>From: <[log in to unmask]> >Subject: A washingtonpost.com article from [log in to unmask] >Date: Thu, 14 Dec 2000 01:32:54 -0500 (EST) > >You have been sent this message from [log in to unmask] as a courtesy of the >Washington Post (http://www.washingtonpost.com). >To stay on top of the latest political headlines, live discussions and >breaking news, register now for the OnPolitics email at >http://washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/onpolitics/email/email.htm. > >To view the entire article, go to >http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A3043-2000Dec13.html?GXHC_gx_session_id_FutureTenseContentServer=331a0c8d92e78729 > >Gore Accepts Bush As 43rd President >By Ron Fournier >AP Political Writer >December 13, 2000 > >Soon to be the 43rd president, Republican George W. Bush turned Wednesday >to the twin challenges of constructing a government and uniting a nation >divided. Al Gore exited the tortuously close race with a pledge to put >aside partisan rancor and a plea for national unity behind the new chief >executive. ><P> >"May God bless his stewardship of this country," Gore said in an address to >the nation. The vice president, who called Bush to concede shortly before >his speech, joked that he had promised not to "call him back this time," a >reference to the concession he phoned to Bush on Election Night and later >withdrew. ><P> >Bush, for his part, closed his conversation with the vice president by >telling Gore, "I look forward to working with you to heal the nation." ><P> >The two made plans to meet in Washington on Tuesday. ><P> >Victorious Republicans, in conciliatory and sympathetic tones, prepared to >claim control of both the White House and Congress for the first time in >more than 45 years, while Democrats talked ominously of deep partisan >schisms to condemn the U.S. Supreme Court ruling that pushed Gore from the >race. ><P> >"This might be the end of a campaign, but it's just the beginning of a much >longer, difficult process," Sen. George Voinovich, R-Ohio, said. ><P> >In a televised address that lasted less than 10 minutes, Gore mixed words >of unity with the unmistakable message that he felt wronged by the Supreme >Court ruling that stopped the Florida recount and prompted his concession. ><P> >"While I strongly disagree with the court's decision, I accept it," he >said. "I accept the finality of this outcome." ><P> >He allowed there would be time for disagreements down the road, but said >"now is the time to recognize that that which unites us is greater than >that which divides us." ><P> >Leaving the White House office that he soon will vacate, Gore was greeted >outside by cheering supporters who chanted "Gore in Four," a hopeful wish >for his political revival in 2004. ><P> >Bush moved quickly into the breach, scheduling a 10 p.m. EST address at the >Texas state Capitol and tapping the state's Democratic House speaker to >introduce him. He told campaign chairman Don Evans to reach out to Gore >chairman William Daley – a move that led to the scheduling of the two >rivals' meeting next week. And he dusted off transition plans laid dormant >by the legal wrangling, as aides reminded reporters that a Democrat or two >were certain to join the Bush administration. ><P> >In his first act as president-elect, Bush will attend a "prayer and hope" >church service Thursday in Austin, spokeswoman Karen Hughes said. "He wants >to start this on a message of prayer and healing," she said. ><P> >Each move was calculated to heal divisions caused by the brutal, five-week >election postscript. His mandate in doubt, Bush already is being urged to >curb his legislative agenda, particularly the $1.3 trillion program of tax >cuts over 10 years. ><P> >Reacting to Democratic criticism, Justice Clarence Thomas told high school >students that the court is not influenced by the politics of the presidency >or Congress. ><P> >"We happen to be in the same city but we might as well be on entirely >different planets," said Thomas, nominated to the bench by Bush's father. >"We have no axes to grind." ><P> >A few miles away, the doors to a government-run transition office were >still closed to Bush, though the General Services Administration said a >concession speech from Gore would change that. Florida's GOP-led >Legislature also awaited word from Gore, deferring plans to appoint a >backup slate of state electors loyal to Bush. ><P> >Gore topped his GOP rival by more than 300,000 votes out of 103 million >ballots cast