Bush Versus Lieberman: 2004 And Beyond

United States Presidential Election, 2004

The United States presidential election of 2004 was the United States' 55th quadrennial presidential election. It was held on Tuesday, November 2, 2004. Democratic Party candidate Joe Lieberman, the senior U.S. Senator from Connecticut, defeated Republican Party candidate and incumbent President George W. Bush. Domestic issues-particularly immigration and Social Security reform-were the main themes of the campaign.

Background

George W. Bush won the presidency in 2000 after the Supreme Court's decision in Bush v. Gore remanded the case to the Florida Supreme Court, which declared there was not sufficient time to hold a recount without violating the U.S. Constitution.
Bush had won on a theme of “Compassionate conservatism” which he carried through his term as President. Among his domestic initiatives were the No Child Left Behind Act, the White House Office of Faith Based and Community Initiatives, H. R. 4664, far-reaching legislation to put the National Science Foundation (NSF) on a track to double its budget over five years and to create new mathematics and scienceeducation initiatives at both the pre-college and undergraduate level, environmental polices such as the Healthy Forests Initiative and the more controversial Clear Skies Initiative, and opposition to embryonic stem cell research and the Kyoto Protocol. The Bush administration also promoted a policy of abstinence only sex education, denying federal funding for any other type of safe/modern sexual health education. During his term in office, Bush sought and obtained Congressional approval for three major tax cuts.

Just eight months into his presidency, President Bush announced that a major terrorist plot had been foiled following the death of Osama bin Laden in an airstrike earlier in the year. The plot involved the hijacking of several airliners and flying them into major targets within the United States. Among these would have been the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, the White House, the Trans-America Building in San Francisco, and the Sears Tower in Chicago, Illinois. In October, the Bush administration responded to the threat with a series of air strikes aimed at destroying terrorist training camps in Taliban-controlled Afghanistan. With the support of the CIA, the Northern Alliance resistance movement was able to take control of Kabul in early 2002, forcing the Taliban into the border region between Afghanistan and Pakistan. A contingent of U.S. troops joined a NATO peacekeeping force in securing most of the country, effectively ending Taliban rule.

Despite pressure from some in his party to turn his attention towards Iraq, Bush chose to continue the Clinton-era policy of containment. In 2003, Bush authorized heavy air strikes on Baghdad, acting on intelligence which suggested that Iraq was pursuing a program of weapons of mass destruction. Saddam's sons, Uday and Qusay Hussein, were killed in the initial air attack.
Republican Nomination
Despite several bipartisan successes on domestic policy and support for the NATO mission in Afghanistan, Bush faced some strong early opposition in the Republican primaries, mostly from Senator Lincoln Chafee of Rhode Island, an opponent of Bush's tax cuts, drilling in ANWR, and much of Bush's social agenda. There was also some dissatisfaction from conservative activists over Bush’s continuing message of “Compassionate Conservatism.” Nevertheless, Bush easily won the nomination.
Democratic Nomination



