Caesar said:
Calling a 51% or 52% election victory a majority, while correct, is only barely correct. It seems pretty obvious to me that the US populace is deeply divided on what they would like the direction of the country to be. As well, way more people voted this time around, indicating that there is more interest and strong political opinion this time around, which is not uncommon in wartime.
Yes, it's a slim majority, but Kerry received 47-48%. Furthermore, Bush is the first president to receive a majority of votes since his dad did it in 1990. Clinton never managed it.... And there (probably) won't be the litigation and controversy surrounding this election due to this majority.
Compared to Clinton's wins, and Bush's own first win, this represents a clear mandate from the American people.
Caesar said:
What I'm driving at is this: Bush, if in fact he does win, would be well served to try and bridge the chasm between Republican and Democrat. He tried to do that last time around, but was not sucessful. Then 9/11 came around.......
Agreed.
Bush now has an opportunity to reach out. A contested victor could not legitimately extend an olive branch, but now Bush is in that position. Repairing the political divide in the US electorate should be a priority - without that unity, a coherent response to terror and confident leadership on the world stage will be impossible.
Kerry gave him a scare in the run-up to the election. Bush's polling numbers are far below what they were after 9/11. Bush, if he's smart, will recognize that the American people are uncomfortable with the progress in the GWOT and unhappy about the situation in Iraq, but they still (generally) trust him to protect them. That trust will not be extended to his successor as Republican presidential candidate in 2008 unless three things happen:
1. Osama Bin Laden is caught or killed by 2008.
2. No major terror attacks occur on US soil.
3. Iraq shows measurable and clear improvement in terms of security and rebuilding.
Be interesting to see what he says in his speech...