# Why would you still give GW Bush your vote? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [May 16, 2004, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-you-still-give-gw-bush-your-vote/245478 "2004-05-16T21:34:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 7
**Author:** ![quelquechose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/6f9a4e/32.png) [@quelquechose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/quelquechose)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2004, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-you-still-give-gw-bush-your-vote/245478/121 "2004-05-19T22:24:55Z")
> [@Senggüm](#): > > :: UNCLE! :: Your elaborate dissertation has convinced me that the Bush economic policies in the first two months of his administration caused the 2001 recession. After carefully reading through all the posts in this thread by **cheddarsnax** I have found exactly _zero_ instances in which he says, or even implies that the Bush economic policies in the first two months caused the recession. He has merely pointed out that the start of the recession in March is not a “leftist fabrication” as you had claimed. ---
**Author:** ![Senggum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@Senggum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senggum)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2004, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-you-still-give-gw-bush-your-vote/245478/122 "2004-05-19T22:29:37Z")
> [@quelquechose](#): > > After carefully reading through all the posts in this thread by **cheddarsnax** I have found exactly _zero_ instances in which he says, or even implies that the Bush economic policies in the first two months caused the recession. He has merely pointed out that the start of the recession in March is not a “leftist fabrication” as you had claimed. Whew … was thinking otherwise … ---
**Author:** ![iamme99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/57b2e6/32.png) [@iamme99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamme99)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2004, 3:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-you-still-give-gw-bush-your-vote/245478/123 "2004-05-20T03:02:25Z")
> [@quelquechose](#): > > After carefully reading through all the posts in this thread by **cheddarsnax** I have found exactly _zero_ instances in which he says, or even implies that the Bush economic policies in the first two months caused the recession. He has merely pointed out that the start of the recession in March is not a “leftist fabrication” as you had claimed. The important question isn’t who or what caused the lasted recession, but what was done to recover from it. I’m not going to get drawn into what has already been discussed on many other threads here, but IMO, Bush did not and has not not made the right economic choices for the country. The wealthy got their tax reduction but they haven’t used their money to create the jobs as we were promised they would do with their additional money. The last two positive job growth reports have proven to be statistical manipulations and/or consisted mainly of part-time jobs (go search the economic threads here where I have posted the details on this previously). Furthermore, we are now saddled with AT LEAST a $500 billion deficit that some are saying could go as high as $7 TRILLION in the next few years. And I don’t think the cost of the Iraq war is figured into the current $500 billion number yet. Lastly, the current high price of gas here will affect economic activity and if gas stays high, it could drive the current weak recovery back into recession. Like Iraq, Bush has failed on the economic front. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2004, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-you-still-give-gw-bush-your-vote/245478/124 "2004-05-20T03:35:33Z")
> [@](#): > > Furthermore, we are now saddled with AT LEAST a $500 billion deficit that some are saying could go as high as $7 TRILLION in the next few years. And I don’t think the cost of the Iraq war is figured into the current $500 billion number yet. Wow. A $7 trillion deficit! You might want to check your numbers again. In actuality, the deficit projection for next year may be revised DOWN by $100 billion due to higher-than-anticipated growth and tax revenue. The CBO’s budget projection is that the deficit will be cut in half within four years. And in constant dollars, today’s deficits are still lower than the peak deficits of the early 1980’s and 1991. Not that deficits are a good thing, and Bush’s inability to control spending is one of the biggest strikes against him, but let’s not start fear-mongering. I’m not American, but if I were, I would vote for Bush in a heartbeat. I have plenty of disagreements with him, but I think in broad strokes his policies are correct - a pro-active, aggressive war on terror. Reforming the middle east. The invasion of Iraq (yes, I still agree with it, quite strongly). On economic matters, Bush believes in lower taxes and fewer regulations. He SAYS he also believes in smaller government, but there’s no evidence to