1988 election campaign George Bush made a powerful promise that captured the interest of many. The promise was clear and simple, "read my lips, no new taxes." Many of his supporters held him to this promise. In June of 1990 the president agreed to a tax increase that was aimed at lowering the national debt. Most outraged by this were conservative republicans, as a result they abandoned Bush and granted Perot their support. The mere involvement of third party candidates has helped shape the outcome in previous presidential elections. Since 1860 third party candidates have appeared in seven presidential elections, candidates of the incumbent party have lost six of those (Burnham 1993, 1). Public opinion polls are very important; they provide a general idea of how the public feels about certain issues. Most candidates campaigning for office know this and try to address the concerns of the people. Throughout the general election stage public opinion polls indicated that many Americans didn't approve of how Bush was handling the economy. The following indicate the percentage that disapproved: October 1990 55%, March 1991 43% (Gulf War Victory), and in November 1991 66% (Frankovic 1993, 112). Bush knew he couldn't skate around the issue. When he did address the issue he immediately pointed the finger. Bush claimed that he was faced with a "do nothing" democratic congress (Arterton 1993, 78). Well obviously the American public didn't buy it because the disapproval rating increased to 73% in October 1992 (Frankovic 1993, 112).Bush tried everything he could to side step the economic condition. He pressed the issues of Clinton's marital infidelity and made claims that (Clinton) dodged the draft. He released several negative ads that were directed at Governor Clinton. Bush focused on turning his campaign into one of trust. The first ad showed scenes from the Gulf War then switched to an empty president's chair. The announcer ...