Democratic candidates
Before the primaries

By summer of 2003, Howard Dean had become the apparent front runner for the Democratic nomination, performing strongly in most polls and leading the pack with the largest campaign war chest. Dean's strength as a fund raiser was attributed mainly to his embrace of the Internet for campaigning. The majority of his donations came from individual supporters, who became known as Deanites, or, more commonly, Deaniacs. Generally regarded as a pragmatic centrist during his time as governor, Dean emerged during his presidential campaign as a left-wing populist, denouncing the policies of the Bush administration as well as fellow Democrats, who, in his view, failed to strongly oppose them. While Dean campaigned as a populist, this allowed Lieberman, a liberal on most social issues, to campaign from the middle. In sheer numbers, Kerry had fewer endorsements than Howard Dean, who was far ahead in the superdelegate race going into the Iowa caucuses in January 2004, although Kerry led the endorsement race in Iowa, New Hampshire, Arizona, South Carolina, New Mexico and Nevada. Kerry's main perceived weakness was in his neighboring state of New Hampshire and nearly all national polls. Most other states did not have updated polling numbers to give an accurate placing for the Kerry campaign before Iowa. Heading into the primaries, Kerry's campaign was largely seen as in trouble, particularly after he fired campaign manager Jim Jordan. As a result, Kerry was never able to sufficiently recover.
Super Tuesday and the Democratic Convention
As the other candidates dropped out of the race following Kerry’s losses in Iowa and New Hampshire, John Edwards emerged as the only serious challenger to Lieberman. In March's Super Tuesday, Lieberman won decisive victories in the California, Connecticut, Georgia, Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, Ohio, and Rhode Island primaries and the Minnesota caucuses. Dean, despite having withdrawn from the race two weeks earlier, won his home state of Vermont. Edwards finished only slightly behind Lieberman in Georgia, but, failing to win a single state other than South Carolina, chose to withdraw from the presidential race.
On July 6, Joe Lieberman selected John Edwards as his running mate, shortly before the 2004 Democratic National Convention in Boston, Massachusetts, held later that month.
Campaign Issues
Bush attempted to redefine his “Compassionate conservatism” message to appeal more to traditional Republicans on social issues, portraying Lieberman as a typical tax-and-spend liberal. During August and September 2004, there was an intense focus on events that occurred in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Bush was accused of failing to fulfill his required service in the Texas Air National Guard. However, the focus quickly shifted to the conduct of CBS News after they aired a segment on 60 Minutes Wednesday introducing what became known as the Killian documents. Serious doubts about the documents' authenticity quickly emerged, leading CBS to appoint a review panel that eventually resulted in the firing of the news producer and other significant staffing changes. Lieberman, in return, was criticized by social conservatives for voting no on a constitutional ban of same-sex marriage.

Election Results
In the end, Lieberman scored a decisive, but by no means landslide, win over Bush by 51% compared to Bush’s 49%, making Lieberman the first Jewish President-Elect of the United States.
_________

Coming up: Lieberman's first term and the 2008 election. Ideas and comments are welcome!

 
Last edited:
I like the format you're using for this timeline, by using a wiki-style page to tell the story, but I suggest you make the font bigger. It's a bit hard on the eyes.

President Joe Lieberman! This should be fun. I just hope him being Jewish won't cause a backlash against the wider jewish community incase his presidency dosen't turn out so good.
 
Changed the font-hope it helps.:eek:

As for President Lieberman's term, let's just say that when compared to the "Boring" Bush years, his are going to get...interesting...as far as how a still in power Saddam takes revenge for his sons' deaths...
 
The Lieberman Years: Fire From The Sky

Lieberman Takes Oath; Pledges To "Bring America Together"

"As we move forward, I promise as your President to work on behalf of all of America...to overcome the divisions and rancour of the past few years and to find common ground, where we can truly live up to the ideals of our Founding Fathers in creating opportunity, securing the peace, and promoting freedom for those still seeking it around the world...together, we will continue to make America the light and hope of the world..."-From President Lieberman's inaugural address

"The real question for President Lieberman remains as to how well he will be able to work with a Republican-controlled Congress. President Lieberman is already under intense pressure from Republicans in the House to intervene in the Teri Schiavo matter and to take a stronger stance against Saddam's renewed refusal to allow weapons inspectors back into Iraq two years after the heaviest bombardment of Iraq since the Persian Gulf War..."-From the New York Times, February, 2005

SADDAM DEFIES WEAPONS INSPECTORS AGAIN

"For the second time this year, Saddam Hussein has denied a team of UN weapons inspectors to visit a site which Iraq claims is being used to study weather patterns for increasing the amount of rainfall in northern Iraq. Intelligence reports indicated that a tower is in the process of being constructed which some believe could be used to jam or disable incoming missiles..."-The New York Times, March, 2005