support this. Given the choice, he prefers market-oriented solutions to big government. As do I. And, I’d be an ABK voter (Anyone But Kerry). John Kerry strikes me as an obnoxious human being, an opportunist, a snotty elitist, and a man who is willing to twist with the prevailing winds if it will get him into power. If he can be said to beleive in anything, it’s that big government is your friend. He wants to ‘re-regulate’ business. He wants government to be your nanny, looking after you when you’re sick, looking after your kids while you work, protecting you from the vagaries of the marketplace, etc. These are all things that are deeply distasteful to me, and which I believe fly in the face of economic good sense. Kerry is also a liar, and tends to blame other people for every mistake. When he fell skiing, it was the fault of the ‘son of a bitch’ Secret Service agent who got in his way. When he was criticized for calling American Businessmen who outsource “Benedict Arnold CEOs” (i.e. traitors), [urlhttp://www.suntimes.com/output/steyn/cst-edt-steyn09.html]he blamed his speechwriters: > [@](#): > > John Kerry said something amazing the other day. He was talking to the Wall Street Journal and was asked about his many attacks on ‘‘Benedict Arnold CEOs’’ – for example: ‘‘We will repeal every single benefit, every single loophole, every single reward for any Benedict Arnold CEO or corporation that take American jobs overseas and stick you with the bill.’’ (Kerry in Virginia, Feb. 10) > > Senator Flippy has now decided this line is nonoperative. As he told the chaps at the Journal, ''You know, I called a couple of times to overzealous speechwriters and said ‘Look, that’s not what I’m saying.’ See, “That’s not what he’s saying”. It’s those damned speechwriters. He keeps telling them to take the Benedict Arnold rhetoric out, and they keep putting it back into his speeches. So of course he HAS to say it. 746 times. But if you get mad about it, just remember: it’s not his fault. He is but a helpless slave to his speechwriters. This is a pattern for Kerry. His prevarications and denials are jaw-droppingly stupid. I’ve known people like John Kerry. They’re the guys in the company who suck up to the brass and step on the people below them. They’re the ones that blame their subordinates for all their screwups. They have no friends that they didn’t buy. They think character can be purchased with a $150 haircut and a $1000 suit. He would make a horrible president. He isn’t even a good Senator. He’s got a weak voting record, has introduced very few bills, and has spotty attendance. ---
**Author:** ![aurelian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f4b2a3/32.png) [@aurelian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aurelian)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2004, 3:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-you-still-give-gw-bush-your-vote/245478/125 "2004-05-20T03:58:42Z")
Sam Stone said, regarding Kerry: > [@](#): > > He’s got a weak voting record, has introduced very few bills, and has spotty attendance. Excellent point, especially when you consider that the current president never takes vacation days. Oh, wait. Well, it was _only_ 250. As of August 2003… ---
**Author:** ![iamme99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/57b2e6/32.png) [@iamme99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamme99)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2004, 4:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-you-still-give-gw-bush-your-vote/245478/126 "2004-05-20T04:06:52Z")
> [@Sam Stone](#): > > I’ve known people like John Kerry. They’re the guys in the company who suck up to the brass and step on the people below them. They’re the ones that blame their subordinates for all their screwups. They have no friends that they didn’t buy. They think character can be purchased with a $150 haircut and a $1000 suit. > > He would make a horrible president. He isn’t even a good Senator. He’s got a weak voting record, has introduced very few bills, and has spotty attendance. Well I for one am thankful that you aren’t an American citizen. One less misinformed vote for Bush to worry about. Please, stay in Canada, don’t move south. Re: Kerry, you might want to take a look at Arrianna Huffington’s latest: [John Kerry and Bobby Kennedy’s Unfinished Mission](http://www.ariannaonline.com/columns/column.php?id=712) ---
**Author:** ![iamme99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/57b2e6/32.png) [@iamme99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamme99)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2004, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-you-still-give-gw-bush-your-vote/245478/127 "2004-05-20T04:08:58Z")
Found this on another web board: 😃😃😃 > [@](#): > > Doctors agree - America needs to go on a strict diet in order to reduce obesity, and save what’s left of the heart of the country. > > **NO-CARB Diet for 2004** > > NO **C** -heney > NO **A** -shcroft > NO **R** -umsfeld > NO **B** -ush > > and “Absolutely NO RICE!” > > Take the fat out of fatheads! ---
