Vote may have big impact on views of Iraq war

[Bush_Eats_Beef]

Vote may have big impact on views of Iraq war

By Susan Page, USA TODAY
2 hours, 12 minutes ago

http://news.yahoo.com/s/usatoday/20051215/ts_usatoday/votemayhavebigimpactonviewsofiraqwar

President Bush isn't on the ballot in Baghdad, but he does have a lot riding on the Iraqi elections today — including, perhaps, American support for the war that has defined his presidency. Public opinion on Iraq has shifted repeatedly this year in response to U.S. casualties, upswings in violence and political milestones. Successful elections for the Iraqi National Assembly could sustain public support for the war and strengthen Bush's hand in countering increasingly aggressive criticism by Democrats. (Related story: http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2005-12-14-bushiraq_x.htm">Bush says Iraq vote will inspire)

On the other hand, elections that are marred by violence or seem to stumble in the move toward democracy probably would fuel calls to speed the withdrawal of U.S. troops.

"For Bush, what's at stake is the ability to push ahead with this new plan to rally the public," says Christopher Gelpi, a political scientist at Duke University. His study of wartime public opinion with colleague Peter Feaver has been tapped by the White House in recent weeks. "He's had a series of speeches which have framed the Iraq issue in a way that is likely to prop up support some, but the election is his chance to connect that to real events."


The power of presidential rhetoric, after all, has its limits.

[leveymg]

1. Push-Poll Headline - Wishful Thinking by Dubya and USA Today

Nobody's fooled. This isn't going to frame the public's perceptions of the Iraq Disaster any more than the last round of elections did.

America lost, Iraq lost - get over it.

[Larkspur]

2. The last election didn't help Bush and neither will this one

The Shiites and Kurds will turnout to vote. The Sunnis may or may not. The Sunnis know that they will be screwed with this vote because the Shiites will dominate the election. The civil war will continue and more American troops will die and get maimed. Lieberman will praise this election, even though it will bring in an Islamic theocracy hostile to Israel.

[jackpan1260]

3. I hope the voting goes well. And if it does

it will do nothing to change my opinion of how poorly planned this war was.

If the voting goes well, I anticipate a bump in Bush's poll numbers, but more than half of America will still think he is doing a poor job.

[cap]

5. I predict a temporary bump

but when things revert to same old same old, people will realize that the election didnt work. The Iraqis just want us out of there. The same thing happened in Vietnam. We had elections but the war continued.

[NWHarkness]

4. Pure Crap

Public opinion hasn't "shifted repeatedly". It's shifted ONCE, against the war.

[punpirate]

6. Let's review...

... the press pushed the administration line that the provisional elections would increase democracy and security. What happened? Insurgent attacks on all targets increased.

... the press pushed the administration line that handover to a provisional government dominated by Shia and Kurds (which was done slightly ahead of time and in secret) would increase security and democracy. What happened? Even more of the same.

The press pushed the administration line that the referendum on the Iraqi constitution would promote democracy and security. What happened? The attacks increased.

Now there's an election for the national assembly, and that will change everything?

I recall the same things being said of Vietnam, more than thirty years ago.

[realFedUp]

7. Fixing elections

Does anyone here think that Bush Inc. won't fix
the elections like they did last time, both here
and there?

wake up and smell the white phosphorus.

[BR_Parkway]

8. Wasn't Feaver the guy who WROTE the series of speeches?

Modern Day reporting.

Hold down Ctrl-A to select the entire email sent to you, Alt-Tab over to your Word Processing program and hit Ctrl-V to paste into new article. Type in byline, then hit Ctrl-S to save, followed by the Send button on your email program to send your hard work to your editor. Take a coffee break, you deserve it. Wait at desk for next White House email or Pulitzer prize notification, whichever comes first.

[underpants]

9. Isn't this SUPPOSED to be what happens?

Look great for them but is this some sort of super human achievement? When they said "invade" and "regime change" doesn't that imply that you are going to have elections?