That would mean the so-called neocons, former liberals all, would be supplanted. A shorthand history of the GOP in the latter half of the 20th century saw Dwight Eisenhower apply Taft's wise dictum, which avoided undue involvement in Vietnam, Richard Nixon's rapprochement with China and Ronald Reagan's victory over the U.S.S.R. without a shot being fired. But after 2000, certain neocons came to believe the United States should be committed to imperial overstretch to inculcate democracy in lands that have never known it nor want it.

The Iraq war is not the wrong war at the wrong place at the wrong time. Bush received faulty intelligence; he lied to no one -- no more than a weather forecaster lies when prediction of rain does not come true. Bush will go down in history as a decisive war president, in the same sense Harry Truman was with Korea.

But the Korean and Iraq wars were not inevitable. Korea occurred because Secretary of State Dean Acheson advertised that nation was not included in the perimeter of our Far Eastern defenses; Iraq occurred because with Saddam Hussein having earlier committed genocide, the intelligence services -- not just ours but the world's -- were faulty. But now there continues in certain circles drumbeats that indicate in the minds of some neocons, war and strife should be a constant condition. For that reason, our foreign policy must change.

Robert Taft was far from the isolationist his liberal critics decried. The son of the 27th president was committed to international cooperation under rule of law. He outlined a framework for a world community organization before the American Bar Association on Aug. 26, 1943. He found the words of a great American to cite for all future presidents. In an address before the House on Feb. 15, 1848, Abraham Lincoln had said: ''Allow the president to invade a neighboring nation whenever he shall deem it necessary to repel an invasion and you allow him to do so whenever he may choose to say he deems it necessary for such purpose, and you allow him to make war at pleasure. Study to see if you can fix any limit to his power in this respect. If today he should choose to say he thinks it necessary to invade Canada, to prevent the British from invading us, how could you stop him? You may say to him 'I see no probability of the British invading us,' but he will say to you: 'Be silent: I see it, if you don't.' ''

Lincoln's admonition may not pertain to George W. Bush, but it does to those neocons in and out of government, most of whom, incidentally, have not served in the military, who would conscript their neighbors' sons for future wars to attain a world democratic revolution. In addition to Cheney, they are such public policymakers as Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld; Paul Wolfowitz, his deputy; Elliott Abrams on the National Security Council; Paula Dobriansky, undersecretary of state; Douglas Feith, undersecretary of defense, Kenneth Adelman of the Defense Policy Board; William Schneider Jr. of the Pentagon Defense Science Board. And they have been immeasurably aided by propagandists from outside who propel the false idea of U.S. military manifest destiny: conservative columnist Charles Krauthammer; William Kristol, who runs the Weekly Standard; his father, Irving, and his mother, the historian Gertrude Himmelfarb. The nest is infested with these armchair thumb-suckers who see future wars as opportunity for Americans to fulfill the Wilsonian ideal.

Who should come forward in that Republican revolution? No one has shown up yet. But he or she will. And I look forward to it with relish. Incidentally, I'm going to take a few weeks off to recover from a bypass operation -- one of more than 300,000 undergone in the United States each year. With my heart plumbing cleared of clogs, I hope to be tanned, rested and significant pounds lighter to cheer the Bush victory and plot the Taftian restoration.

**********************************
I spoke with Tom this morning, he is out of ICU and going into a private room. The operation went as planned, and God willing he will be back to work in a few weeks, If you want to drop Tom a card here is the address.
Tom Roeser
333 N Michigan Av
Suite 932

Jim
Chicago IL 60601

Have you had a dream about the 2004 US Presidential election? For example, a dream about the candidates (e.g., George W. Bush, John Kerry), the major issues (terrorism, the war in Iraq, the economy), and/or the election process itself? If yes, please contact Kelly Bulkeley, Ph.D. at for inclusion in an ongoing research project on dreams and politics. In addition to describing the dream in as much detail as possible, please also include your age, gender, state of residence, political affiliation, and ideas about what the dream might mean. All dream reports will be kept confidential, and if you like Dr. Bulkeley will reply to any questions you have about the project.

