Support for war ebbs

Why would Bush be seeking justification for war when Congress wrote him a blank check to wage war? Because the public doesn't buy it. And further evidence can be found in this ABC News article:

As the administration prepares for war with Iraq, a new mantra has emerged in the campaign to win the hearts and minds of Americans and, in effect, put Saddam Hussein on notice.

"America speaks with one voice," says President Bush.

In Washington, Bush, having been empowered by both houses of Congress to use force, seems to face very little opposition on Iraq.

On the streets of America, nothing could be further from the truth.

Across the nation, in city after city, ABCNEWS found voices of opposition, and many of them were from military towns.

This article is anecdotal, but consistent with polls that show no more than 60+ percent of Americans supporting war, a number that drops to under 50 percent if said war includes US casualties. But the quotes in the article are telling:

"I am not convinced President Bush has yet made the case," said Miles Harvey, a San Diego retiree. San Diego is home port to the Navy's Pacific Fleet, which directly employs more than 100,000 people.

"We have to be convinced that there is a credible threat from Iraq and that's what I haven't seen," said Harvey [a Vietnam veteran].

[...]

"If the president could show a clear and present danger I would support action against Iraq, but I don't support it without any evidence, " said Robert Rhame, a retired businessman who served in Vietnam.

"To me, our economy is far more important than removing Saddam Hussein from power," he said.

[...]

At a coffee shop in Denver's Cherry Creek neighborhood, homemaker Christa Rogers said unilateral action would be a mistake. "I think we have to go with other people, other countries, I don't think we can take this on, on our own," she said.

Her friend Cathy Roper agreed. "It all seems too fast," Roper added. "We need to do something, but it seems like it's really being shoved onto everybody, it seems too fast."

Etc., etc. You get the idea.

There was a time when I thought war talk would hurt Democrats. But I'm no longer so sure. I'm betting MN Sen. Wellstone rides his "no" vote to victory. The media doesn't have to "talk" about the economy for voters to realize things are just not going right, but the more they see Bush talking about war (and he obviously still is), the more out of touch he appears on domestic (economic) issues.

Posted October 15, 2002 01:35 PM | Comments (6)