Tuesday, January 11, 2005

Wide Ranging Mandates

Often a mighty man is the humblest of creatures and a humble man is the mightiest of creatures.
Abu Abdullah Muhammad al-Harithi al-Baghdadi al-Mufid (lived 10th century), Iraqi scholar and jurist.

Palestinian Presidential Mahmoud Abbas won what was an obvious mandate victory. Abbas received 62 percent of the vote. His challenger, Dr. Mustafa Barghouti, received just less than 20 percent of the vote.

That looks like a mandate. So, if we are to understand this correctly, anywhere from three percent to 62 plus percent is considered a mandate. If President Bush gained political capital, then Abbas is the Bill Gates of political capital.

We suppose compared to a court appointment or if you prefer not winning the popular vote, three percent is a mandate.

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