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Board Olds: Why didn't the GOP take the White House in 1996?
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Date: January 21st, 2026 3:11 PM Author: rose know-it-all patrolman mother They had just put the DNC's mouth on the curb and kicked their fucking teeth in when they took the House in 1994 for the first time in 40 years.
Gingrich had mastermind the "Contract with America" and forced Bill to lock up more Niggas and start the process of sacrificing blue-collar manufacturing workers with NAFTA and letting China joining WTO.
So how was Bob Dole the BEST Reptilian Candidate to go up against Slick Willy? |
Date: January 22nd, 2026 1:08 PM Author: rose know-it-all patrolman mother (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49608847) |
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Date: January 22nd, 2026 1:11 PM Author: adulterous fear-inspiring pit Wasn't that when Pat Buchanan sabotaged the Reform Party by taking on a black woman as vice presidential candidate? (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49608874) |
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Date: January 22nd, 2026 1:12 PM Author: angry fortuitous meteor bob dole was a good man but not the most inspiring national-level politician. clinton’s shift to third-way moderacy was slick and effective. and, all in all, things were good in ‘96. why rock the boat? (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49608887) |
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Date: January 22nd, 2026 4:39 PM Author: rose know-it-all patrolman mother "3rd way moderacy"
You mean Republican-lite? |
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Date: January 22nd, 2026 7:14 PM Author: angry fortuitous meteor yes. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49609966) |
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Date: January 22nd, 2026 1:13 PM Author: sepia dilemma This would be a better question for OldHLSdood (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49608889) |
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Date: January 22nd, 2026 1:19 PM Author: Appetizing step-uncle's house laser beams Internet was just starting to boom. everyone was landing well-paying jobs and seeing our 401ks boom. we all suddenly had cell phones, home PCs, and SUVs. there was a lot of optimism back then and you don’t change horses in midstream. all of this had further accelerated by the time he left office which is why his approval was in the stratosphere despite being caught lying about a blowjob from a 20-yo intern:
https://news.gallup.com/poll/116584/presidential-approval-ratings-bill-clinton.aspx |
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Date: January 22nd, 2026 7:19 PM Author: Indigo travel guidebook (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49609984) |
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Date: January 22nd, 2026 8:32 PM Author: Motley codepig Bad take. Very few people had cell phones in 1996. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49610253) |
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Date: January 22nd, 2026 8:35 PM Author: Bespoke brilliant potus The Startac came out in 1996. That phone was fucking sweet for the time. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49610272) |
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Date: January 22nd, 2026 11:14 PM Author: rose know-it-all patrolman mother cr (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49610777) |
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Date: January 23rd, 2026 9:26 AM Author: Indigo travel guidebook (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49611231) |
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Date: January 22nd, 2026 8:53 PM Author: Heady Shrine Hardly anyone had cell phones in 1996, and the internet was a curiosity. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49610340) |
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Date: January 22nd, 2026 11:46 PM Author: sexy adventurous affirmative action (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49610811) |
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Date: January 22nd, 2026 1:23 PM Author: odious kitty institution I think this was back when having a divided government (Dem Pres + GOP congress) was still seen as useful. And the compromises that came out of the divided government were all winners (balanced budget, crime bill, etc.)
This was also the twilight of when America's demographics would legitimately allow for this. |
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Date: January 22nd, 2026 1:25 PM Author: Appetizing step-uncle's house laser beams this is cr. if you look at a graph of the economy the biggest booms are always when opposite parties control the WH and Congress (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49608973) |
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Date: January 22nd, 2026 4:40 PM Author: rose know-it-all patrolman mother lol @ saying the Crime Bill was a "winner"
It's universally accepted that opening the floodgate to Mass Incarceration was a bad idea on both sides of the aisle. |
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Date: January 22nd, 2026 7:24 PM Author: Maroon razzle abode the only bad part of the '94 crime bill was the assault weapon ban. otherwise, it was a huge policy victory in objective terms. it turned out that locking up violent thugs led to a reduction in violence. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49609997) |
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Date: January 23rd, 2026 12:27 PM Author: odious kitty institution Why is "Mass Incarceration" a bad idea? Wtf? Locking up criminals is a good idea and makes society better for the vast majority of people (including blacks.) (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49611837) |
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Date: January 24th, 2026 10:30 PM Author: rose know-it-all patrolman mother You dumb nigger, even Trump has pushed for prison reform, lol! (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49616452) |
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Date: January 22nd, 2026 1:29 PM Author: galvanic yellow french chef It's because it was liberal boomers (68'ers, Flower Power, Summer of Love) were rebelling against their parents. And the baby boom meant there were more of them. Dole reminded them of their WWII parents who told them pot was bad and blacks should live segregated. Gingrich's success had more to do with geography and regionalism. Boomers literally hated Dole because it reminded them of all the times they got caught doing something bad and were grounded. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49608981) |
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Date: January 22nd, 2026 11:43 PM Author: fragrant cream twinkling uncleanness I can totally see this. Bob Dole did seem like a good man, but gruff, a bit moralizing, stiff, etc.
