Florida will again be presidential battleground

[Judi Lynn]

Florida will again be presidential battleground


TALLAHASSEE, FL (AP) -- President Bush's re-election campaign trained more than 2,000 volunteers to work in Florida to avoid a photo finish like the one in 2000.

The grass roots campaign, perhaps unprecedented in Florida, eventually is expected to include about 7,000 paid and volunteer organizers to get out the Republican vote in the state this fall, the St. Petersburg Times reported Sunday.

The Bush campaign is already setting up phone banks to try and reach thousands of swing voters to win Florida's 27 electoral votes in November, and expects to register more than 75,000 new Republican voters in Florida before Election Day.

"You're going to see the greatest grass roots undertaking by the Republican Party in modern political history," said Ralph Reed, chief of the Bush-Cheney campaign in the Southeast.
(snip/...)

Created: 1/4/2004 4:09:22 PM
Updated: 1/4/2004 4:10:23 PM
© 2003 Assocated Press All rights reserved.

http://www.firstcoastnews.com/news/florida/news-article.aspx?storyid=12908

[tedoll78]

1. This makes me happy!

If we fake an effort in Florida and Bush spends all of this time and money there, we can divert more resources to the more winnable Ohio..

[adamrsilva]

7. I agree. Go for Ohio

The only way we can possibly win Florida is if Graham is VP (too many Dem votes for Jeb to throw out), but Ohio is more winnable and, like Florida, would give us the necesarry votes to win. By making Republicans think Florida will be the battleground again, we can divert attention from Ohio and take the Presidency.

[mbperrin]

2. Hmm...will those 75,000 new Repub voters include those who

should have been convicted of various financial felonies and will they have to pass a "pounding on the glass" test?

[AndyTiedye]

3. 90,000 Dems Wrongly Disenfranchised in 2000 will Stay Disenfranchised

until after the 2004 elections. It took only a few weeks to wipe them off the
voter rolls, but they expect it to take six years to get them back on again.

[Gman]

4. What about fat butt cyst boys that have been convicted

of doctor shopping?

[deminflorida]

5. Your right, we're making pretty good inroads among....

conservatives and veterans here in the Panhandle, lots of them seem to like General Clark's message. Right in the Republican's own backyard a grass-roots movement to support a Democratic nominee is springing up. General Clark's visit last week helped alot too.

They're going to have their hands full in November.

[farmboxer]

6. Republican Manufactured And Programmed Voting Machines

worry me a lot. How can Democrats ever win again with the machines?

[stickdog]

8. Jeb Crow's idea of a Repuke grassroots strategy.

Yank 90,000 voters out of the voting pool by their African roots.

[sventvkg]

9. Voting Machine issues notwithstanding, lots of elderly will not vote bush

I mean these people had their medicare slashed and much of their drug benefits taken away under Jeb and the REpugs...Now in my opinion they were stupid to have voted Repub in the first place but I hear many have seen the error of their ways and will be voting Dem this year...If it was close last time, In a fair election, Bush should LOSE and LOSE hard in FL this year...Unless thousands more wealtht elitists moved into the state and will vote...

[On the Road]

10. Big, Big Danger Here!

There was a big Democratic GOTV drive last time around. Incumbency + Jeb Bush + a grassroots Republican effort may doom Florida.

The good news is that even without Florida, Gore was only two electoral votes shy. Any additional state, no matter how small, wins it for the Dems this time. Ohio's not a bad one, but there are others. Florida has so much of the deep South in it that's it's a stretch in any case.

[shanti]

11. i'm sure that they know this

hence, the voting machines! :grr: