Bush Bashing Poll: Should we or shouldn't we?

[mopaul]

that is purported to be the theme for this years convention, but i can hardly believe there won't be 'some' bashing. how could it be avoided utterly? if no one at all says anything at all negative about the worst maniac in presidential history, why bother being the opposition?

or, is this the 'proper' and appropriate approach, rising above the mud and focusing on issues?

which one o' dese?

[CalebHayes]

1. lay off for the convention.

Maybe a few targeted attacks.

[AVID]

2. unrelentlessly call them out as the crooks they are.

[Mountainman]

3. Sure, unless you want us to act like a one legged man in an ass kicking

contest.

They will not lay off of Kerry. They are telling us we should lay off of Bush. If it is the truth it isn't bashing anyway and we are not making this stuff up.

[newscaster]

4. Rather than Bash bush

I think this is the time for us to demonstrate that we are civilized compared to the repugs. We can criticize bush and his politics all over the place but do it in a clear, simple and intelligent way that even Freepers, Dittoheads and Hannity Lemmings can understand.

[Rowdyboy]

5. HEY! Lets copy the Republicans in 1992 when they bashed Clinton

Remember, when Pat Buchanan bashed Clinton and liberals really HARD! Buchanan really let it fly and he got all the attention and made all the points. And the media really talked about him a lot!!!

And the entire country was sickened and disgusted and scared by his radicalism. That went a long way toward helping elect Bill Clinton. So sure, lets bash Bush good, 24/7. Call him a liar, and a pantie-sniffer, and a pedophile, and a wus, and a booger-head, and a neo-fascist. Lets show our true colors and tell America just who the Democrats are!!!

Wait, I have another idea. Why don't we let John Kerry run his own convention the way he damn well pleases. He has earned the right and certainly deserves better than to be second-guessed by a bunch of non-professionals.

[Commendatori]

6. Lay off this week.

The people have heard enough of it so far; we have to give them something new.

I actually asked a fellow Dem a while back what Kerry's plans were on national defense and domestic spending. He came up with nothing other than "roll back the tax cuts for those making $200K or more."

So I asked some other Dems. Same deal.

People have heard bashing. A lot of them honestly don't know where Kerry stands. With the media advertising this as "a change for the voters to get to know Kerry," can we really afford to just do nothing except for unoriginal bashing?

If we go too far with bashing the Chimp, we won't pick up many more voters than we already have.

[papau]

7. Be nice to Bush - but bash the media whores for the lies they tell

The latest polls below show Kerry leading - but the media whores hang their hat on GE/NBC's poll so as to say there is not yet a trend.

Investor's Business Daily/Christian Science Monitor/TIPP poll conducted TechnoMetrica Market Intelligence. July 19-24, 2004. N=883 registered voters nationwide. MoE ± 3.5.

"If the 2004 election for United States president were held today and the following were candidates, for whom would you vote? Would you say Democrat John Kerry or Republican George W. Bush?" Names rotated.

George
W. Bush John
Kerry Not
Sure .

% % %
7/19-24/04 43 46 12
7/12-17/04 41 44 15

If the 2004 election for United States president were held today and the following were candidates, for whom would you vote? Would you say Democrat John Kerry, Republican George W. Bush or independent Ralph Nader?" Names rotated.

George
W. Bush John
Kerry Ralph
Nader Not
Sure
% % % %
7/19-24/04 42 44 3 11



Time Poll conducted SRBI Public Affairs. July 20-22, 2004. N=1,000 registered voters nationwide. MoE ± 3.

"Suppose the 2004 election for president were being held today, and you had to choose between John Kerry and John Edwards, the Democrats, and George W. Bush and Dick Cheney, the Republicans. For whom would you vote?" If undecided: "Even though you haven't made up your mind yet, do you lean more toward supporting Kerry or Bush? .

Bush/
Cheney Kerry/
Edwards Other
(vol.) Unsure
% % % %
7/20-22/04
45 50 1 4
.

"Now suppose the 2004 election for president were being held today, and you had to choose between John Kerry, the Democrat; George W. Bush, the Republican; or Ralph Nader, running as an independent. For whom would you vote?" If undecided: "Even though you haven't made up your mind yet, do you lean more toward supporting Bush, Kerry, or Nader?" .

Bush Kerry Nader Unsure
% % % %
7/20-22/04
44 46 5 4

Quinnipiac University Poll. July 18-22, 2004. N=1,551 registered voters nationwide. MoE ± 2.5.

"If the election for president were being held today, and the candidates were John Kerry the Democrat and George W. Bush the Republican, for whom would you vote?"

George
W. Bush John
Kerry Someone
Else (vol.) Wouldn't
Vote (vol.) Unsure
% % % % %
7/18-22/04 43 46 1 2 8
5/18-24/04 45 45 2 1 8

FOX News/Opinion Dynamics Poll. July 20-21, 2004. N=900 registered voters nationwide (MoE ± 3), including 767 likely voters (MoE ± 4).

