BUSH WINS!

By Dave Andrusko

With the network talking heads all singing the same refrain - - that Florida had gone to pro-abortion Vice President Al Gore - - with much gusto and without a note of uncertainty, it was broadly hinted, when it was not virtually said in so many words, that pro-life Texas Gov. George W. Bush was history.

Some would bitterly complain of a double standard: that the networks dragged their feet in projecting success in states that everyone knew would go strongly for Bush, but jumped in with both feet to predict Gore's triumph in Florida, which common sense said was dicey, given that everyone knew the outcome was going to be very, very close. And surely, it seemed odd that the networks would make such a crucial prediction when there were already inklings something was amiss.

But as we all know, the networks reversed themselves; it was too close to call. Later, the same crew would do a full 180 from their original calculations: now Bush was the projected winner, a call that would prompt Gore to phone Bush to concede. Capping off a madcap night, the same commentators would reverse themselves yet again, retreating to neutral territory: Florida was too close to call. Gore called Bush to take back his concession.

While all that is common knowledge, not so well known is that the morning after Election Day, a major figure in the CBS News Division was dumbfounded when informed by a radio talk show host that when the networks made their projections, polls in portions of western Florida had not closed. He didn't know that Florida was in two time zones!

The picture of hyper-embarrassed network anchors going hither and yon, making one silly prediction/speculation after another, is hard not to enjoy. In their bones, pro-lifers are convinced that these potentially devastating forecasts were merely symptomatic of the larger problem: a full-court media offensive the last couple of weeks on behalf of Gore.

Since the election is now many weeks behind us and so much wild and wacky stuff has transpired since November 7, perhaps one useful way of looking back and taking it all in is to offer a series of hopefully illustrative vignettes.

The first took place all across the nation; I use my house as merely one example.

My entire family was plopped down in front of the television, intently watching the coverage when the news hit us like a semi: Florida had gone for Gore. Since Bush had lost most of the large, elector-rich states, we knew it was almost a foregone conclusion that a setback in Florida spelled defeat for the Texas governor.

Talk about air going out of a balloon: my kids were instantly deflated. "Bush has lost" was said in several different tones, from flat, almost matter of fact, to near- tearful.

Being not only the world's most stubborn man but convinced something was seriously wrong, I said defiantly, "I don't believe it. Bush may lose, but the polls have just closed." (I knew but had forgotten that the Panhandle region of Florida was still voting.)

Now this was the mother of all educable moments. I empathetically told my kids that no amount of worry would change anything either way; that you never, never, never give up, and certainly not at the too-eager-by-half pronouncements of ostensibly neutral people who have a vested interest in the outcome; that Bush had conducted a honorable campaign, which did not guarantee he would win, but which was important to remember; and that if worst came to worst, we'd hunker down for another four years.

Most of all, I said, whether it be in the battle to save unborn babies or any other important phase of their lives, they must never allow themselves to give into discouragement. You will suffer many loses, I said, but you can never be defeated unless you give in. Watching the electoral map that same night and in the days that followed, I was awestruck by how brilliantly conceived was the Bush presidential blueprint. It's been said a million times but it bears repeating: given the advantages of incumbency, a strong economy [at least then], and a tranquil electorate, Mr. Gore should not only have won but crushed Mr. Bush.

The Bush team obviously knew this. Like generals planning a campaign against an opponent equipped with vastly superior resources, they cobbled together a plan that sewed together wins in completely unexpected places, including the reliably Democratic state of West Virginia and the home states of Bill Clinton and Al Gore!

Almost no one would have given a plug nickel for their chances. But they won! Incredible.

The week before, as I tiptoed into the NRLC office at six in the morning, I tried not to make a sound. A number of desperately tired staffers were asleep in their offices, as they had been for over a month, trying to catch a few fitful hours of rest.

In contrast to the awe Ifelt at these pro-lifers' dedication was the sheer amazement I felt as I watched Palm Beach County Canvassing Chair Judge Charles Burton hold a so-called "dimpled ballot" up to the light, trying to determine the "voter's intent." By all accounts, Burton played it square. This was not true elsewhere, especially in other counties, where the criteria for deciding which ballots were treated as votes and others not changed so fast it made your head spin.

Then there was the no-holds-barred assault, as vicious as it was petty, on Florida Secretary of State Katherine Harris. Her crime? At one level, supposedly for wearing too much makeup.

That, of course, was just cover for her real offense: doing her job, certifying Gov. Bush as the winner of the Florida's 25 electoral votes. Harris was mercilessly hammered, from New York Times pillar to Washington Post.

Imarveled at the almost comedic questioning by the Florida Supreme Court, whose puppy-like eagerness to do the Gore legal team's bidding was nothing short of embarrassing. As the Wall Street Journal later put it, the "brazen" Florida high court

"enjoined Mrs. Harris without even being asked, overturned Judge [Terry] Lewis to mandate one recount scheme, and then overturned Judge Sauls and local canvassing boards to mandate another, even in the face of a gentle but firm rebuke by the U.S. Supreme Court to heed federal law."

Then there was the pleasure of observing district court judges-- Terry Lewis and N. Sanders Sauls apply the law, not the hammer, and refuse to order manual recounts. [Another judge, Nikki Clark, strongly suspected of harboring a grudge against Bush's brother, Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, agreed with Judge Lewis not to exclude certain absentee ballots.]

There was also the sheer excitement of hearing a tape of oral arguments in front of the United States Supreme Court, which had taken place only minutes before. The High Court obviously did not want to get involved, which the Gore team, led by David Boies, no doubt counted on.

But the Florida Supreme Court had chosen to ignore a clear signal from a previous hearing: tell us where you got the authority to extend the deadline and order a manual recount of selected counties. They eventually did respond, but not before first upholding the same principle in another court challenge. Reluctantly, the Supreme Court waded in, making the only call it could: it is plainly unconstitutional to use widely varying, subjective, and contradictory standards when determining which votes are to be included and which excluded. Lawyers tell me that's as straightforward an issue of equal protection as you can get.

And who could not admire the professionalism and extraordinary competence of pro-life Vice President-elect Dick Cheney, leading the transition team and patiently answering reporters' questions?

Speaking of which, Ialso admired

The first-rate effort of a three-member team from MSNBC as it valiantly tried to explain on the fly what the Supreme Court's decisive opinion meant. Right there on national television, the three split up the 65-page opinion and, even as they skimmed this complex decision, attempted to inform a lay audience what the Court had held.

There are dozens more, but we'll end with

Mr. Bush entering the Texas House of Representatives chamber. Many commentators gave him few style points for rhetoric.

But the substance of what Mr. Bush said was another story. He understands that Republicans hold a slim majority in the House and that there is a literal 50-50 split in the Senate. Bush appealed to bipartisanship and used his experience in Texas as a testimony that reaching out to Democrats is the way he has, and will, govern.

What to say? A marvelous, against-all-odds victory for the Movement, one which combined fending off the utterly unthinkable - - a Gore presidency - - with enabling the truly magnificent - - the triumph of a strong pro-life President.

And it happened, in no small part, because of your work and your invocations. Continue to hold President-elect Bush in your daily prayers.