How sad; another user destroying intelligent discussion. I hope you reconsider Faos, because you were often constructive in the past.
Here's the whole article... while the vets do favor Bush, there are some areas he is glaringly weak on and others that could cost him if exploited properly... for instance, the June 30 and the responsibility for AbuG questions. _______________ CBS Poll: Vets Favor Bush NEW YORK, June 4, 2004 Veterans' evaluations of the war in Iraq are slightly more optimistic than those of the American public overall -- although even veterans question how well things are going for the U.S. in Iraq and whether the war is worth the costs, a CBS News poll finds. And as both presidential candidates vie for the veterans vote in 2004, right now President Bush holds a clear lead among those who have served. Veterans are also more likely than other voters to approve of how the president is handling both Iraq and the overall war on terror. Even though they are not generally upbeat about the how the war in Iraq is going for U.S., veterans are more positive than Americans overall: 47% think things are going well, and 51% think the war is going badly. HOW IS WAR GOING FOR U.S.? ALL Well 37% Badly 60% VETERANS Well 47% Badly 51% Most veterans think the results of the war in Iraq are not worth the loss of life and other costs of the war -- but they do so by a smaller margin than Americans overall. 40% think it was worth the costs, while 55% think it was not. By nearly two to one, Americans as a whole think the war was not worth the costs. WAS IRAQ WAR WORTH COSTS? ALL Yes 33% No 60% VETERANS Yes 40% No 55% But like Americans overall, veterans are less willing to call U.S. involvement in Iraq an outright mistake. 46% of veterans do so, and 51% think it was not a mistake. WAS U.S. INVOLVEMENT IN IRAQ A MISTAKE? ALL Yes 50% No 46% VETERANS Yes 46% No 51% In February 1991, veterans were more optimistic than the public overall in their evaluations of the 1991 Persian Gulf War -- although that war enjoyed much wider popular support. Then, 70% of veterans felt that war was worth the costs; 65% of the public agreed. Veterans are divided over whether U.S. troops ought to remain in Iraq until it is stable, or be pulled out as soon as possible. Nearly half prefer the latter. U.S. TROOPS SHOULD: ALL Stay as long as it takes 45% Turn control over to Iraqis now 49% VETERANS Stay as long as it takes 47% Turn control over to Iraqis now 49% Veterans also doubt the Bush Administration's planning for the handover of power to Iraqis on June 30th. Just over one-fourth thinks the Administration has a clear plan for the handover of power in Iraq; 63% think it does not. DOES BUSH ADMINISTRATION HAVE CLEAR PLAN FOR 6/30 HANDOVER? ALL Yes 24% No 60% VETERANS Yes 26% No 63% Veterans do have a markedly different view of the Abu Ghraib prisoner abuse scandal than Americans overall. By a wide margin, veterans think the responsibility for the abuse ought to go up the chain of command: 57% think people higher up should be held responsible, while 28% think only the soldiers involved should be. Americans as a whole are more closely divided. WHO SHOULD BE HELD RESPONSIBLE? ALL Higher level military 44% Only soldiers involved 45% VETERANS Higher level military 57% Only soldiers involved 28% Like the rest of the country, three quarters of veterans think the abuse was not justified, and that U.S. soldiers should be held to a higher standard of behavior. WAS ABUSE JUSTIFIED? ALL Yes 12% No 81% VETERANS Yes 15% No 74% But veterans are less skeptical than the public overall about the reaction of Pentagon officials to the abuse reports -- still, 42% of them think the Pentagon tried to cover up the stories of abuse. PENTAGON'S REACTION TO ABUSE REPORTS ALL Tried to cover it up 51% Tried to investigate quickly 39% VETERANS Tried to cover it up 42% Tried to investigate quickly 48% Veterans and the 2004 Vote In the 2004 campaign, President Bush is touting his record as Commander-in-Chief in the war on terror, while decorated Vietnam veteran John Kerry has often stood with his "band of brothers" in his ads and appearances. So far, that battle for veterans' votes is going to Bush: the President leads by a wide margin among veterans nationwide, 54% to 40%. VOTE CHOICE 2004: KERRY VS. BUSH (Among registered voters) ALL Kerry 49% Bush 41% VETERANS Kerry 40% Bush 54% Kerry's eventual choice of running mate has the potential to alter the race for the veterans vote. Some have speculated that Kerry might form a ticket with GOP Senator John McCain, who is also a Vietnam veteran (although McCain has said he has no interest.) A Kerry-McCain ticket runs even with a Bush-Cheney ticket among veterans, with each side garnering 48% of the veterans vote. In the meantime, however, veterans give the President much higher marks than other Americans for his job performance in handling Iraq and the war on terror, as well as handling his job overall. VETERANS AND BUSH JOB APPROVAL ALL Overall 41% Handling Iraq 34% Handling the economy 36% Handling foreign policy 37% Handling war on terror 51% VETERANS Overall 51% Handling Iraq 47% Handling the economy 38% Handling foreign policy 47% Handling war on terror 65% Veterans are also more likely than voters as a whole to say George W. Bush shares their priorities and their moral values. Veteran voters in this poll are about as likely to call themselves Republicans as other voters, and more likely to call themselves Independents.
For the record: I do work for a living (yes, McDonalds is open until 11 on weekends and we had to clean the fry machine) and didn't see all of the posts until now. My accusation of you saying that veterans don't matter right now is a bad interpretation of the article you posted. Obviously it came across the wrong way and I am apologizing for that now. Yes, what I said was based on this line: Maybe I jumped to conclusions but I was assuming you agreed with that statement since you posted it. I would hope the veteran vote is important in elections. Hopefully I cleared that up. And lastly, I consider the label "TJ-lite" to be a compliment.
You are not posting out right lies and you can say mea culpa, which is way more than the guy I just ignore.
"I was not prepared to shoot my eardrum out with a shotgun in order to get a deferment. Nor was I willing to go to Canada. So I chose to better myself by learning how to fly airplanes." -- George W. Bush Houston Chronicle, 5/8/94 February 28, 1969 "While under fire, Kerry charges Viet Cong positions, grounds his boat, pursues a Viet Cong fighter into a small hut, kills him, and retrieves his loaded rocket launcher. Kerry then led an assault party to secure the area, killing 10 Viet Cong with no American casualties. He is awarded a Silver Star "for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action."