Meanwhile Slick Willy was like laissez les bons temps rouler! You can have your cake and eat it too. Abortion should be "safe legal and rare." I'm a democrat but pro death penalty. I'm a white guy but I'm the first black president. Sure I got busted smoking pot but I didn't inhale. Etc. |
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Date: January 24th, 2026 10:59 PM Author: Exhilarant tan pozpig station (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49616550) |
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Date: January 24th, 2026 11:02 PM Author: galvanic yellow french chef He also banned gay marriage which everyone thought was crazy at the time. Hard to imagine before Obergefell most people thought gay marriage was totally insane. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49616557) |
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Date: January 24th, 2026 10:36 PM Author: Emerald at-the-ready corn cake tanning salon excellent post (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49616483) |
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Date: January 22nd, 2026 2:43 PM Author: provocative base Gingrich burned a lot of goodwill with two govt shutdowns and his uncompromising approach. Clinton was smooth and well-liked. Also, a lot of 1994 was a realignment as the old Dixiecrat dems were dying out or finally starting to vote GOP in non-presidential elections. A lot of dem incumbents were dinosaurs who had survived in areas they had no business winning in just by inertia and incumbency. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49609242) |
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Date: January 22nd, 2026 2:54 PM Author: odious kitty institution Women wanted to fuck Clinton, can't discount this fact. And maybe I'm just not old enough to opine on this, but I'm not entirely sure what Dole wanted to do that would've been radically different from what Clinton was already doing. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49609293) |
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Date: January 22nd, 2026 8:14 PM Author: aromatic church building This plus the jobs numbers and the overall economy vibes were probably the best I’ve experienced in my lifetime (I am too young to have experienced 84-87). Also Perot still got 8%, and though he didn’t swing the race to Clinton like he likely did in 92, it was enough to not have 96 look like every non-Obama POTUS election since and have an EV result that would’ve been much closer to the 21st century median of ~300 to 230. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49610165) |
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Date: January 22nd, 2026 8:20 PM Author: Slippery ladyboy center All of the above is true, but it's also worth noting that Dole was a very lackluster candidate. He was old as fuck (I remember "Bob Dole is really old" jokes became a staple on late night comedy shows), not very charismatic, and he and Jack Kemp openly feuded with one another over the course of their campaign. I don't know that a more charismatic Republican would have won, but he probably would have at least made the margins closer. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49610193) |
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Date: January 22nd, 2026 8:28 PM Author: Heady Shrine Democrats feared Lamar Alexander, but he wasn't able to break out of the pack in the primaries. There were like twelve candidates on the GOP side, including Pat Buchanan, Steve Forbes, and Alan Keyes. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49610239) |
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Date: January 22nd, 2026 8:31 PM Author: Maroon razzle abode dole also fell off of a stage at one point, which didn't look good:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UIatQSImzU0 |
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Date: January 22nd, 2026 2:51 PM Author: abusive seedy electric furnace senate the 90s were pretty 180 in general so no motivation to change horses midstream. dole was an uninspiring candidate. 90s republicans had shitty issue priorities that didnt really motivate the masses. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49609275) |
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Date: January 22nd, 2026 3:18 PM Author: galvanic yellow french chef Cr
Dole was a DEI candidate. Everyone knew Clinton was too popular to lose and so they wanted to give it to the last of the WWII generation as a send off. |
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Date: January 22nd, 2026 4:42 PM Author: rose know-it-all patrolman mother So there wasn't any (younger) Republican that could've put up a better fight? (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49609612) |
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Date: January 22nd, 2026 4:49 PM Author: galvanic yellow french chef Welcome back Jeb! (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49609635) |
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Date: January 22nd, 2026 4:51 PM Author: rose know-it-all patrolman mother (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49609640) |
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Date: January 23rd, 2026 12:10 AM Author: sexy adventurous affirmative action (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49610835) |
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Date: January 22nd, 2026 3:19 PM Author: galvanic yellow french chef Dole was the first candidate ever to have a website. He was Online and this was considered threatening at the time. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49609354) |
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Date: January 22nd, 2026 8:00 PM Author: Heady Shrine The site is still up, not flame:
https://www.dolekemp96.org/main.htm |
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Date: January 22nd, 2026 8:12 PM Author: beady-eyed sticky cruise ship gunner Visually gives autoadmit.com vibes (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49610153) |
