Okay some Kossacks have asked the question can we attack Bush when so many voters generally like him? His favorability numbers are higher than his approval ratings. So, it may seem almost impossible to wage an offensive against Bush because he is so damn likable. Right?
Well, not exactly. There is a way to get around the fortress of Bush's likability. He has a vulnerable point to exploit. And his name is Richard Cheney. After the news of this Halliburton have come out, the GOP has given us a winning issue on a silver platter- Corruption. Cheney has clear conflicts of interest given that he still receives deferred payments and retains stock options with Halliburton. Halliburton has just ben found guilty of overcharging US taxpayers.
However I would also point out that this company is a repeat offender having been found guilty overcharging with contracts during the Kosovo War. And given the fact that Halliburton has been given no bid contracts and the fact that the Washington Post discovered that when Cheney was CEO Halliburton sold oil equipment to Saddam.
If a candidate can exploit the corruption going on the administration by focusing on Cheney rather than Bush, theres the key to victory. Cheney's image is one of untrustworthiness and his approval ratings are shaky. They are reasonably high but they are shaky. We just have to beat it in voters heads that Cheney= Agnew. The rethugs want to compare Dean to Mcgovern. We compare Bush to Nixon and Cheney to Agnew.
Now the recent Gallup Poll shows these numbers for Cheney
http://washingtontimes.com/upl-breaking/20031111-075055-1974R.htm
- % approval
- % disaproval
But his numbers have dropped since 2002 when it was in the mid 60%. His numbers are gradually dropping.
- % overall said they want believe President Bush should keep Cheney as his running mate.
- % of Republicans say that Bush should keep Cheney as VP, while 28% of Repubs said that they would perfer Bush to have another VEEP.
Almost a 1/3 of repubs want Bush to get another VEEP next year.
Now if the Halliburton scandal grows bigger or any other Cheney scandal drops, Bush will be in a tough spot. He cant drop Cheney(without claiming health reasons) but Cheney is a big part of Bush's appeal. But if the Democrats do their job and hammer Cheney, he will be a political liabilty next year.
So my strategy is that the democrats go after Bush on the scandal and corruption angle through Cheney. Either Bush is corrupt or he is clueless. And if he's not corrupt his VP certainly is. The democrat candidate should go and hammer home the point that its time to clean up the scandals and corruption and make Cheney the poster child/scapegoat of that corruption. The Dems hate Cheney and the GOP are somewhat increasingly uncomfortable with him.
