LET'S SECEDE! Y'all can have Gore; we'll take Bush. We've been wanting to be our own country for a long time. Who needs the rest of the 49 suburbs?

Please, Texas take him, you can have him! Here in Hawaii (not a 'burb), we wouldn't mind a little soverignty ourselves. But Theodore Olsen recently accomplished his republican best to ensure the slow dismantling of Native Hawaiian rights. These little ironies just keep on coming....=)

BARTLETT FOR PRESIDENT!

But Tobey for V.P. -- that other creep is a little dangerous.

Bringing this back up to the top because whoever wants to be here, can choose to be here. At the very least, we have set a Fodors' record.

Just a couple of thoughts, because of the historical significance of the moment =); I said elsewhere that faulty voting technology has assured us the unpopular vote winner. I think the FLA SCt may just want this to go away, and won't order the viewing of the ballots. But since the ballots were admitted as evidence, it's only a matter of time before someone will eventually look at them. Al will be magnanimous in his concession.

Can't help but feel that former democratic legislator/turned GOP super-lawyer Barry Richard demonstrated more emotional commitment than David Boies.

The other is that apparently there were more than enough dem forces (AFL-CIO) in Fla over the last few weeks to match the numer of repub protesters on the sidelines, but it was a deliberate decision by the DNC to not deploy them the same way. Instead, they worked as observers and affidavit-takers, and were told to be "nice". This was a huge tactical mistake by the dems, in my view. Had there been an equally large number of dem protesters outside Miami-Dade, maybe those folks would just have kept-on countin'. (Now, am I the only one that remembers Al saying count the whole state on November 8, when there was enough time?)

Well, anyway... I wish you a GOOD holiday season. As I said on election eve, DEMOCRACY RULES! Our judicial system has not been tarnished. Unfortunately, time has run out for our side.
Aloha,
k

I have a feeling that the most divisive chapter is not behind us, but rather in front of us.

"Montana is what a small boy would think Texas to be from hearing a Texan talk." -John Steinbeck

It's Dec. 8. Lewis & Clark rulings just came in for Bush. It's almost over. Time to put it all behind us. I'm beginning to think like Imus in the morning, who backed Bush because his presidency will be funnier. So let's rally behind Bush, the new Mr. Malaprop, the man who said, "I stand behind all my misstatements."

Now that another Bush presidency appears likely, I propose that we adopt the English system of naming monarchs: Bush II, Roosevelt I, etc.

Steve, There's been an old weather saw in every part of the country in which we've ever lived. "If you don't like the weather, just wait a minute and it'll change." And so it is with this election.

Wow! I just got back from an appointment, and SOMETHING HAPPENED! God Bless America! It's a good day today =)!!!

Now for the argument: Did the FLA SCt exceed its discretion by relying on its power of equity to make the recount fair to Bush?

Or, can we just say that Florida should go to the person with the most votes?

Gotta go read more analysis, ciao!

Well, who out there is celebrating? Have a good weekend all. And Kalena, "ciao" belongs to another. Sorry, but the Fla. court's poaching this afternoon shouldn't foster private expropriation. CIAO.

Sorry Leone. I have been saying ciao for at least 30 years. I thought it was in the public domain.
We are again witnessing the effectiveness of the GOP spin machine.

Yup, Olive, our analysis was spot on. Albert Gore, Jr. is a vampire, plain and simple.

By the way, if you're still out there, I heard Hillsborough where you live has over 5,000 undervotes. What kind of system do you use? Is it punch cards, or did people there really not vote for president? Apparently, there are only about 17,000 undervotes in areas Gore carried, but 25,000 in areas Bush carried, so this thing is by no means a lock for Gore.

Here's my new prediction: when the manual recounting of undervotes is completed, the vote will be a dead tie, down to the last vote. : - ) Maybe they will break the tie with a duel.

The Florida Supreme Court's carefully reasoned majority opinion issued by four of the court's seven justices affirmed the core principle that must guide the candidates and the nation in bringing the election to a fair and legitimate resolution. As the court itself said, "This election should be determined by a careful examination of the votes of Florida's citizens and not by strategies extraneous to the voting process."