**Author:** ![aurelian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f4b2a3/32.png) [@aurelian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aurelian)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2004, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-you-still-give-gw-bush-your-vote/245478/128 "2004-05-20T04:48:22Z")
Wow, a Bush supporter attacking the intellectual capabilities of John Kerry. \ You’d think the force of the irony alone would make one’s head explode. But seriously, **Sam Stone** , why is it that you actually list events, concrete goals in your support of Bush (the war on terror, his pro-active stance on the world stage, his overall view of government) but when it comes to explaining why you don’t like Kerry, the best you can come up with is how he _strikes_ you? Bush hasn’t said dumb stuff (repeatedly) written by his speech-writers? Bush isn’t elitist? Bush hasn’t lied? It would be nice, I think, if there could be at least one post in this whole thread that actually answered the original question, “Why re-elect Bush?” Bush supporters, ostensibly, have the luxury of voting for someone who reflects their values and interests, and coming from the other side of the fence (hmmm…‘throw my vote away’ or vote for someone I don’t really support because they’re not as bad as Bush?) I’d like to know why. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2004, 5:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-you-still-give-gw-bush-your-vote/245478/129 "2004-05-20T05:47:06Z")
You sure you read the right message? Because in mine I described what I didn’t like about his economics, view of government, and desire to burden everyone with more regulations. Those are issues. I then went on to explain why I didn’t like him _personally_. Why did you ignore the first part? ---
**Author:** ![blowero](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/41988e/32.png) [@blowero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blowero)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2004, 8:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-you-still-give-gw-bush-your-vote/245478/130 "2004-05-20T08:25:52Z")
> [@Sam Stone](#): > > You sure you read the right message? Because in mine I described what I didn’t like about his economics, view of government, and desire to burden everyone with more regulations. Those are issues. I then went on to explain why I didn’t like him _personally_. Why did you ignore the first part? You said: “obnoxious human being, an opportunist, a snotty elitist, and a man who is willing to twist with the prevailing winds if it will get him into power. If he can be said to beleive in anything, it’s that big government is your friend. He wants to ‘re-regulate’ business. He wants government to be your nanny, looking after you when you’re sick, looking after your kids while you work, protecting you from the vagaries of the marketplace, etc. These are all things that are deeply distasteful to me, and which I believe fly in the face of economic good sense.” I don’t really see any specifics in there. The most specific thing you mentioned was the skiing incident, which has absolutely nothing to do with his policies. Or was there another “first part” that I missed? ---
**Author:** ![iamme99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/57b2e6/32.png) [@iamme99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamme99)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2004, 8:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-you-still-give-gw-bush-your-vote/245478/131 "2004-05-20T08:28:37Z")
Even the Catholic church is getting into the act of dis’ing Bush, calling him and his administration a “moral failure”. 😃 > [@](#): > > **U.S. Cardinal Accuses Bush of Moral Failure in Iraq** > Tue May 18, 2004 10:48 AM ET > > VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - A senior American cardinal in the Vatican has accused the U.S. administration of “moral failure” and deception in Iraq and warned the war had severely compromised future relations with the Arab world. > In an interview due to be published in the June edition of “Inside the Vatican” magazine, Cardinal James Francis Stafford also said the abuse of Iraqi prisoners was the work of “barbarians.” An advance copy was made available to Reuters. > > Stafford, the former archbishop of Denver who has been working in the Vatican since 1996, said the reasons for starting the war in Iraq were a “moral failure” because there had been no conclusive proof of weapons of mass destruction. > > “Why did the president, the vice-president and the secretary of defense say there was an immediate danger to the peace of American society by the proximate use of weapons that would come from Iraq, either directly or through al Qaeda?” he said. > > “Why did they say that when they didn’t have direct evidence?” Stafford said. > > Stafford, who is close to Pope John Paul, said he feared the abuse of Iraqi prisoners by the U.S. military would have long-term consequences on relations with Arabs and Muslims. > > “Muslims are outraged and truly deceived because we are imposing the same type of life upon Iraqi society that we said we were going to rescue them from. It’s the very opposite of what we said we were going to do,” he said. > > “Not only have we humiliated the Iraqi people, but we’ve deceived them. We’ve deceived the Arab peoples,” he said. > > “Is this what American democracy is producing? Men and women who, just below the surface, are barbarians … Is that what we’re producing?” he said. > > The pope strongly opposed the war and dispatched envoys to both President Bush and Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein to try to avert the conflict. > > [Link](http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=politicsNews&storyID=5180232) ---
