How will Bush steal the election his time?

[Seedle]

Originally posted by The Emperor Fabulous


That's why they're stuck in the Middle East, and Blackwater and DynCorp are back here at home

They're in the Middle East because of a (terrible, evil, power-mad) decision by the duly elected Commander-in-Chief. They are obligated to follow those orders. But if Bush tries a coup, the military isn't obligated to support him.

More support for my argument.

From a 2007 poll conducted by the Military Times:

But while there appears to be growing optimism, the military’s view of presidential leadership remains doubtful. When asked if they approved or disapproved of how Bush is handling the war in Iraq , 40 percent said they approved, 38 percent said they disapproved and the rest either said they had no opinion or declined to answer. Those ratings are only marginally better than last year, when the president’s approval among the military plummeted from a high of 63 percent in 2004.

Similarly, in 2003 nearly two-thirds said we should have gone to war in Iraq ; today only 46 percent feel that way. Again, that is only marginally better than last year, when 41 said we should have gone to war in Iraq . By comparison, 80 percent said we should have gone to war in AfghanÂistan , and 77 percent think the U.S. will be successful there. But even there the president’s war management fails to get majority support — only 47 percent approve of his handling of Afghanistan .

And the troops, staunchly Republican and staunchly conservative, are increasingly skeptical about how well Bush handles presidential duties overall. Only 48 percent approve; 34 percent disapprove.

The poll is the fifth annual gauge of active-duty subscribers to the Military Times papers. The results should not be read as representative of the military as a whole; the survey’s respondents are, on average, older, more experienced, more likely to be officers and more career-oriented than the overall military population.

Still, the poll has come to be viewed by some as a barometer of the professional career military. It is the only independent poll done on an annual basis.

This year’s poll was conducted by e-mail during the week of Dec. 10-17, with 1,468 active-duty people responding. The margin of error is plus or minus 3 percentage points.

Once again, only one poll, and a year old at least, but hardly glowing reviews of Bush, even if the negative opinions are slightly behind the postive ones. Still, not as rosy as Darius's poll. Probably because, as Arrian said, love for McCain /= love for Bush.

Also:

According to an analysis of campaign contributions by the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics, Democrat Barack Obama has received nearly six times as much money from troops deployed overseas at the time of their contributions than has Republican John McCain, and the fiercely anti-war Ron Paul, though he suspended his campaign for the Republican nomination months ago, has received more than four times McCain's haul.

Deployed military was giving more to Obama.

I found more anecdotal evidence that there is more support in the military for Obama than Darius's poll suggested, but no polls or solid numbers, so I'm not going to bother posting it.

edit: My point here is not that my side is more supported by the facts, just that my side isn't completely out of my ass.

[-Jrabbit]

Here it comes...

Conservative Group To Run Anti-Wright Ads On National Networks Through Election Day
By Greg Sargent - October 30, 2008, 3:56PM

Get ready for a deluge of Wright rantings.

The National Republican Trust PAC, which has been airing an ad attacking Barack Obama's association with Reverend Wright in three battleground states, has now put down for a national buy on five networks that will last from now through election day, a consultant with the group confirms to me.

The ad will run nationally on Fox, CNN, ABC, CBS, and NBC for the next five days, the consultant, Rick Wilson, says -- "all the way until election day."

The ad, which you can watch here, features the now-infamous footage of Wright's livelier sermons, and intones that Obama "never complained" about Wright "until he ran for President," adding that Obama is "too radical, too risky."

Previously, the ad was only running in Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Florida, as Ben Smith reported the other day.

Now, however, the ad will run nationally, Wilson says, adding that the group just got through getting the spot vetted with network lawyers and is good to go.

Late Update: Wilson tells me that the PAC will have spent $2 million on this national buy by the end of tomorrow.

TPM link