Another article I just received from Veterans for Common Sense says,

~snip~

Support for President Bush and for the war in Iraq has slipped significantly in the last year among members of the military’s professional core, according to the 2005 Military Times Poll.

Approval of the president’s Iraq policy fell 9 percentage points from 2004; a bare majority, 54 percent, now say they view his performance on Iraq as favorable. Support for his overall performance fell 11 points, to 60 percent, among active-duty readers
of the Military Times newspapers. Though support both for President Bush and for the war in Iraq remains significantly higher than in the public as a whole, the drop is likely to add further fuel to the heated debate over Iraq policy. In 2003 and 2004, supporters of the war in Iraq pointed to high approval ratings in the Military Times Poll as a signal that military members were behind President Bush’s the president’s policy.

The poll also found diminished optimism that U.S. goals in Iraq can be accomplished, and a somewhat smaller drop in support for the decision to go to war in 2003.

Let's face it, Dole was in-effective in the Red Cross, drawing a Huge salary from a non-profit where she should have been taking a pittance as an act of good faith. My Mother worked for a tri-country Red Cross office in upper NY state, and Libby Dole was not fondly thought of throughout the Red cross.

No wonder the woman has no expertise in drafting Republicans, EVEN IF Republicans weren't smart enough to know not to waste their time and money for this next election! The writing is on the wall, folks, there is too much negative against this power-abusing party to give them hope for wins next fall.

And if Dems like Dorgan and Reid take a hit, well, I personally, am not prepared to let ANY politicians get away with the abuse that has been flowing throughout Washington the last years!

In election year, Abramoff plea has ripple effect
Republicans, with close ties to lobbyist, expected to take biggest hit

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/10697000/

I have a question, if by some miracle the redistricting is overturned in Texas, will we be able to get a candidate into the TX-11?

Republican strategists expressed some relief that the damage could be limited. Carl Forti, a spokesman for the National Republican Congressional Committee, said that if Abramoff's revelations ensnare only one lawmaker and some unknown staff members, Democrats will have little chance of sparking a political revolt when voters go to the polls in November to elect a new Congress.

But now that Abramoff has agreed to cooperate with prosecutors in exchange for a lighter prison sentence, he could provide testimony highly damaging to other high-level lawmakers. DeLay is not mentioned, but court documents do single out his former deputy chief of staff, Tony C. Rudy.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/01/03/AR2006010301609.html

Casino Jack," a former head of the College Republicans and a "Pioneer"-grade fundraiser for the Bush 2000 campaign, pleaded guilty to three felony counts of conspiracy, mail fraud and tax evasion in D.C. yesterday and is set to appear in Florida today to plead guilty to fraud and conspiracy on separate charges. Abramoff and other defendants also must repay over $25 million to defrauded clients and $1.7 million to the IRS.

But most important for the nation is that Abramoff is now detailing the massive web of corruption he spun inside the Beltway which has already snared a top Bush official, procurement chief David H. Safavian, on charges of lying and obstructing a criminal investigation, and reportedly threatens dozens of other D.C. players.

"When this is all over, this will be bigger than any [government scandal] in the last 50 years, both in the amount of people involved and the breadth to it," Stan Brand, a former U.S. House counsel who specializes in representing public officials accused of wrongdoing, told Bloomberg News. "It will include high-ranking members of Congress and executive branch officials."

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/010406O.shtml

another good one.........

Abramoff thrived in the political climate fostered by GOP leaders, including Rep. Tom DeLay (R-Texas), who have methodically tried to tighten the links between the party in Congress and business lobbyists, through what has become known as the "K Street Project."

GOP leaders, seeking to harness the financial and political support of K Street, urged lobbyists to support their conservative agenda, give heavily to Republican politicians and hire Republicans for top trade association jobs. Abramoff obliged on every front, and his tentacles of influence reached deep into the upper echelons of Congress and the Bush administration.

Now, in the wake of a plea agreement in which Abramoff will cooperate in an influence-peddling investigation that might target a number of lawmakers, some Republicans are saying that the party will need to take action to avoid being tarnished.

"This is going to be a huge black eye for our party," said Rep. Ray LaHood (R-Ill.), a senior member close to House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.). "Denny's going to have to be very tough and really speak out against people who are indicted. He's going to have to do it quickly and decisively and frequently."

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/010406Y.shtml

More and more money going to fat cats while the country's debt rises.