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Date: January 22nd, 2026 8:33 PM Author: galvanic yellow french chef Fight Drugs and Violent Crime Bill Clinton has slashed drug interdiction efforts, weakened enforcement, appointed lenient soft-on-crime judges and joked about marijuana use on MTV. Even liberal Rep. Charlie Rangel (D-NY) says he has "never, never, never," seen a President who cares less about fighting drugs. It should be no surprise that drug use is on the rise - after 11 consecutive years of decline. Teenage drug use has increased in the past three years and teenage marijuana use has doubled on Bill Clinton's watch. |
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Date: January 22nd, 2026 11:15 PM Author: rose know-it-all patrolman mother (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49610779) |
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Date: January 22nd, 2026 8:30 PM Author: galvanic yellow french chef https://www.dolekemp96.org/interactive/computer/leader.bmp (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49610246) |
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Date: January 23rd, 2026 12:11 AM Author: sexy adventurous affirmative action 180, tyft (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49610836) |
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Date: January 22nd, 2026 11:19 PM Author: Nubile juggernaut property The Republicans at that time between Dole and Gingrich seemed old, possibly evil and somewhat disconnected. Like the rest of the greatest generation they had reached their final act. They also lacked a built out fan base like they have now. The only person a republican leaning voter could turn to for cues was Limbaugh and he was a fool operating at the fringes.
Clinton represented the baby boomers. Liberal boomers obviously loved him but I think conservative boomers found him intriguing enough to vote for. Look, boomers are ALWAYS going to look out for one of their own. |
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Date: January 22nd, 2026 11:21 PM Author: Maroon razzle abode newt gingrich was 51 during the 1994 GOP wave. dole was legitimately old (73 during the 1996 campaign), but gingrich wasn't as old as is commonly remembered. gingrich was in fact only 3 years older than clinton himself. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49610790) |
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Date: January 22nd, 2026 11:26 PM Author: galvanic yellow french chef I think he had too many wives and offended some social conservatives. He liked to make whoopie too much. Back then shit like affairs were really scandalous before everyone started fucking whomever whenever and now no one cares.
Wow his Wikipedia is really insane. He just kept cheating on his wives lmao. And failed to pay miserly child support. |
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Date: January 24th, 2026 11:29 PM Author: carmine psychic parlor i once saw him full fist grab the ass of a girl i know who stopped to get a photo with him, with his wife standing watching
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Date: January 22nd, 2026 11:37 PM Author: Nubile juggernaut property He was just unlikeable. You wouldn't want to get a drink with that guy. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49610805) |
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Date: January 23rd, 2026 12:12 AM Author: sexy adventurous affirmative action Pat Buchanan was actually a dark horse that was very MAGA before MAGA (focus should be on kicking out illegals and curbing immigration, get out of NATO and stupid foreign entanglements, etc.). In fact, he was ahead of Trump on many issues MAGA supporters actually care about like getting Israeli influence out of US politics. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49610838) |
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Date: January 23rd, 2026 12:14 AM Author: Heady Shrine Buchanan won New Hampshire before the GOP united behind Dole. Establishment cucks were really worried for a while. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49610840) |
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Date: January 23rd, 2026 12:18 AM Author: sexy adventurous affirmative action Congrats to the GOPe! They got the uninspiring and bland Dole instead which ensured that they got slaughtered in the general election. But they much preferred that to someone like Buchanan that might actually make some substantive changes and prevented us becoming the debt ridden barely recognizable country full of foreigners that we are today. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49610845) |
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Date: January 23rd, 2026 12:20 AM Author: Heady Shrine I remember watching the Super Tuesday coverage when all the cucks were celebrating Dole's nomination. Everyone knew he was going to lose, but they had to preserve their (((agenda))) for as long as possible. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49610848) |
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Date: January 23rd, 2026 12:20 AM Author: sexy adventurous affirmative action (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49610850) |
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Date: January 23rd, 2026 12:50 AM Author: galvanic yellow french chef they were getting their (((agenda))) either way (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49610878) |
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Date: January 23rd, 2026 12:50 AM Author: galvanic yellow french chef didn't William F Buckley drop a weighty tome attacking Buchanan called "In Search of Antisemitism" that de facto ruined his political career? Buchanan was at his peak in '92 while running against Bush Sr. and the book crushed him. Buckley was considered the Pope of Republicans at the time. I don't think anyone took his '96 run seriously. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49610876) |
