THE BUCHANAN FACTOR

John Cavanagh of the Institute for Policy Studies posits that Pat Buchanan undermined Bush's election hopes more than Ralph Nader did Gore's. Although Buchanan collected around 450,000 votes to Nader's 2.6 million, in the four states that Bush lost by razor-thin margins Pat may have played the spoiler. In New Mexico, which Bush lost by 377, Buchanan got 1,185. In Wisconsin, where Bush was down by 5,816, Buchanan garnered 11,077. In Iowa, where Pat chalked up 6,776 votes, Bush lagged by 4,047. In Oregon Buchanan took 5,029, Bush lost by 4,186. That adds up to thirty electoral votes that Buchanan might have cost Bush. The only two states where Nader's vote surpassed Bush's margin of victory were New Hampshire and (maybe) Florida, a total of twenty-nine electoral votes. Thus, it's possible that Buchanan hurt Bush more than Nader hurt Gore. Yet Republicans aren't blaming Buchanan for Bush's current predicament.

HOW TO CHOOSE A PRESIDENT

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