New precedence: if you win an election, you have a mandate. If you lose,

[no_hypocrisy]

then you don't.
http://www.usatoday.com/printedition/news/20041104/1a_cover04.art.htm

What kind of fatuous logic is that? I could understand getting 70-75% of the popular vote and determining there's a mandate attached. But 50.5% of the vote just means you won, and your opponent didn't. There's no mandate to reconstruct American democracy via the courts, the Constitution, the social programs, the entitlement programs, and the culture in general.

Mandate, smandate.

[Owlet]

1. It's a mandate because

President Cheney says so.

"A historic election. A broad, nationwide victory," said Cheney, noting that GOP election gains would mean that he would be presiding over a larger Republican majority in the Senate.

The massive popular vote for Bush should be interpreted as "a mandate," Cheney said."

[jman0]

2. but that's not all they got

didn't they also increase representation in both houses of government?
Plus a cushy 3. whatever million vote lead.
That's why they believe that i suspect.
If the Dems had taken back congress or something.

[RobinA]

3. This Only Applies

to Republicans. When a Dem wins it isn't a mandate. I specifically remember this from the Clinton days. One of his so-called weaknesses was going to be that he didn't have a mandate because he only got a plurality, not a majority. Then when Bush didn't win but took office anyway despite a lack of any greater number of votes by any definition at all, it was merely going to keep him moderate. He, of course, acted like he won by a landslide, thus proving that all this nonsense, slicing, dicing and parsing is bull anyway. Mandate, schmandate. Aren't I supposed to be protected from the tyranny of the majority?

[forgethell]

4. Getting the office

gives you the mandate, if you can get Congress to go along with it, and you've got the guts to risk political capital. Love 'im or loaathe 'im, * has got this kind of guts. And the repukes gained in both houses in Congress. And the Democratic senators are gonna be weenies. Unless we can supply some backbone to them.

[DaveofCali]

5. Fuck the Corporate Media

We refuse to be victimized by the other 50% of the population.