Hi Cindy...yes I'm still here. Can't believe I'm up arguing (on another board) still, have back to back aerobics classes starting at 8 tomorrow morning and have yet to pack for our weekend trip.

Yes, Hillsborough uses punch cards, and it's a Republican county. Pinellas (St. Pete-Clearwater) likewise and they have one of the highest number of undercounted votes as well.

Can't believe the latest ruling out of our stellar FL courts. Unbelievable. Each County Canvassing Board will determine their own vote counting standards. 67 counties, each setting their own standards! It is some consolation that of the 67 counties in the state, only 10 went for Gore, which partially accounts for the figures of 25,000 undercounted votes in Bush counties, but only 17,000 in Gore counties.

Though I wish this was over, and honestly felt it would be today, it's probably for the best that the undervotes be counted now, rather than later. Feel only that some uniform standard MUST be established, so every FL vote is indeed equal. 'Course the worry remains..is there any way this count could be unbiased and objective?

Most everyone has become so polarized, there are only a handful of people still thoughtfully listening to any voices other than those from their own party on most of the boards. Congratulations, Cindy, on being one of them!! I know you're not a Republican but you've had an unbiased approach from the get go.

"There's a sucker born every minute" P.T. Barnum could not have scripted this fiasco that I've endured over the last month. The suckers, you the American public, heavily weighted by ignorant, scared dummocrats. The manipulators; media, politicians (both sides). The electoral college will have the last word. Regardless, of Fl's S.Ct. 4-3 decision (what, an all democrat bench that has 3 dissenters...to their credit....)the Florida legislature will have the final say, as the Fl. state constitution provides. If you (democrats) took the time to R-E-A-D credible, unbiased sources, you would understand that the courts constitutionally have no right to decide a presidential election. Separtation of powers, anybody remember that? When you familiarize your mind with different points of view, you may critically analyze, synthesize, an objective based reaction. Instead, your lazy, entitlement-receiving, baby-killing, tax-raising, keep government in every aspect of my life since I am unable myself to become anything, behind sits on the couch with a beer in one hand and a WWF flag in the other and allows idiot talking heads such as MSNBC shit, talentless anchors TELL YOU their subjective garbage...I pity you weak individuals........

Oops...sorry, but I misspoke regarding Pinellas County. That county voted Democratic, not Republican as I said last night. There were 5,531 undervotes in Hillsborough County, and 4,226 in Pinellas. Miami-Dade alone has 9,000 undercounts!

Apparently they are now trying to establish some sort of uniform standard to apply to the recounting process. They've got to eliminate every doubt possible and it seems that one issue should be of utmost importance. Don't see how Bush can make a valid case for stopping the recount at this point. The goal is not to win at any cost!

Can't believe I have to leave town this weekend. What timing. (I suspect DH is delighted I'm being pulled away from this though! gt;)

Well, it's confirmed. There is no constitutional right to vote, as the strict constructionists will tell us on Monday. By the way, did you know Scalia's son is on Bush's federal appeal team?
And Ray, what was that about courts not having the constitutional right to decide elections? Who threw this election into the Federal Courts to begin with? The conservative Supremes will show us that this win, at any cost, is more important than any semblance of upholding State's rights, or affirming an individual's right to vote. "This election should be determined by a careful examination of the votes of Florida's citizens and not by strategies extraneous to the voting process." It's too close to call on a technicality.

For what are Katherine Harris, Jeb and George W. Bush fighting? For the right of dimpled chads to rest in peace at the bottom of a malfunctioning voting machine? For the right of the federal courts to tell states courts how to read their own constitutions? For the right of legislatures run by the candidate’s brother to help overturn the outcomes of elections that go the “wrong” way? Bush doesn’t care about the appearance of legitimacy, he and his win-at-any-cost allies can probably find way to work the political levers of power to their ultimate favor.

I am very pleased to inform all of the whining, sniveling, idiotic liberal DemocRATS that it is all OVER. Your boy lost. Get used to it because Algore is history. He and his bunch of bandits tried an end run around the US Supreme Court and were stopped dead in their tracks. George W. Bush is our president.

We are all now patiently waiting for the Fat Lady ( Tipper ) to sing.