A Chilling Memory from Election Night 2000

As election night of 2000 drew to a close, I remember listening to Lynn Samuels, a liberal talk show host on WABC in NY. A caller called in distraught over Bush's then apparent victory, saying that he couldn't believe how working class people in states like West Va. and N.H. could vote for Bush. He said, "You know there's going to be a war. You know that thousands of people are going to die because this man won."

Truer words have never been stated more clearly.

But I was saying the same thing. My view was based upon the man's career prediliction for meeting death upon others, under color of authority. Of course, many said "Oh give him a chance! He won't be that bad!".

Nope, he wasn't that bad. He was worse.

said the same words.

Sad isn't it.

when they took Florida and put it back in the "undecided" category. I remember the knot and nausea in my stomach. A cold sweat started and I kept thinking, "This cannot really be happening, this man cannot become President of the United States".

Now looking at the havoc and destruction raked across our country and the world I still think "This cannot really be happening".

http://chak.org/pages/onion/bush_nightmare.html

WASHINGTON, DC—Mere days from assuming the presidency and closing the door on eight years of Bill Clinton, president-elect George W. Bush assured the nation in a televised address Tuesday that "our long national nightmare of peace and prosperity is finally over."

"My fellow Americans," Bush said, "at long last, we have reached the end of the dark period in American history that will come to be known as the Clinton Era, eight long years characterized by unprecedented economic expansion, a sharp decrease in crime, and sustained peace overseas. The time has come to put all of that behind us."

Bush swore to do "everything in power" to undo the damage wrought by Clinton's two terms in office, including selling off the national parks to developers, going into massive debt to develop expensive and impractical weapons technologies, and passing sweeping budget cuts that drive the mentally ill out of hospitals and onto the street.

During the 40-minute speech, Bush also promised to bring an end to the severe war drought that plagued the nation under Clinton, assuring citizens that the U.S. will engage in at least one Gulf War-level armed conflict in the next four years.

"You better believe we're going to mix it up with somebody at some point during my administration," said Bush, who plans a 250 percent boost in military spending. "Unlike my predecessor, I am fully committed to putting soldiers in battle situations. Otherwise, what is the point of even having a military?"

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...does having a vague feeling of doom count? I do remember telling the wife that night that the history books will title this chapter "America Turns to Fascism." She told me I was overreacting. She doesn't think so anymore.

that Bush would have this country in a war within a year. Got that right, but it just really wasn't that hard to see. I would call it more a logical extension than a prediction.

I had several college age women working for me at the time, and they had boyfriends who were not in college and contemplating enlisting. During the election, I TOLD them, "Tell your boyfriends NOT to enlist yet--wait till after the election." I told them bush would have us at war within 18 months of assuming office, and I told them that no military people would be safe any place in the world as long as that asswipe was in office.

Two of those girls called me when we were headed into Iraq. They asked me how I had known. I told them that it is part and parcel of a GOP White house to kill off the young men and stimulate business for defense.

In this case, I hated to be right, but it was something I knew was coming.

FWIW, I also told them that history would judge a bush Presidency as the worst this nation has ever known. It is a small satisfaction, but even THAT is coming true.

Laura

Wondering only who would be the unfortunate targets and what the media would call "The Great War To Transform Dumbya Into A Hero", or in his own self-annointed, self-aggrandizing appraisal: "A Wartime President".

and Fla. were announced for Gore. Almost immediately the camera switched to the Bushies (Barb, Jeb, George, Sr.). Jeb left the room and mever returned; I knew he was up to no good and unfortunately I was right.

look like a liberal. Unfortunately I was right.

Well, this means we will invade Iraq in the next four years.

I knew * would do something stupid, and I even thought about the idea of us going to war. What's happening right now kind of reminds me of an SNL sketch of him during the last Election, where the Capitol is on fire, and he's ducking under his desk, and he was talking about a "war" and said "who ever heard of a 'civl war'". It was a "what would America be like if _____ was President".