Well, about a week ago I posted saying the big news in the endorsement story was that Bush supporting pepers in 2000 were defecting en-masse.
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=132&topic_id=1104353Now 6 days later after the latest wave of Sunday endorsements I can update the figures.... and if some freeper lurker reads this I'm almost compelled to apologize for the ulcers it is no doubt going to cause.
Almost.
Sixty-nine papers that endorsed Bush in 2000 have so far (to my knowledge) declared their positions in this year's race. THIRTY-ONE of them are not repeating their endorsements. TWENTY-SIX are endorsing Kerry against Bush.
That's
45% that are not going to repeat their mistake of 4 years ago and
38% who are taking active steps to correct it.
And then you have the Standard-bearer Republican papers... the ones that will endorse a Republican candidate no matter what... and they're not sounding happy this year. Just read the editorials of the Indianapolos Star which calls BOTH candidates "unsatisfactory" and lashes Bush on all the things he has to fix in the next 4 years in the process of 'endorsing' him. The Austin American Statesman in Texas (Texas!) said point blank in the process of endorsing Bush that
"Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz need to go." and
"An erosion of civil liberties under the Bush administration also troubles us".
And, on a parting note... some more numbers guaranteed to make DUers smile.
The circulation, to the best of my ability to determine it, of the papers which have jumped the Bush ship:
2,700,000. And their editorials are, for the most part, truly an inspiring sight.
Bush has, in return, gained TWO papers which endorsed Gore in 2000... the York Daily Record in Pennsylvania and the Denver Post in Colorado. Total Circulation:
335,000. And what will those 300,000 plus readers be seeing? Not what you would call a ringing endorsement. The Daily Record came across as almost ashamed of itself and apologetic for endorsing Bush, and one of it's editorial board members published his own accompanying dissenting opinion tearing Bush's record apart. The Denver Post was also half-hearted in it's endorsement, supporting Bush with "unease" while saying several complimentary things about Kerry.
Total Gore papers from 2000 that have announced their positions so far: 53. 51 of them are going Kerry this time around. Defection rate for the shrub: 4%. And as mentioned, a very unenthusuastic 4%.
All that remains is to RAISE AWARENESS of this situation in the broadcast media. Get them to pick up this story. Fire them E&P link here:
http://www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1000683265With a quick note on the situation.
-Grant
PS: geez, it keep updating. The article just added a couple
more Bush defections!