USATODAY.com – Plan isn’t a takeover, despite Bush claimsBy William M. Welch, USA TODAY

President Bush’s charge: Taking aim at one of the Democrats’ favorite issues, Bush charges that John Kerry’s plan to improve health care coverage amounts to a federal takeover of the nation’s health care system.

“A massive, complicated blueprint to have our government take over the decision-making in health care” was the way Bush described Kerry’s plan this week. It would, Bush said, “have bureaucrats become the decision-makers.”

Democrats’ response: Kerry structured his plan to extend health-insurance coverage to more Americans in a way intended to avoid just the charge Bush levels. He would make it easier for middle-income Americans to purchase private- insurance coverage and expand existing government programs providing coverage for children and the poor. …

Another view: Bush’s characterization of Kerry’s plan is a misrepresentation, said Jeffrey Lemieux, executive director of Centrists.org, a small bipartisan think tank that seeks moderate solutions to policy issues.

Kerry’s plan, he said, seeks to avoid the pitfalls of President Clinton’s failed 1994 health care plan, which was based on requirements that employers offer health insurance. Instead, Kerry would provide tax incentives for employers to offer health coverage to workers.

“They seem to have learned the lessons of the Clinton plan and not over-regulate,” Lemieux said. “It’s all voluntary.

“I really don’t see a government takeover here,” he said. “It’s still not a national health plan.”

MSNBC – Young voters register heavily in key states
18- to 24-year-olds are nation’s newest swing voters
The Associated Press

Voter registration drives aimed at young people are turning 18-to 24-year-olds into an important variable in the presidential election, especially in decisive battleground states such as Michigan — where nearly 100,000 young people have registered in recent months — and Wisconsin, where the numbers are even higher.

They are the nation’s newest swing voters, with polls showing their support for the major candidates has vacillated in recent months. A Harvard University poll found that, in a five-month period, 19 percent of young potential voters changed their minds about whom they’d support.

“It’s a big population of fluid voters, and they’re largely unknown,” says Ivan Frishberg, outreach and communications coordinator for the nonprofit New Voters Project, which has registered tens of thousands of young people across the country. …

Officials in several other battleground states — New Mexico, Ohio and Florida among them — see clear signs that more young people are interested in this election. And some election experts believe that polls of “likely voters” often miss young people because the population is so mobile. …

At that rate, he says Rock the Vote’s registration numbers may surpass those from 1992 — a year when young voter turnout topped 50 percent for the first and only time since 1972.

One political scientist says he’s particularly interested to see what happens this time in Minnesota, New Hampshire and Wisconsin, where voters can register on Election Day. Data has shown that young people are particularly likely to take advantage of same-day registration.

Home – New Voters Project

The New Voters Project Presidential Youth Debate

President Bush and Senator Kerry have agreed – in writing – to address your 12 greatest concerns through The New Voters Project Presidential Youth Debate. We’re proud to give under-35 year olds their first-ever opportunity to choose the questions answered by the top presidential candidates.

Rock the Vote – Welcome
789,905 People Registered!

Greens For Impact

Greens for Impact is an organization of principled, pragmatic Green Party members and progressive populists dedicated to the goal of defeating George W. Bush in his bid for a second term as president, while simultaneously furthering the growth of the Green Party as an independent alternative to the corporate-dominated parties.

Dump Bush photos by mjh

Further scrutiny lessens doubts on Bush memos / Some skeptics now say IBM typewriter could have been used Francie Latour, Michael Rezendes, Boston Globe

The controversy over the authenticity of the documents has all but blocked out discussion of their content. They say Killian was under pressure to “sugar coat” Bush’s record, and Bush refused a direct order to take a required medical examination and discussed how he could skip drills.

Fiscal Conservatives Challenge Bush By Adam Entous, Reuters.com

President Bush, who accuses his Democratic rival of keeping his budget plans secret, has yet to offer plans of his own for funding his campaign promises and cutting the deficit in half, fiscal conservatives said on Friday. …

But even fiscal conservatives, traditionally allied with the Republican White House, were skeptical of Bush’s plans.

“While it’s true that Kerry hasn’t provided a detailed plan, neither has the president,” said Heritage Foundation budget analyst Brian Riedl.

William Niskanen, chairman of the Cato Institute, said Bush’s warnings about Kerry’s spending plans were “inconsistent” with his own proposals. “There’s no way to accomplish (Bush’s) major new measures, including tax reform, without substantial increases in spending,” Niskanen said.

Stephen Moore of the Club for Growth, a group that raises money for conservative political candidates, said Bush was not being “very forthright” about his plans. He called Bush’s fiscal record “abysmal” …

This week congressional analysts warned the deficit will balloon to a cumulative $2.29 trillion over the next decade.

Two more recurring polls, one updated daily, the other consolidating other National polls (state polls are generally held as more accurate). Last link is to an article on interpreting polls. mjh

Rasmussen Reports Prez track 2004

Presidential Tracking Poll: Bush-Kerry
Updated Daily by Noon Eastern

Election 2004

Presidential Ballot
Bush 47.8%
Kerry 46.2%
Other 1.8%
Not Sure 4.2%

Friday September 10, 2004–The Rasmussen Reports Presidential Tracking Poll shows President George W. Bush with 48% of the vote and Senator John Kerry with 46%. The Tracking Poll is updated daily by noon Eastern.

This is the first report based entirely upon interviews conducted after both the Republican Convention and the holiday weekend. Looking back, the Friday after the Democratic National Convention, Senator Kerry was ahead by an identical 48-46 margin.

White House 2004

PollingReport.com National Trial Heat Summary

NCPP – National Council on Public Polls
20 Questions A Journalist Should Ask About Poll Results
Second Edition
Sheldon R. Gawiser, Ph.D. and G. Evans Witt

The Wall Street Journal’s Flash-based map of battleground states based on Zogby International Polls.