that one can do is pray that people might finally be wising up. I even heard young people interviewed on tv saying that they weren't going to sell any stocks as they know that the markets will go back up. We can only hope that they have the same circumspect attitude when it comes to separating truth from bull in November.

[MHT]

I just got back from Europe and had Fox withdrawal while over there. CNN and MSNBC do nothing but spend the day talking down the administration. Fox, at its greatest level of "balanced" is nothing compared to the spin presented by the others, especially overseas.

[rdb3]

It is just that the RATS are trying to take advantage of this, trying to blame it on the GOP.

True, but it's not just RATS.

[AmericanInTokyo]

They could well stretch it out. When people's 401 k's evaporate, and that money is GONE.... and even if it takes another four months till the election, the demagogues in the Democrat Party can well keep it alive and inflame hatred in the ranks of the sheeple. I tend to think it is not a particularly long way away, because it is a bedrock pocketbook issue.

[eureka!]

Poll ping...

[Robear]

I keep thinking "How are they pinning this on GW when this was SOP under the previous admininstration (not to mention how the GAO cooks the books). I keep coming up with: the Media is in active collusion with the DemocRats to attack Bush at all costs. Once again, here's the Republican Party standing idly by with its hand in its pockets playing with itself, it's going to lose seats. This stuff is EASILY countered with the TRUTH, but they better start airing some commercials and get their agenda in the press somehow, fast!

[Robear]

Exactly! Does anyone recall the feeling right after 9/11 that all the P.C. Democrat pushed agendas have made us vunerable such as open borders, smaller military, etc. Those are Democrat agenda forced upon the public as a good thing. We now see the results. It is well past time for the Republicans to paint the Democrats as the Anti-American party, the party that puts your family in danger. Make the Democrats back pedal for once. Actually, they need to be destroyed as a party.

[cogitator]

I think we are in serious trouble this fall..

I'll choose this reply to you to try and get some attention about what everybody's forgetting.

THE GOP LEADS THE DEMS IN FUNDRAISING FOR THIS ELECTION NEARLY 3-1.

Local elections turn on local issues and good advertising. The key to control of the Senate and the House will be where the money is spent and on what: ads that mean something significant to the voters seeing them. Bush's face can only go so far, but it will help if his popularity stays high. But local issues (and that many times means the local economy) will determine who wins and who loses.

[section9]

Media spin--pure and simple. Greenspan, Kudlow, Samuelson, etc. are right--the economy is fundamentally solid and on-track. Like the general economy, most companies are fundamentally sound and many have reported higher than expected profits. Both unemployment and interest rates are low--a nice co-incidence. Those firms which are basically good companies with accounting problems will take the hit, have a couple of bad quarters re-adjusting, and bounce back in a year.

I'm no market maven, but I do understand that there is a difference between the market and the economy. The economy is fundamentally sound and improving. There's no panic out there. The market, otoh, is in a late bear market "blood on the floor" mood. I personally believe that we are closer to a bottom than we suspect, simply because the overall economy is quite strong.

However, the market does affect the national mood. I expect the "tanking" phase of the market to end within a couple of weeks. If I'm wrong, then no matter how fundamentally sound the economy may be, Republicans will lose at the polls. That's just reality. The poster above is right about the sheeple: bad market=bad economy=blame sitting President. There are times, after all, when the masses are asses. Recall that Clinton stayed in town only because he was riding a stock market boom.

The problem is that fundamentals are slow and boring. Market technicians who have become seers and prophets are the popular talking heads of all-day cable. Throw in a few gallons of fuel on the fire, provided by the means-spirited, hateful ilk of Gephardt and Gore, and what could anyone expect?

BUT the fundamentals are there, nonetheless.

The market cannot for long ignore the improvement in the economy. It CAN divest itself of the ridiculous gains of the 1990's tulip craze, and that's what all the blood on the floor is about. What we as a party should emphasize is that the market's value must be rebuilt on sound principles of true accounting and good value for money. The 1990's was not about that. It was about a political and economic leadership that told investors that there was nothing but blue sky on the horizon. The present attack line of the Democratic Party is to try and justify AmericaOnline at 450.00 a share, or Yahoo at 400 to secure Clinton in history, while attacking George W. Bush, who is innocent of any of this crap.