nationwide. But Florida's 25 electoral votes, to be cast Dec. >18 and counted Jan. 6, would give Bush a total of 271 – one more than the >270 required to win the presidency, and four more than Gore. ><P> >And thus closed an election for the history books, the closest in 124 >years. On Inauguration Day Jan. 20, the Texas governor will become: ><P> >– The first presidential candidate since Benjamin Harrison in 1888 (and >only the fourth in American history) to lose the national popular vote but >win the state electoral contest, thus the White House. Harrison's foe, >Grover Cleveland, rebounded to win the presidency in 1893, offering a >glimmer of hope for Gore who, at 52, may want to make another run at the >White House. ><P> >– The nation's second father-son presidential team after John Adams >(1791-1801) and John Quincy Adams (1825-1829). Bush has relied on his >well-to-do family's connections, both to raise money and build the >foundation of a new administration. ><P> >Andrew Card, Colin Powell, Condoleezza Rice and GOP running mate Dick >Cheney held top positions in the first Bush presidency and are slated for >senior roles in the second. ><P> >Cheney visited conservative Republicans on Capitol Hill, telling reporters >afterward, "We're moving forward on the transition." ><P> >Bush may soon join Cheney in the nation's capital; aides said that a trip >to Washington next week was being planned, including a courtesy call on >President Clinton, congressional Democrats and hopefully a meeting with >Gore. ><P> >Bush has said he hopes to "seize the moment" if the courts ruled in his >favor. "Part of seizing the moment is reaching out to the other party, to >show his bipartisanship," said Bush spokesman Ari Fleischer. ><P> >Advisers said Democrats are under consideration for Cabinet posts, >including Sen. John Breaux, D-La. Also mentioned in GOP circles: Rep. >Charles Stenholm, D-Texas, former Sens. J. Bennett Johnston, D-La., and Sam >Nunn, D-Ga., and former Dallas Democratic Party chairman Sandy Kress. ><P> >Bush's schedule is in flux, but aides said a presidential-style news >conference was likely this week. They debated whether to roll out White >House staff and Cabinet appointments or delay the activity while Bush >builds an image as a uniter. ><P> >With the Senate evenly split, the House nearly so and Florida falling to >Bush by a near-invisible 537 votes, it was fitting that the U.S. Supreme >Court voted 5-4 against recounts in the state – a decision they nine >justices knew was tantamount to awarding Bush the White House. ><P> >Democrats laid down their political markers for 2002, when Congress will be >up for grabs, suggesting that wounds inflicted in the recount war will >still be grist for the next campaign. ><P> >Sen. Patrick Leahy, ranking Democrat on the Senate Judiciary Committee, >said the "majority has dealt the court a serious blow by taking actions >many Americans will consider to be political rather than judicial." ><P> >The party's core constituencies, particularly minorities, seemed the most >stung by Gore's defeat. Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr., D-Ill., called the high >court "a willing tool of the Bush campaign" that orchestrated "a velvet >legal coup." ><P> >Rep. Charles Rangel, a senior black lawmaker, said, "I am shocked by the >partisanship that has bubbled up to the lofty halls of the Supreme Court." ><P> >A number of other Democrats urged Gore to bow out graciously. "His >statement should be clear and unequivocal that, according to the highest >court in the land, George W. Bush is going to be the next president," Sen. >Dick Durbin, D-Ill., said. ><P> >After eight years of Democratic control in the White House, Republicans >promised compromise and consensus. "The long trail that has kept the nation >in suspense since November 7th is now over," said House Speaker Dennis >Hastert. "Now, as a nation, we must come together." > _____________________________________________________________________________________ Get more from the Web. FREE MSN Explorer download : http://explorer.msn.com ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe/subscribe or view archives of postings, go to the Gambia-L Web interface at: http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/archives/gambia-l.html You may also send subscription requests to [log in to unmask] if you have problems accessing the web interface and remember to write your full name and e-mail address. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------