**Author:** ![jshore](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/b5e925/32.png) [@jshore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jshore)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2004, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-you-still-give-gw-bush-your-vote/245478/132 "2004-05-20T14:33:37Z")
> [@Sam Stone](#): > > The CBO’s budget projection is that the deficit will be cut in half within four years. Under a [variety](http://www.cbpp.org/1-28-04bud.htm) of rosy assumptions including: (1) that Bush doesn’t get his way and the tax cuts are allowed to sunset. (2) that there is no reform of the alternate minimum tax (AMT) and so the number of filers impacted will rise from 3 million today to 29 million in 2010. (3) very optimistic assumptions about spending. [See also [here](http://www.ctj.org/pdf/def0104.pdf) for another analysis with similar conclusions.] Furthermore, I don’t think this is the first thread in which I have pointed this out to you and yet you continue to bring it up without any caveats. It seems particularly ludicrous to bring up an assumption about the deficit under Bush that is based on something–allowing the tax cuts to sunset–that Bush has been very clear he does not want to happen, particularly given that this Republican Congress hasn’t shown a lot of balls in terms of standing up to Bush as he drives the fiscal state of this country into the ground. > [@](#): > > I’m not American, but if I were, I would vote for Bush in a heartbeat. Surprise! Surprise! You keep bringing this up as if it were not a forgone conclusion. > [@](#): > > Kerry is also a liar, and tends to blame other people for every mistake. … > > … > I’ve known people like John Kerry. They’re the guys in the company who suck up to the brass and step on the people below them. They’re the ones that blame their subordinates for all their screwups. Replace the name “John Kerry” with George Bush and you have a very accurate description here. George “I can’t think of a mistake I’ve made” Bush. George “I read the report put out by the bureaucracy” Bush. George “The buck doesn’t stop anywhere close to me” Bush. ---
**Author:** ![Squink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@Squink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squink)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2004, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-you-still-give-gw-bush-your-vote/245478/133 "2004-05-20T14:47:47Z")
> [@iamme99](#): > > Even the Catholic church is getting into the act of dis’ing Bush, calling him and his administration a “moral failure”. 😃 Weird thing about that is that they’re still allowing Bush supporters to take communion. That hijack probably needs a thread of its own, but as far as I’m concerned, its not worth the ensuing shitfest. ---
**Author:** ![cheddarsnax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a587f6/32.png) [@cheddarsnax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cheddarsnax)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2004, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-you-still-give-gw-bush-your-vote/245478/134 "2004-05-20T19:37:42Z")
> [@Sam Stone](#): > > Kerry is also a liar, and tends to blame other people for every mistake. When he fell skiing, it was the fault of the ‘son of a bitch’ Secret Service agent who got in his way. Sam, he was joking. You’re just parroting RNC talking points here; I find it hard to believe that anyone could actually hold an offhand, joking remark like that against someone. ---
**Author:** ![rjung](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/45deac/32.png) [@rjung](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rjung)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2004, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-you-still-give-gw-bush-your-vote/245478/135 "2004-05-20T19:47:29Z")
**Sam Stone** would love John Kerry if he’d only stick a little “(Republican)” tag next to his name on the ballot. