Posted on 11/07/2004 11:45:49 PM PST by ambrose
Rove says early exit polls made him 'ill'
Associated Press
Last update: November 08, 2004
WASHINGTON -- Reflecting on how he delivered President Bush his second term, White House political adviser Karl Rove admitted Sunday that John Kerry's vote for, then against, funding in Iraq and Afghanistan was the "gift that kept on giving."
The deft strategy of Rove, whom Bush calls the architect of his re-election campaign, is credited with helping move the nation from the 49 percent to 49 percent stalemate of the 2000 election to a 51 percent to 48 percent split in the Republicans' favor.
"The country is still close, but it has moved in a Republican direction, and this election confirmed that," Rove said on NBC's "Meet the Press."
Tactically, Kerry's decision to vote for the $87 billion in funding for troops and reconstruction in Iraq and Afghanistan, and then deciding in October 2003 to vote against it, was a bonanza for the president's campaign, "the gift that kept on giving," Rove said.
Bush's campaign featured the videotape in thousands of commercials around the country to paint Kerry as a flip-flopper. The label stuck to the Massachusetts senator despite reports about frequent changes in various Bush positions.
Rove played down the importance to the campaign of "moral values," which exit polls last Tuesday unexpectedly identified as a major consideration of many voters, especially those who voted for Bush.
Rove said 34 percent of the voters were motivated by issues surrounding Iraq and the war on terror, compared with 30 percent motivated by moral values. "What essentially happened in this election was that people became concerned about three issues: first the war, then the economy, jobs and taxes and then moral values. And then everything else dropped off of the plate," he said.
Rove said he felt sick, then got mad when he started reading exit polls on Election Day as Air Force One returned from a final campaign swing. Surveys of voters just leaving polling places around the nation tilted toward Kerry early in the day and through much of the evening, causing early optimism for a Democratic recovery of the White House.
That faded through the night as exit polls were adjusted to reflect official vote tallies. But the exit poll was still tracking toward Kerry as the president's plane landed at Andrews Air Force Base in suburban Maryland after Bush's quick Election Day stop to thank supporters in crucial Ohio.
"I was on Air Force One, and we were literally on final approach into Andrews," Rove said on "Fox News Sunday." "The phone connection kept cutting out. I was holding a piece of paper on my knee, trying to scribble it down, holding the phone in the other hand. I got sick as I wrote them down, and then when I looked at them, I got angry, because they simply could not be true."
"I mean, it had us 19 points down in Pennsylvania. It had us 17 points down in New Hampshire. It had us 1 point up in Virginia," Rove said. "I mean, you looked at these numbers, and you realize, this is just insane."
On one sideline row during the campaign, Rove said the president's tailor was devastated about a controversy over a box-shaped bulge in Bush's back that television cameras captured during the first debate. The mysterious bulge spawned speculation that Bush aides were feeding the president advice secretly through a radio receiver tucked under his suit jacket.
"Nothing was under his jacket," Rove said.
"The poor tailor ... he's an awfully nice fellow, he's a rather flamboyant dude," Rove said. "I'm not going to use his name, but he's just -- he's horrified. And, you know, it's -- there was nothing there."
Just find the FR live thread from Election Day for evidence of the 6-hour flu that swept the GOP. I succumbed myself, and didn't believe those stalwart Freepers who insisted it was all in our minds.
I don't, not after what their campaign and its 527, MSM and other sympathizers put *us* through for months. I see it as just deserts. :)
I'm still riding 'high' (confidence, not euphoria) after our "miracle" win.
I wasn't worried at all. There was no way Hillary was going to let Kerry win.
I don't know what it was, but I had Bush up by 3 since the DNC. I never had a second thought knowing what a stiff John F'nLoser Kerry is.
Hell my wife even phoned from work telling me it was over at about 4.....I ignored her as usual ;~)
The MSM stinks, but on the bright side, this fiasco had the greatest negative affect on the most virulent and delusional of the RATs, LOL.
You know, somehow I must have expected BS exit polls, as on election day I didn't even turn on the TV or hardly pay attention to FR until the polls started to close in the east. By then, things had started to go Bush's way, and I missed the whole exit poll pit in the stomach feeling.
Moral issues are important, but this vote was first and foremost about the WOT.
Dont bother Kerry for the money... he is at the hosptial having Terezas stomache pumped too....
Yuo're absolutely right. See my previous post.
You're not kidding. After thinking a sure win was in the making, it must've been pretty awful to sit there and watch the FL/OH precincts reporting creep higher while Bush remained comfortably ahead.
Makes me smile just thinking about it.
The exit polls were actually Bush's best friend during this election. If the exit polls would have come back close or Bush being up then the Dems would have said there are all kinds of problems with voting machines, voter disenfrachisement, etc. The Dems said everything was going smoothly (they thought they would win in a blowout) and MSM took the talking points from the Dems that there was not a voting problem story.
It could not have worked out better. God really answered a lot of plans.
If the exit polls were wrong then why should we believe the results of the exit poll questions?
That sounds similar to my election day experience which you can read HERE!
PLEASE post a report of your volunteer efforts. if you don't want to start your own thread, then please post them to my activism update thread (the link above).
I would LOVE to hear how your poll watching went (the calls, any experience/observations of the rats, etc.), and any other stuff you did for this election :o)
PLEASE!
No kidding. Those exit polls made me drink 1/2 a bottle of wine and THEN get into the halloween candy.
ooooh, i have to disagree with that, respectfully, my friend.
those exit polls can be VERY discouraging to GOP voters and volunteers. especially to me (which is why i did not listen to any election coverage).
i could be wrong, but i doubt it. i think Bush did well IN SPITE OF the exit polls. i wonder if he would have done even better without them.
rotflmao :o)
well, i was euphoric (a little confident, too, newzjunkey). i know i'm tooting my own horn a bit much, but please indulge me just this week - please see the link at post 31 :0)
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