"Of course we all knew that Saddam was trying to find ways around the sanctions. While it was true that there was no definitive proof of WMDs in Iraq, Saddam had developed a keen interest in Nikoli Tesla, and the HAARP project..."-From "Fire From The Sky-Saddam's Revenge" by Richard A. Clarke

RUSSIA DENIES SCIENTIST KIDNAPPED

Vladimir Putin today denied a report that a noted Russian physicist had disappeared and/or been kidnapped while en route to an unspecified location in the Middle East. A Moscow spokesperson would only confirm that Russia was interested in maintaining a 'Diplomatic dialogue' with Iraq in the face of what it called 'Posturing' by the Lieberman administration over Saddam Hussein's alleged research into reflective ionization of the upper atmosphere. The Iraq regime insists that this research is for purely scientific purposes and has agreed to allow UN inspectors to examine a facility it has built in a remote region in the southern part of the country..."-From The UK Telegraph, March, 2005

DEVESTATING EARTHQUAKE STRIKES IRAN

CNN Rush Transcript:


Christiane Amanpour:

"The latest information we have is that tens of thousands may be dead in what is being described as the worst earthquake to hit Iran in decades. Tehran is literally in ruins. Surviving witnesses have told Al-Jazeera that the quake struck without warning at 6 A.M. local time. At this moment it is unknown whether or not Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is dead or alive, but the capitol of Iran is in chaos today..."-CNN, April 2005
__________

To be continued! What is Saddam up to? Stay tuned...

Hope you like it & that it doesn't sound too ASB-ish. Comments and suggestions are welcome!
 
The Lieberman Years: Fire From The Sky

"I can only imagine that this is what Hiroshima looked like 60 years ago."-Louisiana Governor Kathleen Blanco, touring New Orleans by air

"There are people dying here. This baby's mother...she just died from her burns. Can you see this? The smell of death is everywhere here...God help these people...I'm sorry; I can't go on..."-Geraldo Rivera, reporting from the Superdome, New Orleans, August 2005

"Today, one of our major cities was struck by a storm of fire. This was not a natural disaster. Rogue nations can attack our cities and kill our citizens, but they cannot destroy the resolve of the American people. We will rebuild. To those responsible: We will hold you accountable. We will not rest, we will not weaken in our resolve that this tragedy will not go unpunished. Right now, we are focused on sending as much aid as we can to the survivors of this catastrophe. The thoughts and prayers are with the people of New Orleans during this terrible and difficult time..."-From President Lieberman's official response regarding the attack against New Orleans, August, 2005

Executive Summary of the 8-29 Commission Report


"We present the narrative of this report and the recommendations that flow from it to the President of the United States, the United States Congress, and the American people for their consideration. Ten Commissioners-five Republicans and five Democrats chosen by elected leaders from our nation's capital at a time of great partisan division-have come together to present this report without dissent. We have come together with a unity of purpose because our nation demands it. Monday, August 29, was a day of unprecedented shock and suffering in the history of the United States. The nation was unprepared."
_________

To be continued....
 
Last edited:
The Lieberman Years: Fire From The Sky

Attack on America: America Strikes Back

WASHINGTON—The United States and its allies began the war against Iraq with targeted strikes just before daybreak today in Baghdad and southern Iraq at sites that Delta Force commandos believed included a hideout for Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein, US officials said.

The attacks began less than two hours after the expiration of President Lieberman's deadline for Hussein to leave his country. Lieberman gave his go-ahead after meeting with his national security team at the White House last night and learning that US special forces had received intelligence about the sites, according to US defense and intelligence officials.

It was unclear early today whether any of the strikes hit their intended targets or whether Hussein was there. About two hours after the attacks, Iraqi television broadcast a speech by Hussein, in which he told residents to "go draw your sword" against the enemy and pledge to "rain down fire from the heavens" upon Allied forces. It was unclear whether or not the message was broadcast live, but Hussein mentioned today's date.