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2004, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-you-still-give-gw-bush-your-vote/245478/136 "2004-05-20T20:11:58Z")
> [@Sam Stone](#): > > Not that deficits are a good thing, and Bush’s inability to control spending is one of the biggest strikes against him Well, you got that right, anyway. > [@](#): > > I think in broad strokes his policies are correct - a pro-active, aggressive war on terror. Reforming the middle east. The invasion of Iraq (yes, I still agree with it, quite strongly). Sounds good, but you do have to consider if what he’s done promotes or impedes those goals, don’t you? Those of us who do have voting responsibility here have to consider the realities - we can’t afford to limit our consideration to the attractiveness of fantasies. We are also the ones paying for the Iraq war, paying in every way, and, quite bluntly, we don’t have to give credence to the blithe opinions of those who don’t. > [@](#): > > And, I’d be an ABK voter (Anyone But Kerry). John Kerry strikes me as an obnoxious human being (Long string of boilerplate blogger invective follows). Got any specific instances that support any of that, any at all? Oh wait, here’s the best you can do: > [@](#): > > When he fell skiing, it was the fault of the ‘son of a bitch’ Secret Service agent who got in his way. Dunno what the ski areas use for safety rules in Alberta, but [they’re clear enough down here](http://www.nsaa.org/nsaa2002/_safety.asp?mode=the_code), and include: > [@](#): > > - Always stay in control, and be able to stop or avoid other people or objects. > > -People ahead of you have the right of way. It is your responsibility to avoid them. A skier who violates the code and causes a collision can quite reasonably be called a “son of a bitch”, and is at risk of getting his lift pass pulled. But that is the first factual reason you can come up with for why would refuse to vote for Kerry, huh? Tell us, is your “ABK” view your conclusion or your _premise_? > [@](#): > > He is but a helpless slave to his speechwriters. For a dead-ender Bush supporter to say that is beyond ironic. Look, this board isn’t entirely, or even mainly, about convincing each other or even ourselves of a position. The real effect is on those who read these threads but don’t post, because there are a lot more of them than us. What do you think the effect is on someone who is genuinely undecided, looking for the best arguments either way, comes across this post of yours, and concludes that that’s the worst anyone can say about Kerry? ---
**Author:** ![zoo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/71c47a/32.png) [@zoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zoo)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2004, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-you-still-give-gw-bush-your-vote/245478/137 "2004-05-20T21:15:24Z")
As a long time member of this board who does very little posting, I would like to affirm what ElvisL1ves writes about using this board for information as well as entertainment. A reason I may be compelled to vote for Bush is the effect his policies may have had upon the company I work for. My company produces a product that only the top 1/10th of 1% can afford to buy. If the tax cuts for the very wealthy improve the sales of this product, I have much to gain. As much as it may benefit me personally in the short term, I feel Bush’s policies are doing long-term damage to our country. If where I live is a battleground state, I will vote for Kerry this year. If the vote looks well assured either way, I will select a third party candidate to show my support. ---
**Author:** ![jshore](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/b5e925/32.png) [@jshore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jshore)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2004, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-you-still-give-gw-bush-your-vote/245478/138 "2004-05-20T21:19:34Z")
> [@jshore](#): > > Under a [variety](http://www.cbpp.org/1-28-04bud.htm) of rosy assumptions including… [Here](http://www.cbo.gov/showdoc.cfm?index=4985&sequence=2) is what CBO itself has to say about its baseline projections: > [@](#): > > The projections that make up CBO’s baseline are not intended to be predictions of future budgetary outcomes but rather CBO’s best judgment of how the economy and other factors would affect federal revenues and spending under current laws and policies. CBO constructs its baseline according to rules set forth in law, mainly in the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 and the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974. (For further discussion of the federal budget process, see Box 1-1.) In general, those laws instruct CBO and the Office of Management and Budget to project federal spending and revenues under current policies. Lawmakers can then use the baseline as a neutral benchmark against which to measure the effects of proposed changes in tax and spending policies. > > For revenues and mandatory spending, the Deficit Control Act requires that the baseline be projected under the assumption that present laws continue without change.