Everybody bought into Blue Sky. While everyone was buying into Blue Sky and the "repeal of the business cycle", guys like Ken Lay, Terry McAuliffe, and Michael Eisner were gaming the system. That's why we are where we are.

But in the end, it is the American people who will right this boat. Indeed, I suspect they about the business of righting it already. I hear a lot of bitching about the market, of course, but people will go on and recover.

As will George W. Bush, btw.

The media, with Fox as the exception rather than the rule, is doing all it can to fan the gloom-and-doom fire. The only thing that one can do is pray that people might finally be wising up. I even heard young people interviewed on tv saying that they weren't going to sell any stocks as they know that the markets will go back up. We can only hope that they have the same circumspect attitude when it comes to separating truth from bull in November.

If the economy starts to muscle in on the Market, as I suspect it will, then we will do better come the fall. As for the Market itself, I simply suggest that we hold in diversified portfolios. Indeed, there are many who suggest that now is the time to begin positioning onesself for some big buys.

There's a problem with this market that's ailing it. Many of the fund managers are young guys who came up in the Tulip Craze. They don't have the experience of trading in a true bear market. Thus, a lot of blood is on the floor. On the other hand, the older and wiser heads are positioned in bonds, precious metals, and are sitting on huge cash positions waiting for Der Tag. I am not as pessimistic as some of the bears, as I understand that this stuff works in cycles. After all, only liberal Democrats believe that the business cycle can be repealed.

One of the things that will pick the market up is when the news of the mobilization to get Saddam is getting under way. This is going to start happening soon. Part of what the investing classes are looking for is some action on the terrorist/Saddam front. They are about to get it. That will only help the market.

Be Seeing You,

Chris

[OldFriend]

Did you watch FNC coverage of the Israeli attack last night? Have you seen their continued coverage of lamenting the loss of 'innocent' Palestinian life?

Guess Ailes is worried about offending muslims.........

To say nothing of having Juan Williams doing news over the weekend........aaarrrrrrggggghhhhhhh

[newgeezer]

"And among female voters who swing between the parties, the economy was not the only issue, the report said. 'Of the dozens of issues we tested among swing women voters, getting tough on HMOs and prescription drugs for vulnerable seniors top the list.'"

More evidence that Amendment XIX -- every Amendment after XV -- should be repealed.

[biblewonk]

More evidence that Amendment XIX -- every Amendment after XV -- should be repealed.

The only swing women voters should either be unmarried or married to swing male voters. :-)

[gunnedah]

The average American is caught between a rock and a hard place.Regardless of what we do more of the burden will be placed on us until foreigners take over the working sector and we have died out.
If the Democrats succeed they take over the Supreme Court and America has really gone to HELL!The floodgates are already open to all of the world and the liberal agenda is to tax and spend until their are no longer any legitimate Americans left in this country,especially white males.The Democrat Party is ruthless,anti white middle to lower class and are dead set on making America a Socialist Country.The Democrat Party is now in control of the Communication Services of America as shown by their PACs giving 98% of their donations to the Democrat Party.The Democrats control the Teamsters Union whose donations to them exceed 85% of all Teamsters donations to politics and the biggest indicator showing where we are headed is The American Trial Lawyers Association delivers 87% of their political contributions to the Democrats.The Democrat Party screams about Corporate America but look at Hillarys inside enfo into her investments and especially Terry MacCauliffe the Democrat Party Leader who made 18 million dollars over a $100,000 dollar investment,which I believe is better than Martha Stewart.And by the way who was it that flew off week before last in Corporate jets to a corporate funded fun and frolick event,well hell it was those Democrats who are raising hell about corporate Amercica.Also the Democrats control the NEA who is responsible for what our children are being taught.
Now who is it we can trust in the Republican Party?I for one dont have a the faintest idea.To be truthful I believe the whole bunch both Democrats and Republicans are in bed together and all this screaming and hollering is a smoke screen to cover all of them.
All of this leads to us choosing the lesser of the two evils or sitting at home.WHICH ONE WILL YOU CHOOSE?

