GOP Upset At Bush

[Dr. Shane]

GOP furious about timing of Rumsfeld resignation

Quote:

"The White House said keeping the majority was a priority, but they failed to do the one thing that could have made a difference," one House GOP leadership aide said Thursday. "For them to toss Rumsfeld one day after the election was a slap in the face to everyone who worked hard to protect the majority."

Exit polling suggested that an overwhelming majority of voters disapproved of the administration's handling of the war in Iraq, and members and aides were frustrated with the timing of the announcement because an earlier resignation could have given them a boost on the campaign trail, they believe.

"They did this to protect themselves, but they couldn't protect us?" another Republican aide said yesterday.

I think the Republican leadership in Congress dug their own grave. They didn't need help from Bush. Rumsfeild's resignation is about two years overdue. The war in Iraq didn't help the Republicans but they haven't gotten much done and their approval ratings have been even lower than Bush's. I think between Dennis Hastert and Tom Delay they pretty much did their party in it. They certainly took it a long way from Gingrich's Republican Revolution.

[Gerr]

It takes a mature person to own up to their mistakes. Apparently there are too many grown juveniles in Congress. What did the GOP expect? For the electorate to just keep on sending the corrupt to Washington who have little regard to the people? Not that the Democrats are any less corrupt. If the Dems become arrogant, corrupt and smug like the GOP, the cycle of booting out the incumbets will come full circle again in 2 to 4 yrs. That's the one redeeming thing about democracy, you can vote out the rascals.

Gerry

[Bravus]

Yeah, I saw some of the exit polling that suggested it was 'corruption' that was the top issue for people rather than the war. So Congress needs to take a good hard look at itself: Ney, Delay, Abramoff's many clients with Foley perhaps the last straw.

[Dr. Shane]

I was watching Hannity and Combs and Alan Combs asked Tom Delay if he (Delay) felt he was partially to blame for the preception of corruption and I about fell off my chair when he said no.

But I find it hard to believe that the preception of corruption had that big of an impact on the individual races.

There is a big difference between the 1994 Republican Revolution and this past election. The Republicans came in as reformers and they were. For the first 100 days Newt Gingrich opened up Congress by reading the Contract With America. However after Newt left in 2000, the Republicans actually started reversing some of the things they had changed with the Contract With America. If I saw Tom Delay I would shake my finger at him and say, "Shame, shame, shame."

I haven't seen much of an agenda from the Democrats, Raising minimum wage is about the only item I saw that they should be successful with.

[Neil D]

Quote:

Alan Combs asked Tom Delay if he (Delay) felt he was partially to blame for the preception of corruption and I about fell off my chair when he said no.

Well, what did you expect? After one raises $10 or $20 million per year for 5-10 years for one's party, I would tend to think that one's importances of one's self would be pretty big...

Quote:

I haven't seen much of an agenda from the Democrats, Raising minimum wage is about the only item I saw that they should be successful with.

I shouldn't wonder at this...They have to walk a very fine line...If they want to be re-elected, they can not be beholden to big corporations either. And they don't want thier constituents to be ticked off either. Each of these entities are opposing one another, particularly energy. The country wants green energy. They know it's renewable and they know that it's available if given the incentives. But they don't want it costing them thier jobs, either. The Energy CEOs don't want it happening because it cuts into thier profits. It's a fine, slow line that the democrates walk....