(7) In most cases, the laws that govern revenues and mandatory spending are permanent. The baseline projections reflect anticipated changes in the economy, demographics, and other relevant factors that affect the implementation of those laws. > > The baseline rules differ for discretionary spending, which is governed by annual appropriation acts. The Deficit Control Act states that such spending should be projected by adjusting the current year’s discretionary budget authority to reflect inflation–using specified indexes–and other factors (such as the cost of annualizing adjustments to federal pay). CBO’s baseline for discretionary spending incorporates the omnibus appropriation act (H.R. 2673), which was signed by the President on January 23. That law covers appropriations for the Departments of Agriculture, Commerce, Justice, State, Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, Transportation, the Treasury, Veterans Affairs, and Housing and Urban Development, as well as for the District of Columbia, foreign operations, and a number of federal agencies. As is clear from context on that page, the concept of “present laws continue without change” means that the sunsets in the tax cuts are allowed to occur because that is how the laws were written. In fact, you can see that CBO projects that if the expiring provisions of the tax cuts are extended, it will cost an additional $108 billion $17 billion in additional debt service in 2008. By 2012, those numbers balloon to $331 billion plus $57 billion. ---
**Author:** ![leander](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/bcef8e/32.png) [@leander](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/leander)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2004, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-you-still-give-gw-bush-your-vote/245478/139 "2004-05-20T23:32:29Z")
> [@zoo](#): > > As a long time member of this board who does very little posting, I would like to affirm what ElvisL1ves writes about using this board for information as well as entertainment. > > A reason I may be compelled to vote for Bush is the effect his policies may have had upon the company I work for. My company produces a product that only the top 1/10th of 1% can afford to buy. If the tax cuts for the very wealthy improve the sales of this product, I have much to gain. > > As much as it may benefit me personally in the short term, I feel Bush’s policies are doing long-term damage to our country. If where I live is a battleground state, I will vote for Kerry this year. If the vote looks well assured either way, I will select a third party candidate to show my support. Thank you. Unfortunately, I know quite a few Republicans who do not share your integrity. Many, when pressed beyond political/partisan rhetoric, cite this exact reason for voting Bush – a personal, short term gain. “It’s my money, I earned it, I should keep it.” And while it’s nice to hear an honest answer (once in awhile), I do wish more people had your sensibilities. Btw, from a site linked by [Drudge](http://www.drudgereport.com/), [Bush Asks Worried Republicans to ‘Keep the Faith’](http://news.myway.com/top/article/id/37773%7Ctop%7C05-20-2004::15:27%7Creuters.html): > [@](#): > > WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Bush asked fellow Republicans on Capitol Hill on Thursday to “keep the faith” as he sought to ease their jitters about Iraq and his lowest approval ratings ever. > > \ > > Bush’s approval ratings have slipped to the mid-to-low 40 percent range, the lowest of his presidency. No recent president has been re-elected with such numbers this close to the November elections. > > “The color code alert level has moved from yellow to orange,” a senior Republican aide said. “There isn’t panic, but there is considerable concern.” > > \ ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2004, 4:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-you-still-give-gw-bush-your-vote/245478/140 "2004-05-21T04:06:48Z")
**ElvisL1ves** said: > [@](#): > > Look, this board isn’t entirely, or even mainly, about convincing each other or even ourselves of a position. The real effect is on those who read these threads but don’t post, because there are a lot more of them than us. What do you think the effect is on someone who is genuinely undecided, looking for the best arguments either way, comes across this post of yours, and concludes that that’s the worst anyone can say about Kerry? This thread isn’t about Kerry. I added my personal dislike for the man as a partial reason why I would vote for Bush. It is not by any stretch of the imagination the worst I can say about Kerry. But really, that belongss in a thread about Kerry, right? If you want to start one, I’ll be happy to give you the laundry list of reasons why Kerry would be a bad president. We can start with his recent plan to draw oil from the strategic petroleum reserve to artificially keep oil prices low (then he backpedaled and changed the plan to “stopping the filling of the reserve”, as if that’s substantially different). I mean, if you’re going to have a strategic oil reserve, it’s precisely because a confllict in the middle east might interrupt your supply when your military needs it. Who in their right mind would want to divert a strategic reserve to lower domestic prices at a time when the Middle East is in such disarray? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-you-still-give-gw-bush-your-vote/245478.md?page=6) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-would-you-still-give-gw-bush-your-vote/245478.md?page=8)