Monday, November 04, 2002

ABCNEWS -- White House Unsure on Senate Gains

Historically, the president's party has lost seats in mid-term elections. But White House spokesman Ari Fleischer said the administration expects to gain a few House seats or at the very least not lose any.

In the last two days they realize they are not going to get a mandate.

The White House has long sought to cast Bush as above the political fray, though he has campaigned unrelentingly this year for Republicans and has made election-year decisions that have potentially helped GOP candidates.

Unbelievable. How about being the partisan-in-chief and throwing an unprecedented amount of campaigning and administration resources into getting your party elected?

Bush predicted that Rep. Greg Ganske would defeat incumbent Sen. Tom Harkin, though a poll Sunday showed Ganske trailing significantly.

Bush had to say that or else explain why he was wasting time and money.

Bush was moving next to Arkansas, where Democrats have some of their highest hopes of grabbing a seat from the GOP.

Polls show Republican Sen. Tim Hutchinson trailing in his re-election campaign against Democratic state Attorney General Mark Pryor, son of the former senator Hutchinson replaced. The White House has lent ample support to Hutchinson despite displeasure by conservatives that he divorced his longtime wife and married a younger former aide.

Hutchinson waged a "moral" campaign against Clinton, then dumped his wife for a much younger woman.

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