Augusta Chronicle, The

Is It a Mandate?

The question swirling in Washington and around the nation since the Nov. 2 election is whether President Bush has a "mandate" or not. Having garnered 51 percent of the electorate with nearly 60 million votes, the most ever in presidential history, Republicans say Bush assuredly does have a mandate.

First Things First

Millions of Kerry Voters Belie Bush's Claim

Republican leadership and White House strategist Karl Rove are claiming a moral mandate for the second Bush administration based on a 51-49 percent election margin. Nothing could be further from the truth. Bush failed to win any of the 20 states that make up the Northeast, Upper Midwest and Pacific Coast. That, in addition to his thin popular vote majority - amid charges of vote fraud, miscounts, discounts, backward counts, ghost votes, and voter intimidation and suppression - means that Bush...

Values Weren't That Big an Election Factor

Instant election analysis is like instant breakfast - frothy and lacking in substance. Remember the angry white males of 1994? They never existed, but became, through constant repetition, the "lesson" of the 1994 race. Remember the soccer moms and the "year of the woman"? Most of these categories were meaningless. This time, the talking heads are rushing to interpret the 2004 election as the year of the values voter. A little skepticism is in order. Twenty-two percent of the electorate id...

Ex-Candidate Wishes the Winner Well

To those who supported me in the recent election, I would like to express my sincere appreciation. I also wish Jim Stewart the very best, and offer him my support. It is my prayer that we see a revival of, and a return to, Godly principles and a constitutional republic.

Letter Shows Poor Public Discourse

This is regarding Phil Patterson's venomous, shrill and sweeping allegation that "all of you Democrats got a resounding message from every nook and cranny of this great nation ..." ("Voters reject Democrats' philosophy," Nov. 11). Not only is he wrong - John Barrow won against incumbent Republican Max Burns for a U.S. House seat, remember, and 41 percent of Georgians voted for John Kerry - but he is woefully out of touch with common decency and etiquette. How can The Augusta Chronicle allow p...

Specter Is Wrong Pick

If U.S. Sen. Arlen Specter, in his bid to become the next Senate Judiciary Committee chairman, expected he'd get support from the Republican leadership, then he must be very disappointed following Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist's appearance on Fox News Sunday. The Tennessean withheld his vote of confidence. The only GOP senators so far to endorse the Pennsylvania senator for the chairmanship are Richard Lugar of Indiana and John McCain of Arizona. Neither serves on the Judiciary Commi...

Largest Vote Total Gives Bush Moral Mandate

It was the largest vote total ever for president - nearly 60 million voters propelled President Bush to a second term - with a winning margin of 3.5 million votes. And, as predicted, turnout was the key. Two factors contributed to the president's success. Bush increased his margin of support among religious conservatives - including evangelical Christians, Catholics and Jews - especially in the critical swing states. And, the electorate understood the importance of the issue that was labeled ...

Campaign Signs Must Be Removed Now

Now that the elections are over, where are the individuals who posted and stuck all the political signs around Augusta? I have contacted the Board of Elections, and apparently there is not a time limit on picking these signs up. Most of the time they are never picked up, the wind blows them over and guess what you have: litter.

Benefits, Yes; Gay Marriage, No

This is in response to J.E. Hexum's letter ("Gay-marriage ban is hateful, wrong," Nov. 11). As I understand it, the reason homosexuals want a civil union is so they can have the same benefits and rights as a heterosexual married couple. While I believe that homosexuality is wrong in the eyes of God, I also believe anyone - regardless of race, religion or sexual orientation - should be allowed to have the benefits as anyone else but based on the fact that they are human beings, not because...