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The Reporters: US mid-terms

Claire Bolderson

All bets are off


I鈥檓 about to set off to cover my seventh US election campaign and right now I wouldn鈥檛 put any money on predicting the outcome. I made that mistake (along with the entire 麻豆官网首页入口 Washington bureau I might add) at my first election - in 1994.

newt_ap203b.jpgWe held an office sweepstake but not one of us predicted the Republican Revolution, as it became known. The lost control of both houses of Congress for the first time in 40 years. The new House speaker, Newt Gingrich, led his troops to Capitol Hill on a wave of protest votes against incumbents.

That was dubbed the year of the 鈥淎ngry White Man鈥. I rather suspect that this time around as I travel through Tennessee, Kentucky and Ohio I might come across him again.

Angry this time with a -dominated Congress mired in scandal, but also worried about still being at war in Iraq, and anxious about the economic and physical security of his kids.

That鈥檚 not to say I鈥檓 expecting the Democrats to storm back in. One of the questions I intend to ask of them on my trip: 鈥淲hat are you offering the American people as an alternative?鈥

Of course, the answer will vary from race to race, and the polling evidence suggests the Democratic Party doing well in a number of places. But it鈥檚 a finely divided electorate at a time of tremendous national insecurity, and with less than two weeks to go, I for one am not placing any bets.

Claire Bolderson presents 麻豆官网首页入口 radio's World Tonight and Newshour

颁辞尘尘别苍迟蝉听听Post your comment

  • 1.
  • At 05:39 PM on 27 Oct 2006,
  • Christopher Flores wrote:

The Democrats are not offering any alternative plans of their own as to how they would fight the war on terror, Iraq (except for cut-and-run), illegal immigration (amnesty for all illegals), the economy, the ethics and Foley scandals (can the average American say who Jack Abramoff is?), among many others. They are continuing their "We hate Bush" theme, somehow hoping that this will tap into the public dissatisfaction over Congress and the Iraq war. I should be surprised if, in view of all this, they do get in and take control of the House. If I were Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid, I would not be counting my chickens just yet.

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  • 2.
  • At 06:04 PM on 27 Oct 2006,
  • Edward wrote:

"tremendous national insecurity"

Most of the insecurity is being created by the Rupublicans.. "Vote for us to ensure your safety, the democrats want to let the terrorists come into your homes and kill your children!!!'

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  • 3.
  • At 08:35 PM on 27 Oct 2006,
  • Scott wrote:

The Democrats aren't offering anything new - they have no plans and just want to play off peoples worries about President Bush and the war in Iraq

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  • 4.
  • At 11:39 AM on 30 Oct 2006,
  • Jason Stephens wrote:

Funny how some of the comments above have critical comments about the Democrats having no real plans or agenda, which is true in the greater sense.

However, it is so bad out there, they don't need one. Just as long as they don't have a (R) next to their name. Just come up here to Ohio, and see lots of anger and resentment towards the GOP...just my views....

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  • 5.
  • At 03:11 PM on 30 Oct 2006,
  • Roger Witherspoon wrote:

I could not help but notice a glaring omission from your report today on the congressional race in Tennessee featuring Harold Ford.
You fell into the frequent 麻豆官网首页入口 trap of ignoring the impact of race in America.
The Republican party won control of the south not because of "moral values", but because of racism. The Democrats, under Lyndon Johnson, pushed through equal opportunity legislation and the Republicans fought it -- and have been the racist haven ever since.
For you to go to Tennessee and not ask white voters -- particularly the rural ones you talked to -- if they could bring themselves to vote for a black man is just incompetent in the context of American politics.

Roger Witherspoon
author:"Martin Luther King, Jr...to the Mountaintop"
co-founder: Association of Black Journalists.

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  • 6.
  • At 11:01 PM on 30 Oct 2006,
  • Raymond wrote:

Cut and run? Republicans like to come up with these nice little catch phrases that really have nothing to do with the argument. Democrats aren't this unholy alliance of pacifist and animal lovers. Jack Murtha a vietnam veteran has his patriotism questioned by men like Dick Cheney who recieved and unprecedented number of military deferments.

The Democratic strategy couldn't be any worse than the Republican one which refuses to recognize the sentiments of the Iraqi people. A raid took place in Baghdad without the consent of the Iraqi government. Money is pumped into companies (Haliburton)with no congressional oversight. Haliburton watered down the gasoline sold to troops and charged for meals they didn't serve and this is just the surface we don't know much more because this Republican congress has resisted beyond reason the chance to look into it. Democrats will bring a fresh strategy to Iraq something we desperately need. A war that kills more Americans everyday with no light at the end of the tunnel does not need to be fought. To throw away more American lives and rake in more money thats the Republican plan.

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