I have been telling anyone who might be listening that I think Rove is luckier than he will ever be good, so it's no surprise that I strongly agree! This is the first time that I have been in 100% complete agreement with Ann in the post-9/11 era (when she made the unfortunate statement about killing Muslim nations' leaders and "converting" their populace to Christianity).
I don't think it was Rove that kept Bush in the race, it was Bush supporters in The New Media. I think we would be bemoaning the 24-hour-a-day MSM Kerry Celebration without the Swifties, Fox News Channel, Rush, Sean, Drudge, Savage, Laura Ingraham, Jim Taranto, Powerline and other assorted bloggers, and, of course, Free Republic (lift your glasses to Buckhead!).
I can't be the only one who felt like Rove let others do the hard work of beating back the MSM/Hollywood assault while he kept Bush "on message" so tenaciously that he was really becoming kind of boring. It was as if Rove thought Bush wasn't a big boy, and couldn't blunt Kerry's half-truths head on (most notably Bush's refusal to contradict Kerry on the "firing" of Gen. Shinseki), instead relying on Rush to straighten out the story the following morning.
I agree with Ann that Rove should've had Bush come out stronger on the gay marriage fiasco. He should have stumped about the anarchy America experienced as Democrat politicians on both coasts ignored the rule of law and declared, all by themselves, that gay marriage would now be legal. Ann doesn't mention this, but Move On actually had at least one commercial in the can which depicted gays touching and kissing one another. Imagine how offensive that would be in a national campaign! Even the dimwits knew that they couldn't air it, but Rove let that pass too.
I disagree with Ann that the partial birth abortion card should have been played to a heavier extent. The ban is on shaky ground in the minds of many because there is no exception for the health of the mother - stumping for the ban as written carried risk, unlike the gay marriage issue.
I also can't believe Ann said on Scarborough Country that she was feeling sorry for Yasser Arafat. Morphine and a respirator is much too good for the likes of him.
Rove is dishonest, stupid and blundering. No campaign is a one man show. Without Rove, Bush may have gotten 60%
Ann Coulter, despite being a Bush groupie, demonstrates her common sense once again.
But then, I'm an Ann Coulter groupie...
In one way, I agree with you: Ann should not disparage Rove, who has a winning record that is the envy of political consultants.
Where I disagree with you is in how you didn't address Ann's complaint: Rove did not permit Bush to stump openly for the Defense of Marriage and Partial-Birth Abortion issues. That is a valid complaint on Ann's part. Bush could have benefited by more aggressively attaching himself to the 'Moral Values' issues.
Rove is quite bright.
And don't forget....HUGE GAINS IN THE SENATE!
she ought to be happy ,,,, she doesn't have to move out of ny now
Interesting! Vey (sic) interesting!
Sorry to disagree with all of you Ann-bashers, but she's right on the money with this one, again! All of her points make complete sense. There's no way this election should have been this close. Since Rove was the "architect", he clearly ALMOST blew it for President Bush! Ann's a razor! And right!
Karl Rove has always been over-rated...If social conservatives don't get the dessert, they need to bolt from the GOP in droves...And as for the follically-challenged Gulianai....for get about it....
Even the best home run hitters are entitled to a foul ball now and then
I was hoping the GOP would at least wait until Monday to start their annual feast of self-destruction. Perhaps the feast has become movable.
I strongly disagree.
On this one, Anne, you are way off base. Considering the laundry list of things against Bush it did take a genius to keep it close.
I don't think Rove did a bad job. But I do think he seriously underestimates the important of the pro-life voters and the religious voters. Maybe after this election it will be clearer to him.
We should honor Ronald Reagan and his famous 11th commandment.
More than anything else, Kerry lost because of Michael Moore and the other hateful lefties. The guy standing behind me in line to vote was motivated from hatred of Michael Moore. He couldn't stop talking about him the whole time.
Maybe Ann feels a bit used. Bush effectively used the Swifties and people like Ann to be his attack forces. While he stayed "likable" to make the hatred sent his way non-believable by the average voter.
Had he done anything untoward, the hatred sent his way would have stuck. But it never did.
Rove is a genius.
Typical Coulter. Constant PMS.
I have to disagree when she suggests that GWB should have engaged his opponent on such fields as gay marriage. If Rove advised him against it, Rove was right. There are certain issues on which it would have been all too easy to distort the President's position. If he had, for example, associated himself with the swift vets, or endorsed them outright, the media would have crucified him. It is not enough to be right, you have to survive too. It would have been morally correct to endorse the swifties, but political suicide. Same with gay marriage. Make that a major issue in the campaign and you start the Mother of all mud fights. Why give the media such an opportunity? Instead, GWB downplayed the issue and tried to keep the debate on a high plane. Now he's got himself 4 more years. He's a leader, not an angel.
Did Coulter explain how SHE would have obtained another five million votes for Bush or whatever? Coulter has a lot of opinions, often not backed up with facts.