My Recent Letter to the Northwestern:

Bush Election of 2004 Was Neither Definitive Referendum nor Mandate

In a recent editorial, the Northwestern declared, "There already has been a national referendum on the Iraq War issue, in the presidential elections last November."

It is incorrect to declare the 2004 election of George Bush a mandate or definitive referendum, on Iraq or other issues. The facts are simple:

- Bush won nationally by the narrowest percentage margin of any sitting president in American history since Woodrow Wilson in 1916.

- Bush's popular vote margin was the smallest since 1976 (except 2000, of course, when Bush lost the popular vote to Al Gore). Bush also lost the popular votes of Wisconsin and Oshkosh.

- The Republicans picked up seats in Congress, but more Americans voted for Democrats nationwide (Wisconsin's Tammy Baldwin received more votes than any other Democratic member of the House).

- Statewide, Democratic Senator Russ Feingold, who voted against the war, received more votes than any candidate in Wisconsin history, also carrying Winnebago County and Oshkosh by wide margins.

- Locally, the 2004 Republican Assembly candidate was out polled; then lost the popular vote for 2005 DPI statewide, and in every Winnebago County voting ward but one.

The "Republican/Bush Mandate" of 2004 is a myth. The Northwestern is incorrect to characterize it as a clear mandate for Bush, the Republicans or their policies.

Also, poll after poll shows America's growing unease with the Republican leadership that has haphazardly led us to war:

- In a recent NBC/Wall Street Journal Poll, only 46% approved of Bush's performance (49% disapproved). Only 41% of those polled called Bush "honest & straightforward."

- In another NBC/WSJ Poll, only 33% approved of the Republican Congress, and by a 47 to 40% margin, would prefer to see Democrats in control in 2006.

In both polls, Iraq was the number one issue, and the economy the second.

When you look both at the poll numbers and the numbers at the polls, you see an America split down the middle, and a Democratic Wisconsin and Oshkosh. We also see Americans nationwide experiencing severe 'buyer's remorse' over the Bush administration and its policies.

This does not a Bush mandate nor referendum make.