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Date: January 23rd, 2026 1:15 AM Author: Heady Shrine Buchanan challenged Bush in the 1992 primaries and although he didn't win any primaries, he did surprisingly well in New Hampshire and was given a prime speaking slot at the convention. His 1996 was taken seriously, and he won New Hampshire as well as a few other contests. It was his disastrous 2000 run that ended with him going off the rails and leaving the party. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49610887) |
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Date: January 23rd, 2026 1:20 AM Author: galvanic yellow french chef What happened in 2000
I thought he started the Reform Party in the late 90s |
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Date: January 23rd, 2026 1:26 AM Author: Heady Shrine Buchanan initially ran as a Republican, but by the fall of '99 it was clear that Bush had been anointed by the party elites. Buchanan left the party and joined a bizarre alliance with Lenora Fulani and other radicals as a Reform candidate. He ended up getting less than one percent of the vote. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49610902) |
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Date: January 23rd, 2026 1:26 AM Author: galvanic yellow french chef Right man at the wrong time. Bad luck. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49610903) |
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Date: January 23rd, 2026 1:28 AM Author: Heady Shrine Buchanan's autobiography is really interesting and I used to have a copy. He wrote about growing up in D.C. in the fifties and how he got expelled from Georgetown. I think it's on Internet Archive. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49610904) |
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Date: January 23rd, 2026 1:49 AM Author: galvanic yellow french chef Tell me more in a nutshell (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49610924) |
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Date: January 23rd, 2026 2:04 AM Author: Heady Shrine His family was really conservative and D.C. was a nice place to live. It was destroyed by niggers. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49610926) |
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Date: January 23rd, 2026 2:17 AM Author: galvanic yellow french chef I can't imagine how nice it must have been in the 50s. A mostly white DC is unthinkable. You can really see the evolution of how libs figured out how to ruin a place once and then they can do it over and over again. Rinse repeat. Even before immigration it was migration. Just put the bad people next to the good people. Hilarity ensues. Rly good poast Evan. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49610934) |
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Date: January 24th, 2026 11:33 PM Author: carmine psychic parlor (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49616637) |
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Date: January 23rd, 2026 10:07 AM Author: Internet-worthy field Pat was our last chance. any reform now is too little too late. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49611346) |
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Date: January 23rd, 2026 10:02 AM Author: Histrionic embarrassed to the bone hell idiot What hasn't been mentioned is Clinton received sub 50% of the vote, officially 49.2%. As voting goes, it wasn't a strong endorsement for Clinton. But turnout was also lowish, at 50%, and concur with what others have said that everyone expected Dole to lose all year and Clinton would win handsomely in the electoral college, which was true. It was the last election which a bunch of southern/border states voted blue.
A couple factors came together to give Clinton a bigger mandate than he received on paper:
1. Rebounding economy
2. Following the 1994 midterms shellacking, Clinton's sharp swing to the center and claiming victory on a bunch of policies that'd never happen if it wasn't for the GOP congress. The New Democrat model promised to marry Reaganite economic liberalism with 1990s social liberalism.
3. GOP personality overreach. A significant portion of the GOP leadership was aching for some kind of return to a 1950s ethos at a time when America was only liberalizing in the other direction. People didn't like the evangelical wackos hating gays or sex before marriage or wanting to ban evolution in school. By contrast Clinton was cool and relaxed, he was also the first true celebrity president hobnobbing with Hollywood in a way that not even Kennedy did.
4. Dole was pretty dull and old. Clinton was young and cool.
I was 16 in that election year so keenly aware how all my friends saw the Democrats as chill and relaxed people and Republicans as uptight grandparents.
Will also comment what is overlooked today is how polarizing Clinton was to a substantial portion of the electorate, who saw him as hypocritical and a schmoozing southern boy with fabulous hair, the personality of a kid who'd charm his way out of getting his hand caught in the cookie jar while looking up at you with mournful eyes. The GOP resented him for this teflon personality above all else. I remember arguments over whether Clinton had the right integrity to be president. The argument against Clinton was less policy and more character, it really brought out certain human instincts ingrained in people. Which, incidentally, suggests a certain governor of California with similar attributes will have a rockier road to the nomination or election than might be predicted.
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Date: January 23rd, 2026 10:10 AM Author: Cerebral Business Firm Water Buffalo Newt Gingrich overplayed his hand. People liked Bill as a person. Economy was so good that kids born in 2005 have fond memories of it. |
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Date: January 24th, 2026 10:32 PM Author: Iridescent Nowag Dysfunction bob dole is boring. (http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5824676&forum_id=2#49616470) |