The Republican Contract With America was the primary tool that Republicans used to emerge from the wilderness. In the early 90s, Congress was controlled by Dems. Clinton swept into office. Conservatives felt isolated and feared for their country. In response to this they offered the Contract With America.

It was a cynical, yet sometimes inspirational, series of steps that Americans understood. It took our distrust of government and turned it into a bullet-pointed roadmap to streamlined, "moral" government.

Below the fold is a summary of what the Contract offered. Be ready for simplification, racism, stupid ideas -- and one of the clearest, most concise framing of the issues of the time.

It's been said here before, and it bears repeating. Democrats need their own contract. It's risky, sure, but it would give us the chance we desperately need to outline our ideas, vision, and, yes, values.

But who the hell knows?

These Gallup polls are a fuckin mess, but perhaps y'all can make heads or tails out of it. Kerry leads within MOE in OH and FL and amongst RV in PA, but not LV. Bush up in WI outside MOE, while Kerry leads outside MOE in MN. My head is spinning.

Mayhaps I should not think on it foither...

http://www.cnn.com/2004/ALLPOLITICS/10/31/poll.sunday/index.html

Here are some amazing new polls from SUSA. TIED IN NV! WITHIN MOE IN VA! These were mostly taken through yesterday, so it's possible it even takes OBL's politcal ad into account. Apologies if this has been posted. Let me know if it's a repeat and I'll delete.

Is this what Kerry's press conference was referring to when they said there would be some surprises on Tuesday?

http://www.surveyusa.com/currentelectionpolls.html

Does anyone down in the Tampa area know Ken Ongemach? He's quoted in the excerpt below the fold from the St. Petersburg Times piece, "Down the Stretch, A Dead Heat".

If you know Mr. Ongemach, please refer him to http://www.johnkerry.com/issues/national_security/ where he can read up on Kerry's security plan. It sounds to me like this guy can be convinced to do the right thing.

I'd heard that scenarios exist where Kerry can win without FL or OH -- but I needed to see it for myself.

Not only does this path to victory seem possible. It seems somewhat likely.

This was posted on NYT site today and today is only an hour or so old, so I'm taking the chance this hasn't been posted yet. Holy crap. It's only a teaser piece, but it starts the storyline. WOW!

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/10/09/politics/campaign/09bulge.html?oref=login

I sent this email to my entire family, all of whom are lifelong Dems who think we're doomed. They watch mainstream press, so you can't really blame them.

I figure it's up to you and me to tell them what's really going on.

I'm watching Kerry speak Live on CNN and he just used the "Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me!" saying. Did it flawlessy, of course, Sounds like he's losing his voice. Makes him sound like a hard worker. Sounds like a HUGE crowd.

I didn't see this mentioned within the last 200 posts, and it was released today so, risking your wrath, here it goes:

Bush (R)50%
Kerry (D) 47%
Other/Undecided 4%

Data Collected    
9/6/04 - 9/8/04

MOE 3.8%

http://www.surveyusa.com/currentelectionpolls.html

Saw prelim numbers on a scroll-by on CNN. Could be true. Not an awful report. Not a great report. Probably something for both sides to grasp onto.

Ok, why have there been no posts to the new CNN/USAToday poll? Did I just miss it? Do I have too much time on my hands on a lazy Sunday? The poll has Kerry down after the convention among likely voters, and up with registered ones. Not a good poll, though the fundamentals may be brighter (they haven't released the whole poll yet).

http://news.myway.com/politics/article/id/418514|politics|08-01-2004::14:28|reuters.html

Seems to me that Bush ran in 2000 on the premise that he would bring the kind of management to the White House that a CEO would bring to a company. For years the press covered the WH with that angle. Seems to me this is a cultivated image that we should exploit. Why don't we take a look at how the company is doing?

A CEO who's out of the loop on important matters such as Iraq, terrorism and Medicare. His Officers fail to report to him on matters like Al Queda pilots on US soil, torture jails in Iraq and the lack of a plan for keeping the peace there. But no one gets fired.

I have to find an outlet for my progressive rage so here's my first attempt at political humor.

I haven't seen too much discussion about the Congress numbers in the Rasmussen poll. Granted I could have missed y'all's posts but I find the numbers striking enough to give em a diary.

Has anyone posted this yet?

http://www.democrats.org/mistakesweremade/index.html

and no one is noticing (probably due to the unbelievable number of well-hidden slips). Here's the bomb that I noticed...

"[Bush] virtually badgered poor Larry Lindsey about when could we get Wall Street back up and running, because he didn't want them to have succeeded against our financial system."

What does this mean? I lived in downtown Manhattan during the attacks and I can tell you NO ONE but the clean-up crew should have been down there. To this day asthma and related problems are overwhelming the residents and workers down there.  Not to mention the firefighters who have had to retire due to breathing problems.

It was a big story for around  a day when it was revealed that the EPA was told to soften their warnings about air quality by the White House.

http://www.yuricareport.com/911/KrugmanDustandDeception.htm

We all wanted Wall Street to open. But a true leader would have erred on the side of caution and showed some concern for the men, women and children in the area. Of course to this group of criminals the bottom line is dollars and cents, not lives and families.

"Dr." Rice let it slip that Bush pulled one of his intimidation sessions to get what he wanted. A political decision to put Americans' lives at risk. Apparently, "poor" Lindsey did his boss' bidding and all of us in NY get to enjoy the benefits.

Poll numbers fly around like the contents from a witch doctor's fanny-pack. A little bit of bone mixed with some eye of salamander brewed for three days in the high-noon heat and voila! The reading. There is no way to know what's accurate. On top of that, there's no way to know that what's accurate today will be accurate tomorrow -- much less in November.

No, what we need to do (if we truly want to gauge Kerry's chances) is listen to the pulse of the Washington press corps. My reasoning behind this has its origins in one of the more consistent human traits...the need to be popular.

Posted today so I don't think this is posted yet on kos. Looking goor for Kerry nationally and state-by-state. It's Zogby so...