Face the music and dance, Johnie me lad.
Regards, Ivan
Posted on 09/11/2004 4:52:36 PM PDT by MadIvan
AS a lifelong Democratic activist and steelworking shop steward in the key swing state of West Virginia, Rick Casini is exactly the kind of man Senator John Kerry needs to help him claw his way back into a presidential campaign that is in danger of slipping away from him.
Casini works at the 95-year-old Weirton steel mill on the Ohio River in America’s industrial heartland. Within a few minutes’ drive of this soot-stained West Virginian town lie the borders of Ohio and Pennsylvania, closely contested states Kerry must win if he is to wrest the White House from President George W Bush.
Yet the opinion polls in steel country are turning against the Democratic challenger and Casini is one of the reasons why. To the dismay of many of his fellow unionists, Casini, 46, will be voting for Bush in November. “You wouldn’t think that union people would back a Republican,” Casini said. “But Bush has proved himself a man of steel. We’re standing behind him because he stood behind us.”
Casini’s appearance at a Bush rally near here last month ignited accusations of treachery from the local steelworkers’ union, which is officially backing Kerry. Yet the row illustrates a key component of Bush’s strategy. He is courting Democratic voters with the help of high-profile turncoats.
Returning to West Virginia on Friday for his ninth visit this year Bush was accompanied by Zell Miller, the outspoken Democratic senator who mesmerised the Republican convention with a scathing attack on Kerry.
The president was “the one man I trust to keep my family safe,” Miller told an ecstatic audience in Huntington. Bush could hardly believe his luck. An attempt to smear him over his alleged shirking of Vietnam-era military duties had earlier backfired amid allegations that potentially damaging new documents were forged. Now a Democrat was attacking Kerry.
Grinning from ear to ear, Bush said he was “proud” to call Miller a friend. “You know,” he said, “Zell Miller represents a lot of folks out there who wonder whether or not it’s okay to vote Republican. He’s a discerning Democrat.”
The dispute over Casini reflected another feature of the campaign. While the national media were transfixed last week by the fuss over Bush’s service in the National Guard in the 1970s — when the president has been accused of cashing in on his family connections to dodge the Vietnam war — it was hard to find anyone in West Virginia who regarded the issue as anything other than irrelevant dirty tricks.
“Look at that steel mill over there,” said one of Casini’s supporters, pointing at the rusting hulk that towers over Main Street. “That’s what matters to Weirton, not garbage from the liberal media. It’s still open, thanks to Bush.”
Casini and his friends argue that Bush’s imposition of tariffs on imported steel saved the Weirton plant from closure. Although the decision outraged European exporters and briefly tested Bush’s relationship with Tony Blair, American steelmakers were spared competition for 20 crucial months.
By the time Bush was forced to lift the tariffs, the Weirton plant had been bought by a bigger producer and world demand for steel had soared. “Mr Bush saved steel in the Ohio river valley,” Casini said.
In West Virginia, registered Democrat voters outnumber Republicans by more than two to one, but Bush has crept into a nine-point lead in local polls. He has overtaken Kerry in Ohio and Pennsylvania.
Overall, his post-convention “bounce” appears to have settled into an average five-point lead. Kerry is still ahead in enough other states to catch up should Bush stumble, but he must counter the president’s rising approval ratings for leadership on national security.
On Friday Bush claimed Kerry had more different positions on Iraq than all his Senate colleagues combined. Meanwhile, the White House was counter-attacking over renewed controversy concerning the Vietnam war.
Democrats were initially delighted by the supposed discovery of memos that raised doubts over whether Bush fulfilled his military obligations as a reservist pilot in the Texas Air National Guard.
The president has long been accused of lying about his Vietnam-era service and of seeking to cover up long absences from duty.
The new documents, first reported by CBS, were purportedly found in the files of Bush’s then-superior officer, Lt Col Jerry Killian, who is now dead. No sooner had they been posted on the internet than Killian’s wife and son disowned them and experts suggested they had been written with a computer typeface not used by the military in the early 1970s.
Dan Rather, the veteran CBS anchorman, vouched for the documents’ authenticity, but the doubts helped defuse what might have posed a more awkward problem for the president.
For both candidates, the next major hurdle is the first presidential debate tentatively scheduled for September 30 at the University of Miami.
Negotiations are under way to decide the format of the encounters, which could be Kerry’s last chance to change the race’s momentum.
There were indications last week that the president wants to limit his exposure to any possible upset. The proposal for three 90-minute debates may be changed to two of 60 minutes.
Face the music and dance, Johnie me lad.
Regards, Ivan
Ping!
Good one. Thanks. Got some relatives (some Pubs and some dems) in WV that would be might interested in reading this.
Regards to you Ivan.
This is pretty much on the mark. Maybe a point or two too low for W, but very close. I also agree with the political assessment.
If W has a major gaffe, or if one of the multitude of garbage scandals the RATs are throwing at Bush manages to stick, Fn will be right back in the race. Of course, no one can predict the impact of a terrorist strike either.
Barring these things, however, W is clearly in the driver's seat and is on track to pull out a solid electoral college win.
Wow,this guy actually puts his family ahead of his union and admits it publicly. It is a shame that this story is a real news story. I tip my hard hat to him.
BTTT
We're smarter than we look in WV. GO Bush!!
"Free" traders deeply saddened...
Freetraders must be mad - they lost the opportunity to make profits on the steel imports!
All Freaking Right! Thanks Ivan! Good news!
West Virginians are not too likely to go for someone who is willing to run from a fight. We have more people in the military per capita than any state, and are real big on revenge (remember the Hatfields & McCoys?).
Hey, Nan, how are ya!?!?
So, you think West By God Virginia is going to go solidly for President Bush this time around?
I certainly hope so...
Hi-Jinx! Yep, I think WV will go for Bush. They like his no nonsense approach to the WOT, his faith and positions on moral issues, and guns, guns and guns.
Hi-Jinx! Yep, I think WV will go for Bush. They like his no nonsense approach to the WOT, his faith and positions on moral issues, and guns, guns and guns.
These aren't the sorts of votes we can be proud of -- people who support Bush because of a damned tariff. But unfortunately, some people do "think" this way.
If bottom-feeding produces results ... hey, why not?
I love that there are Goths for Bush. My 15 year old daughter tried to tell me that there were Goths and Punks but I didn't believe her. Bless you!
Bush’s imposition of tariffs on imported steel saved the Weirton plant from closure. Although the decision outraged European exporters and briefly tested Bush’s relationship with Tony Blair, American steelmakers were spared competition for 20 crucial months.Gee, I wonder how that will play in other towns which still rely on the steel industry... hmm... and are they in, oh, I dunno, say, Pennsylvania? :')
And even some in Northeastern Ohio.
Sorry bout that. My puter burped. Had to back out and re-enter.
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