Study explores impact of U.S. deaths in Iraq on election

[The Straight Story]

Study explores impact of U.S. deaths in Iraq on this year’s presidential race

By Kathleen Maclay, Public Affairs | 08 December 2004

Contrary to current conventional wisdom, deaths and injuries of American troops in Iraq did hurt the election efforts of President George Bush, while initiatives in 11 states to ban gay marriage had no measurable impact, say two Berkeley researchers.

“These findings don’t mean the war was or was not justified, but that there was a political cost,” said David Karol, an acting assistant professor of political science. “What this shows is that it cost Bush votes.”

Edward Miguel, assistant professor of economics, teamed up with Karol to assess how voters responded to the rising number of U.S. soldiers killed and wounded while on duty in Iraq.

The researchers compared the number of votes Bush received in 2000 with his 2004 election results. Their results indicate that Bush would have garnered 53 percent of the vote instead of 51 percent had there been no U.S. dead or injured — no small matter in such a statistically close contest.


http://www.berkeley.edu/news/berkeleyan/2004/12/08_iraq.shtml

[blue neen]

1. Does he still believe he won some "political capital?"

The man is delusional.