From the White House, Lieberman told a national television audience that the airstrikes were the "opening stages of what will be a broad and concerted campaign" to topple Hussein, secure the country, and rid Iraq of its HAARP facilities.

"We will prevail," the president said.-The Associated Press, September, 2005

Violent Protests Rock Iran

Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei vowed today to crack down on protesters whom he said were "Disrupting" what he called the "Legitimate and fair" results of this month's pivitol presidential elections. The opposition candidate, Mir-Hossein Mousavi, continued to claim widespread fraud even as the official winner of the election, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, declared victory. The protests come at a crucial time for Iran, as the country is still rebuilding from last year's earthquake, which is now widely believed to have been caused by Iraq's HAARP experiments.-The London Times, June, 2006

North Korea Claims Successful HAARP Test

South Korean officials today have confirmed that North Korea apparently conducted a successful test of a HAARP field at a mountain in the country's Northern region. According to the state's official Korean Central News Agency, the following statement was issued:

The field of scientific research in the DPRK successfully conducted a reflective ionization test under secure conditions on October 9, Juche 95 (2006), at a stirring time when all the people of the country are making a great leap forward in the building of a great, prosperous, powerful socialist nation.
It has been confirmed that there was no such danger as radioactive emission in the course of the test as it was carried out under scientific consideration and careful calculation.
The test was conducted with indigenous wisdom and technology 100 percent. It marks an historic event as it greatly encouraged and pleased the KPA and people that have wished to have powerful self-reliant defence capability.
It will contribute to defending the peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and in the area around it.

The announcement has come as a great concern to both the United States and Japan, as North Korea has warned that it would view any attempts to penalize them through sanctions could be viewed as an act of war.-Associated Press, October, 2006

Saddam Hussein Killed During Capture

Secretary of Defense Colin Powell confirmed that Saddam Hussein, who had been missing and on the run since the fall of Baghdad in 2005, was killed while trying to escape US forces who found him while searching a farm in the town of ad-Dawr near Tikrit, where Saddam Hussein was born.

"He was found in a spider hole, tried to shoot his way out, and was killed by members of Task Force 121 in self defense," Powell said at a press briefing earlier today.

President Lieberman said that the former dictator's death was a positive development. "For years he terrorized the people of Iraq," he said in a statement from the White House. "Now his threat is ended forever." Even so, some analysts expressed concern that he might have been able to share valuable intelligence on Iraq's HAARP research, and whether or not he shared any of it with Iran or North Korea.-Reuters, December, 2006
__________

Coming soon: Is the threat really over? The 2007 California fires and the Minnesota disaster, and the 2008 Presidential election.
 
Last edited:
The Lieberman Years: Fire From The Sky

Lieberman Signs Disaster Declaration

President Lieberman continued to step up federal engagement in the California wildfire emergency Wednesday, signing a major disaster declaration that funnels money to people whose property losses aren't covered by insurance.

Mr. Lieberman said he wants the people of Southern California to hear a message loud and clear from Washington.

"Americans all across this land care deeply about them," the president said after a Cabinet meeting convened to coordinate federal efforts. "We're concerned about their safety. We're concerned about their property."

Mr. Lieberman had already declared a federal emergency on Tuesday for seven California counties, triggering short-term federal help. On Wednesday, responding to a late-night request from Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, Mr. Lieberman went a step further and issued the broader major disaster declaration.-CBS News, October 2007

9-11 Call Reveals Possible North Korea Connection

A recording of a 9-11 call as last month's fires began sheds new light on their possible origin, investigators said earlier today. A transcript of the call, made available to local news outlets, recorded the following:

Caller: You've got to help us.

9-11 Dispatcher: OK sir, what's going on?

Caller: Fires are breaking out everywhere...we saw the sky glow right before it happened...

9-11 Dispatcher: Can you tell me where you are?