THAT explains why the Republican Party color's RED. Red means DEBT. We don't want this country's problems in the Red anymore. We want them in the BLUE, or Plus side.

Vote Democrat, and avoid being a victim of having your finances in the RED.

Don't count your friggin chickens. How many citizens believe that massive election fraud can't happen in this country?

Two presidential elections have been stolen. WTF can be done to prevent it (massive electoral fraud) from happening again this year?

WAKE UP!!!

One Chicken....Two Chicken.....Three Chicken........Four Chicken........Five chicken.....That's Democrats counting Republicans who are too "Chicken to run against them"
Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha !
Six Chicken.....Seven Chicken....

The radical right wing propaganda machinery, the President down, told the American people what a great time it was for Iraq with elections and all. Post election Iraq seems to be degenerating into more chaos.
Now the President, the master of deception and sound-bite grandstanding says he will reduce the troops in Iraq.

This administration has created a mess in the region by the Iraq escapade by W, Dick and Rummy. They took their eyes of Afghanistan. Because of that situation in Afghanistan is also deteriorating. Threat of terrorism has increased, Iraq has become a hotbed for terrorist recruitment. We have lost the moral leadership in the world thanks to W, Dick and Rummy and nations such as Iran and North Korea are thumbing their noses at us and the greatest nation in the world, maybe the greatest nation in the history of western civilization is unable to do anything about it; thanks to the policy of preemptive strike of W, Dick and Rummy.
That after the great moral legacy that Clinton left of the nation in the international community.

Little wonder Republicans are running scared of the '06 elections. The Democratic leadership should capitalize on this. They have to take the offensive and not be scared of any name calling the radical right wing, including Fox News the media propaganda arm of the radical right, may throw at them. The Democratic party should be supportive of the men and women of the armed forces who are disgruntled with this administrations Iraq policy if they want to run for elected office.
Democrats need to focus on cleaning up the voting process including automatic voting machines and make sure the next election is not stolen.

But let's not get overconfident. Don't underestimate the Republicans.

this is great news- hopefully democrats can defend seats they have and capture open and sone now incumbant republican seats in 2006- it's always a good sign when the opposition's best canidates decide not to run

enoughisenough,
"But let's not get overconfident. Don't underestimate the Republicans." absolutely.

Democratic leadership should ensure reform to the voting process including the automatic voting machines. We cannot put anything past the Republicans! We cannot let the next election to be stolen!

Folks, if you believe in a "Higher Authority" aka a God, then consider doing as I have done for the past year or so. Pray, every day, at the beginning of your day, and at the end. Ever since I have started doing this the Republican Party, aka, Bush Administraion has been in a nose dive. Put those worries and concerns in God's Hands and you'll be able to sleep better. Try it, you might like it.
You see, God is not a Republican or Democrat. This World belongs to Him, he just put us on it, and said, manage it for His Glory. Also you may want to visit www.sojo.net

Don't count on anything until we win. We know their strategy. It's the Carl Rove approach, you sling mud,make false statements about your opponent,use any gimmick and dirty trick to win. Voters know this but they want to see how we respond to these attacks. Do we wimp out like Gore and Kerry or do we take it to them and give more than we get like we used to. That is key to winning the swing voters and we must get them to win. Republicans leave enough available dirt, personal and political, every where they go to sink a battle ship but our current leaders never use it. They have some dream that elections should be fair and issues debated in order to select congressmen and presidents. Maybe the George Bush era hasn't made them mad enough or maybe they are afraid of him and Republican intimidation. They are the reason why we are on the outside looking in and we have to fight these Republicans with every tool available if we are to win. They are not nice people and they have a common goal and that is to take over every thing. They will not leave easily.

Hey DemocraticFanatic,

I loved your comment. I got a big laugh out of it. Have anyone heard that Tom DeLay doesn't want position as Speaker of the House anymore. That's because he knows he's going to jail.

Oh yes, maybe we can have a Speaker of the House Pelosi, Senate Majority Leader Reid along with a PRESIDENT KERRY come January 20,2009. It's time we kick the Repooplicans asses to the f**king curb. We Democrats are taking over. It's time to take our country back. The best time to start is NOW.

I hope that this is the beginning of the end for Republican control of Congress for a very long time!

I live in Florida.
This will be the first election I have the right to vote in as a resident.
Right now, I know very little about who we are running, and what their stance on issues are.
Is there a link from our national website to the candidates that we are running locally in Florida?
thanks
Kerb