Push for Bush

WASHINGTON: Arrived in the United States a couple of days ago to meet some of our firm’s associates, and from what they tell me, the atmosphere is beginning to be highly charged because of the upcoming US presidential elections. George W seems to be on the defensive for now because of the US occupation in Iraq. So far, the latest death toll has added up to 243 US servicemen killed, and approximately 1,300 injured by hostile guerilla fire. Many of these servicemen have been quietly brought back to the United States, away from media attention. But many people are beginning to be weary about the situation. If you remember, Bill Clinton’s political operative James Carville once said, it’s the economy, stupid. In this case, it’s not the economy but the Iraq war, stupid.

While he was in the Philippines, George W should have received a few tips from our local politicians on Philippine style of cloak-and-dagger politics. But the real controversial issue is the commitment of George W to pump 65 billion US dollars in Iraq for military operations and 19 billion US dollars for reconstruction efforts. Although the US Congress granted his request for a budget, it looks like it’s creating more questions than answers.

American taxpayers are asking why the United States should give more money when American servicemen are still dying long after President Bush declared the war was over. Worse, many fear that the financial commitment would surely push the US federal deficit to well over half a trillion dollars, or exactly US$525 billion. Alan Greenspan is actually worried because of the long-term effect it might have on the economy, especially on Medicare and Social Security. The US economy, on the other hand, has been on the upswing as of last month, but many are saying the trend may not last. Consumer borrowing has already swelled to 15.1 billion US dollars, which is 9.7-percent higher than what was pegged in August this year. This pushed the total consumer debt to about 1.9 trillion US dollars. Almost everyday, there’s news about the economy and what’s happening back in Iraq, and is pushing the American public over the edge.

Despite the issues being raised against George W, many are still giving him the thumb’s-up sign. The president’s approval rating on how he has been handling the economy has jumped from 42-percent to 47-percent. Nine out of ten Republicans and nearly half of independents say Bush is doing fine, including one in every four Democrats. Middle-income Americans have given him a job rating of 54-percent. In spite of what his rivals are saying about Bush being a supporter of anti-women’s rights, 51-percent of American women have given him a positive job rating. His father, George Bush Sr. got lower than what his son got during his re-election year. The same is true with Jimmy Carter. With these figures, it is clear that the American public is not easily swayed by political maneuvering from the opposite camps.

However, there is one contender that Bush Jr. should watch out for – the blunt and feisty Vermont Governor and Yale-educated physician Howard B. Dean III. He’s an out-and-out Democrat, and the first one to jump into the 2004 bandwagon. He has already visited more than 28 states, having made a dozen trips to Iowa, New Hampshire, California and New York, among other places. From day one, Dean has been against the Iraq war, and has always been an advocate of reforms in health care. He placed a commanding lead in the on-line MoveOn.org "primary" in June 2003. Since then, independent polls in Iowa, New Hampshire, and California have placed Dean in the lead. One thing though that’s making it hard for Dean to get a positive standing is his off-the-cuff remarks, and a Silver Star veteran Democrat named Wesley "Wes" Clark of Arkansas.

Clark is being packaged by the party establishment as the "Stop Dean" candidate, but many believe it will not have the desired effect on Dean’s standing because of the strong support he is getting from the early contest states. Dean has been low-key for many years, but today, he is considered as one of the more serious candidates to go against a Bush presidency. No doubt, it’s going to be an exciting race to the White House come 2004. We’re all just scratching the surface of how all this would eventually end. As for the three-million Filipino-Americans, I’ve been told that the majority would support George W. GMA did what no other president has ever done after the 70s: extract a large military assistance package from the United States. Bush has made it clear that he will support a friendly nation like the Philippines in every possible way he can.

That’s why a Bush victory would be good for the country. When I met secretary Ed Ermita before I left for the United States, I told him how important a Bush victory would be for the Armed Forces, and that we should strike while the iron is hot and continue our strong lobbying effort in the US Congress to get a bigger slice of the military assistance program. As long as George W is president, we can depend on strong economic and military support from the White House. A push for Bush is the only way to go.

* * *

By the way, I passed by beautiful Vancouver on my way to the US and met with a prominent Filipino in the area, lawyer Art Alafriz who’s well known in British Columbia and is doing extremely well. He and his generous wife Zeny are engaged in community work for Filipinos in Vancouver. They related to me about a new Filipina immigrant who recently died. As part of his community work, he organized the wake for this young woman and solicited some donations. To his surprise, there were more than 700 Filipinos – most of them did not even know the woman – who came to the wake and donated a large sum to defray the expenses to bring her body back to Manila. According to Art, there is a very strong Filipino community spirit in Vancouver, which I think is absolutely commendable.

* * *

E-mail: [email protected]