Iraq, not GOP prescription drug plan, is top issue for senior voters

[DeepModem Mom]

NYT/Reuters: Iraq Trumps Traditional Issues for Older U.S. Voters
By REUTERS
Published: October 26, 2006

MIAMI (Reuters) - America's elderly enjoy outsized influence in elections because they vote in greater numbers, but this year they've focused their clout on the Iraq war more than traditional concerns such as health and retirement benefits.

Poll after poll shows the U.S. war is uppermost in the minds of the gray-haired legions as they help decide whether President George W. Bush's Republican Party will keep control of Congress in the November 7 election....

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The (Medicare prescription drug) plan that created a new benefit for those 65 and older was expected to be a key issue in the upcoming election....Iraq, however, is clearly on the minds of the elderly. The Gray Panthers, a retiree group, urged members to write to Congress to demand U.S. troops come home from Iraq....

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Pollsters haven't seen such cross-generational agreement since 1992, when pocketbook issues dominated in all age groups and helped put Democrat Bill Clinton in the White House and his party in control of both houses of Congress....Analysts expect the war focus will favor Democrats because voters are in the mood for change and because the strongest anti-war sentiment is among Democrats and independents, who are also more eager to get to the polls than Republicans are.

http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/news/news-elderly.html

[cspanlovr]

1. The older generation is not selfish. They've been through

wars and depression, and know how to do without. They worked hard and sacrificed so that their children and grandchildren would have a better life than they did. Getting their meds is important to them, but not as important as seeing their grandchild go to college, get a job, buy a house, start a family, and live the dream they worked for all their lives. They also know a snake oil salesman when they see one.

[DeepModem Mom]

2. Excellent post! nt