Caller: We're in the Witch Creek area.

9-11 Dispatcher: We've notified the fire department. Can you get to somewhere safe?

Caller: I'm in my car...oh God, it's starting again, this is it!

(At this point the call is cut off and the following audio is heard)

Witch Creek Fire Audio

Sources at the Pentagon confirmed that they are looking into the cause of the fire as a possible terrrorist act, but Secretary of Defense Colin Powell would only say that the military is investigating "All possible causes."-San Diego Union-Tribune, November 2007

North Korea Defiant, Vows "Significant Response" To Threat Of Naval Blockade

With tensions on the Korean peninsula at their highest level since the Korean War, American forces along the DMZ were ordered placed on high alert as President Lieberman vowed to enforce UN sanctions that were approved by the United Nations Security Council last week. Among these actions is a proposed Naval blockade of North Korea. President Lieberman continued to insist that such an action would come only after "All other options had failed." The President ordered a review of military options following intellgience reports which suggested that last month's devestating Southern California wildfires were at least partially caused by a suspected use of HAARP technology from an "Unknown source."-BBC News, November, 2007

North Korea Denies Kim Jong-il Dead And Claim 'Conspiracy'

North Korea has denied that its leader Kim Jong-il is seriously ill and accused the West of launching a "conspiracy plot" to unsettle the country.

Rumours intensified that Kim's health is failing after he missed a parade on Tuesday to mark the 60th anniversary of the founding of the communist state.

Although the 66-year-old Kim has gone missing for protracted periods in the past, he has scrupulously attended the previous ten military parades for North Korea's major anniversaries.

The country's state-run media has not reported a public appearance by Kim since mid-August and according to South Korea's intelligence service, he has chronic heart disease and diabetes.

Kim Sung-ho, a senior South Korean intelligence official, reportedly told the National Assembly's Intelligence Committee that Kim had undergone surgery following a stroke in mid-August but that he had recovered enough to walk and talk.

South Korea's government said that it was on "high alert" after a US intelligence official said Kim may have suffered a stroke in the past month. The unnamed US official suggested that Kim's death may not be imminent. However, Lee Myung Bak, the South Korean president convened a meeting with his advisors to discuss contingency plans.

The rumours began to intensify following the devestating earthquake which struck China's Sichuan province last May. Following that event, North Korean officials denied reports of a power struggle within the North Korean regime between military hardliners who were reportedly angry with China for not opposing sanctions and those who sought a more diplomatic approach through United Nations mediators.-UK Telegraph, September, 2008

McCain, Lieberman In Dead Heat As Election Day Nears

The Presidential race appeared to be in a dead heat this week as both candidates went on a furious final round of campaigning before Election Day.

Republican nominee John S. McCain, who has generally steered clear of criticizing Lieberman's policy regarding North Korea, instead focused on what he called Mr. Lieberman's "Excessive" domestic agenda, including last January's $700 million economic stimulus package, which the President signed following his earlier bailout of the insurance and banking industries.

While Lieberman remains popular with traditional Democrats and moderates, he has drawn criticism from conservatives over his economic policies, which McCain has claimed are aimed at "Helping Wall Street instead of Main Street." He also strongly criticized the President's health care plan, which is currently moving through the House, as being "Too big and unweildy, costing too much, and doing too little to protect patients' rights, especially those on Medicare."-ABC News, November 2008
__________

To be concluded...
 
Last edited:
Why would Iraq hinder weapons inspectors in your alt when in otl he cooperated with weapons inspectors? Why would Saddam do something as suicidal as attacking the United States? Saddam was a pragmatist who wanted to stay in power. He would have known that he wouldn't have gotten away with such an attack. Also, the healthy forests initiative was just an excuse to clear cut forests and is not a good example of "compassionate conservatism."
 
Remember that Saddam's sons were killed. Had he been able to stay in power as he does here, that might have pushed him over the edge, so to speak...
 
Top