"If the election for president of the United States were held today, for whom would you vote if the candidates were Republican George W. Bush, Democrat John Kerry, and independent candidate Ralph Nader?" Names rotated; respondents pushed for decision. Nader identified as Green Party candidate in 2/04 poll.

George
W. Bush John
Kerry Ralph
Nader Other (vol.)/
Not Sure Wouldn't
Vote (vol.)
% % % % %
Among likely voters:
7/20-21/04 43 44 3 9 1

CNN/USA Today/Gallup Poll. July 19-21, 2004. N=709 likely voters nationwide. MoE ± 4.

"Now, suppose that the presidential election were being held today, and it included John Kerry and John Edwards as the Democratic candidates, and George W. Bush and Dick Cheney as the Republican candidates. Would you vote for John Kerry and John Edwards, the Democrats, or George W. Bush and Dick Cheney, the Republicans?" If undecided: "As of today, do you lean more toward Kerry and Edwards, the Democrats, or Bush and Cheney, the Republicans?"

Bush/
Cheney Kerry/
Edwards Neither
(vol.) Other
(vol.) No
Opinion
% % % % %
7/19-21/04
47 49 2 - 2

Los Angeles Times Poll. July 17-21, 2004. N=1,529 registered voters nationwide. MoE ± 3:

"If the November general election for president were being held today and the choices were George W. Bush and Dick Cheney on the Republican ticket, and John Kerry and John Edwards on the Democratic ticket, for whom would you vote: Bush/Cheney or Kerry/Edwards?" Names rotated. Includes leaners.

Bush/
Cheney Kerry/
Edwards Unsure
% % %
7/17-21/04 46 48 6

"If the November general election for president were being held today and the choices were George W. Bush and Dick Cheney on the Republican ticket, John Kerry and John Edwards on the Democratic ticket, and Ralph Nader and Peter Camejo running on an independent ticket, for whom would you vote: Bush/Cheney, Kerry/Edwards or Nader/Camejo?" Names rotated. Includes leaners.

Bush/
Cheney Kerry/
Edwards Nader/
Camejo Unsure
% % % %
7/17-21/04 44 46 3 7

[K-W]

8. We need to woo moderates, not bush haters, we already have them

also, there are too many threads about this, lets not dupe

[in_cog_ni_to]

9. Yes. AFTER the convention....

let 'er rip!

[porphyrian]

10. Fuck Bush

Fuck this administration, and fuck anyone too scared to call a traitor a traitor.

[jimshoes]

11. Yes, unceasingly,

but only off the record. Like the pubes do.

[Sparrow]

12. DEFINE BASHING

Im sure repukes will define it differently than us, so why do we GIVE A FUCK WHAT THEY THINK?
Is pointing out every crime considered "bashing?"
Is correlating Bush's actions to their consequences "bashing?"

SOMEONE tell me what bashing is.

[library_max]

13. It depends on what you mean.

Charges against Bush that matter to people and that can be substantiated without sounding like you're reciting someone's doctoral dissertation, sure, go for it.

Calling him a chimp, an idiot, a warmonger, etc. without anything to back it up, no, that's not helping. Also making accusations about things that offend nobody except us, or making accusations that require elaborate explanations and end up sounding dubious to the uninformed.

If this seems difficult, don't worry. Kerry is surrounded by pros who know how to do it right.

[mopaul]

16. do you suggest he's NOT an idiot warmonger?

okay, he's not a chimp, but he IS an idiot and a warmonger.
would it be o.k. to point out that he's lied about a thousand u.s. soldiers to their graves over shitty lies?

[library_max]

18. As long as you can sound civil and rational while you're doing it,

and can back it up with facts.

[sangh0]

14. push poll

If you felt confident about your position,you wouldn't have to make the poll so biased

[brook]

15. There's a difference...

between *bashing and addressing issues - including the many * failures.

I saw a Republican say that he was sick of the negative ads Bush has been running and he compared them to Kerry's ads as discussing issues that matter to the voter.
We denizens of the Net and all things political can do all the bashing we want and Kerry can stay above it. So far, he's been brilliant about not getting sucked into the mud pits. IMO, that gives him a much better shot at turning the undecided into votes for him and Edwards.

[PhuLoi]

17. From personal observation; Joe Sixpack hates wimps.

At 53 I have worked for the railroad, offshore oilrigs, construction and spent three years in the Army. I am convinced that men on the whole perceive reserved civility as weakness. At a jobsite lunch table several months ago, a thirty-something puke was trashing democrats in front of some apprentices. I ripped him and his repuke rhetoric a new one in front of the apprentices. Afterwards, individually, they said they hadn't heard anyone talk like that. They said they liked it.

I believe if we want to gain the respect of a lot of young men we need to show ourselves to be willing to stand up and take the fight to the enemy.