Re: Liberator Online: a Libertarian president in 2016?

I extracted an interesting article from "THE LIBERATOR ONLINE": Of
course, allegedly lying about the reason for going to war in Iraq is minor
compared to lying about oral sex... ;) <snicker>

THE LIBERATOR ONLINE

August 9, 2005
Vol. 10, No. 15
Circulation: 70,874 subscribers in over 100 countries

Published by the Advocates for Self-Government
Edited by James W. Harris, mailto:james@TheAdvocates.org
Created by Paul Schmidt and James W. Harris
___________________________________________

GOOD NEWS, BAD NEWS, UNBELIEVABLE NEWS

by James W. Harris

Polls: Impeach President Bush?

Although it remains -- to say the least -- an outside possibility,
the impeachment of President Bush could be on the verge of entering
the national political debate.

A Zogby International Poll, released June 30, found that more than
"two-in-five voters (42%) say they would favor impeachment
proceedings if it is found the President misled the nation about his
reasons for going to war with Iraq."

This is potential political dynamite when considered alongside a July
24 USA Today/CNN/Gallup poll showing that a slim majority -- 51 per
cent -- now believes Bush *did* mislead the U.S. into the war when he
claimed Iraq had weapons of mass destruction.

Even hardened pollster John Zogby was startled by the high numbers
favoring impeachment if it were found that Bush misled. "It was much
higher than I expected," Zogby said of the 42%.

Arguments that Bush misled the country into the war are spreading. As
the Washington Post notes: "[It is] unlikely that the Republican-led
House will begin [impeachment] proceedings anytime soon. But the Web
sites are up and running. http://Impeachcentral.com is running a
petition drive. http://Impeachbush.org is planning a march on
Washington in September. http://Thefourreasons.org site argues that
the Iraq invasion was unconstitutional. http://Afterdowningstreet.org
asserts that Bush secretly decided to go to war and to mislead
Congress in mid-2002."

Although half (50%) of those polled by Zogby currently do not support
impeachment even if it is proven that Bush misled, in substantial
parts of the country supporters of impeachment are actually a
*majority*.

52% of respondents in the Western states favor impeachment if Bush
misled; in Eastern states, 49%. On the other side, in the South
impeachment is opposed by 60%; in the Central/Great Lakes region, 52%
are opposed.

Impeachment views also break down by party lines. A large majority of
Democrats (59%) say Bush should be impeached if he lied about Iraq.
Perhaps surprisingly, fully 25% of Republicans say they would favor
impeachment under these circumstances. Self-described independents
are more closely divided, with 43% favoring impeachment and 49%
opposed.

How does this compare to public support for the 1998 impeachment of
President Bill Clinton over the Monica Lewinsky scandal? That
impeachment actually had *less* public support. In October 1998, as
the House moved to impeach, a Zogby poll found that only 39 percent
of voters supported the impeachment, while 56 percent opposed it. And
less than 14% of Democrats favored impeachment.

All this comes at a bad time for Bush. The June 30 Zogby poll showed
Bush's job approval rating at 43 percent. And the new USA
Today/CNN/Gallup poll indicates a majority -- 53% -- of Americans
doubts the United States will win the war in Iraq, and 58% say the
United States won't be able to establish a stable, democratic
government in Iraq.

(Sources:
Washington Post:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/07/02/AR2005070200972.html
Zogby press release:
http://www.zogby.com/news/ReadNews.dbm?ID=1007
USA Today/CNN/Gallup poll:

http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2005-07-26-poll-us-not-winning-iraq_x.htm?POE=NEWISVA

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