President Bush and family watch election returns in the White House, November 2. (AP/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)
President Bush mobilized his conservative base to win a convincing victory by more than three million votes. He helped Republicans gain seats in both houses of Congress. Now the President and his aides are making plans for a second term with a more ambitious agenda.
"Mandate is the word of the week. Does President Bush have one? If so, to do what?"
"Speaking to the economics portion of it, the mandate was not for Bush, but for Kerry's program. There is a huge group who voted for better income redistribution and job creation."
"I think he has one. I don't think a mandate is what 1,000 pundits say it is -- it's what the practical politicians make of it."
"The electorate has spoken and in a significant majority. However, it does not surprise me that we are hearing that Bush has no mandate from Kerry supporters."