President Bush's Economic Policies Continue to Drive Steady Job Growth and Strengthen the Economy

News, October 8, 2004: Jobs Data Shows Steady Economic Growth

On October 8, 2004, the government released new jobs figures and the data continues to show steady gains. September's employment data indicate that President Bush's economic policies are creating jobs and continuing to move the economy forward, but there is still more work to do.

President Bush will continue to push pro-growth policies that are creating more jobs, and oppose tax increases that would add a burden to working families and be a setback for our economy. This week, President Bush signed important tax relief for America's families, leaving more than $50 billion next year in the hands of the people who earned it - money that will keep our economy moving forward and result in even more new jobs for American workers.

The economy has posted steady job gains for each of the last thirteen months. 96,000 new jobs were created in September.

In addition, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) today announced that they had underreported the number of jobs created between April 2003 and March 2004 by 236,000. This preliminary "benchmark revision"” is an annual adjustment done by BLS to ensure a more accurate count of job creation.

As a result of today's announcements, the payroll survey indicates that over 1.9 million jobs have been created since August 2003.
The national unemployment rate held steady at 5.4% in September - down 0.9 percentage point from a peak of 6.3% in June 2003, and the lowest rate since October 2001. At 5.4%, the unemployment rate is well below the average of the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s.
The household survey shows nearly 2.2 million jobs created since August 2003.
Job creation was up in 47 of the 50 states in the last year, and the unemployment rate was down in all regions and in 45 of the 50 states.
Employment in construction and financial services is currently at an all-time high.
Since the national peak in June 2003, unemployment rates have fallen across all levels of education, races, and ages.
Background: President Bush's Actions are Moving Our Economy Forward - Now is Not the Time to Turn Back

Job creation has improved considerably since President Bush's Jobs and Growth bill took effect in May 2003.
Families have more money in their pockets to spend - real after-tax income is up more than 10% since President Bush took office. Since President Bush's 2001 and 2003 tax cuts, personal consumption levels have risen substantially.
The national homeownership rate is at an all time high - 69.2 percent in the second quarter of 2004. Minority homeownership set a new record of 51% in the second quarter and is up 2.1 percentage points from a year ago.
Core inflation remains low.
Mortgage rates remain near historic lows, making homebuying easier and more affordable.

President Bush opposes efforts to repeal parts of his tax relief. Small businesses create seven out of ten jobs in our economy, and raising taxes on upper income taxpayers will raise taxes on more than 900,000 small business owners. This is not the time to raise taxes on America's job creators.
More to Do: President Bush's Plan to Create More Jobs, Security, and Opportunity in a Growing Economy

While President Bush's tax cuts are creating jobs and continuing to strengthen the economy, there is still more to do so that every American who wants a job can find one. To create jobs, America must remain the best place in the world to do business. President Bush's six-point plan:

Allows families to plan for the future by making tax relief permanent.
Encourages investment and expansion by restraining Federal spending and reducing regulation.
Makes our country less dependent on foreign sources of energy through a comprehensive national energy policy.
Expands trade and levels the playing field to sell American goods and services across the globe.
Protects small business owners and workers from the explosion of frivolous lawsuits that threaten jobs across America.
Lowers the cost of health care for small businesses and working families through Association Health Plans, tax-free Health Savings Accounts, tax credits for employer contributions to Health Savings Accounts, and Medical Liability Reform.
To keep our economy growing, we must reform the tax code to make it simpler, fairer, and more pro-growth. President Bush will lead a bipartisan effort to reform and simplify the tax code.

To help workers find better, higher-paying jobs, President Bush has proposed to double the number of people served by our principal job training program and increase funding for community colleges.

To stand with workers in poor communities and those that have lost manufacturing, textile, and other jobs, President Bush proposes the creation of opportunity zones. To assist these communities in helping themselves, we will provide tax relief, and other incentives to attract new business, and improve housing, job training, and high-tech infrastructure.

Some have said we must not act until the threat is imminent. Since when have terrorists and tyrants announced their intentions, politely putting us on notice before they strike? If this threat is permitted to fully and suddenly emerge, all actions, all words, and all recriminations would come too late. Trusting in the sanity and restraint of Saddam Hussein is not a strategy, and it is not an option.

==>President Bush January 28, 2003