11/27/00 1:15 p.m.
PR Coup
The public backs a Bush win.

By NR’s John J. Miller & Ramesh Ponnuru

or the first time in years, the public is backing the Republicans in a bitter, high-stakes political battle. In the fights over Elian Gonzalez, impeachment, and the government shutdown, conservatives made a sharp and principled claim — and were, in each instance, roundly rejected by the American public. But now, with the presidency on the line and another mediathon underway, conservatives have public opinion on their side.

A Washington Post/ABC News poll shows 60 percent of respondents believing Vice President Al Gore should concede the election to George W. Bush. A majority also regards the Florida vote as fairly counted: 56 percent to 39 percent. Even on the matter of the hand recount — which the public has viewed as a fair step in this messy process — seems to have turned in a GOP direction: 48 percent don't think dimpled chads are votes, versus 45 percent who do.

The task before Gore is enormous. It's much harder to undo something after it's happened than it is to stop it from happening in the first place. The vice president has waged a high-profile war for the hearts and minds of Americans, with all his talk about honoring democracy and making sure every vote counts. Ordinary Americans want to honor democracy and have their votes count, too. And now they're saying it's time to award the election to George W. Bush.