[TLBSHOW]

it has been the rat plan to get low voter turn out from the right. If the gop paid any attention this has been known here at FR since January, wait till the rats have tv hearings all fall with the sole purpose of free tv ads for the democrats while painting the republicans as the bad ones.

[Red Jones]

if conservatives stay home, then republicans have nobody to blame but themselves - you are so correct about that

It made me sick to read a republican spokesperson say that they are trying to deal with the bad economy. The only thing republicans are doing for the economy is to increase federal spending very dramatically, faster even than the dems did.

The democrats are slime, we can all see that, but the reason why in all this time the repubs can't become the dominant party is because the republicans are the republicans. Lots of americans know the dems are slime, but also have a very deep dislike of the republicans, and for good reason, the republicans set policies that are harmful to lots of americans.

The republicans got over 50.0% of the popular vote in the 1984 house of representatives races nationwide. The people saw Reagan, a conservative, they liked him and voted republican. But since then the republicans have consistently supported high taxes, burdensome job-killing regulations, out of control spending, just like they used to criticize the dems for doing, then they wonder why they can't become the dominant party despite the democrats' obvious shortcomings that includes a large amount of criminal activity surrounding clinton.

[Red Jones]

if the republicans have among them somebody who is good at countering the liberals in the media, then the republicans will realize that the media will attack this person and the republicans themselves weed the guy out. In the minds of these republicans they are protecting themselves. On top of that you've got to realize that of the people that count in the republican party really are a bit liberal in that they really do strongly oppose conservatives. Ronald Reagan was strongly opposed by republican party leaders before he proved his popularity with the voters. Today a politician like Reagan would simply be weeded out early and doesn't have a chance inside the republican party.

Witness how people in the Bush administration showed disapproval of Simon in California. Witness how Schundler was sandbagged by the republicans in new jersey. Witness how high tax, big spending, corporate fascist type republicans are given the good committee assignments in congress. Witness how the RNC rushes money to the primary opponents of conservative republicans.

We should not forget that while bill clinton was president we witnessed that both parties are corrupt.

[TheLooseThread]

Why should any of this look bad on Republicans?

Here's what I think:

These managers are the children of the "Peace. Make Love, Not War, Burn Baby Burn" generation. It is a generation of no specific right or wrong. It is a generation of form over function. It is a generation of liberalism.

These flower children have grown up. And usually the ones who say that money doesn't count when they are young are the ones trying to snap it up when they get older.

These are industrial leaders with no moral compass. Their generation has taken over steerage of the big ships and they are crashing on the rocks. Their children are out of control, they are divorced, they have health problems from sleeping around, and the CAN'T run a buisiness.

It is all, yet, another indication of the bankruptcy of the liberal approach to life (and buisiness).

[stand watie]

if the GOP would start proposing CONSERVATIVE, family-friendly programs as RR did, we wouldn't have to worry about turnout.

for dixie,sw

[stand watie]

for starters, W should FIRE the dimmie at the Forest Service who ordered everybody camping in a park or forest to take their American flags down!

it's stuff like that being TOLERATED by the government that makes me nuts!

for dixie,sw

[Reaganwuzthebest]

The democrats are slime, we can all see that...

Yes the liberals are slime, but like you said conservatives are not only fighting them, we're fighting liberal RINOs in the Republican party as well. Some things are just common sense, and even thinking on voting for a Barney Frank bill to allow convicted felons back into the country is not very well thought out to say the least.

The Republican establishment thinks all voters have on their minds is Social Security and prescription drugs. Many do, but lots of us have other important issues we're thinking about as well, like runaway illegal immigration and open borders, which they are completely ignoring. In fact, I don't even see that issue mentioned in this story.

They had better wake up from the dream world they're living in if they want to hold on to the House and win the Senate.