CNN

"NOT THIS TIME"!!! Talk about Michael Moore? There was a Rep. about a month ago that quoted " I hope it rain at Ivesco Field so that Obama's speech was be cancelled". Why do these people think that God and time is on their side is beyond me. Evangelical Christians My A__!!!( ECMA) !!!! Gustav wiped away their fame as they tried to wipe away Obama's and Biden's!

I heard one republican saying today God must be a democrat...

So, I am glad I am voting with the right party.

Bush and Cheney are making a grave mistake by skipping the convention. McCain needs their support right now and their absence will hurt his influence in this historic election. I was looking forward to hearing them speak despite my loyal support for Obama. I hope the GOP convention is still worth the wait.

Good and while they're at it, why don't they skip the next 4 months too.

Most impressive. But not even a hurricane which will devastate lives and people will cause people to choose a third Bush term.

No one will miss them there. If Bush and Cheney are the best leaders this country can come up with, I'm moving.

Picking Laura as his wife is the good choice Bush ever done, I just cannot say the same for Laura.

No big loss there.

They would look for any excuse not to go.

GOOD! Here in Minnesota, we don't take kindly to liars and war criminals who don't know how to govern!

WELL, I KNOW MCCAIN IS HAPPY ABOUT THIS....

Michael Moore thought this hurricane was proof of God's existence. Maybe the Republicans are starting to feel the same, as it will blow the two biggest pariahs in modern American politics right off their stage.

Two points to be made :

1. about a month ago, Stuart Shepard (Focus on Family spokesperson) called upon the nation to pray for rain of biblical proportions on the night that Barak Obama was to speak outside at Invesco Field. The weather was perfect.

2. this week, a hurricane of biblical proportions now likely results in George Bush and Dick Cheney being excluded from the Republican National Convention.

One recipient allowed to bring a message of hope, another to dodge a bullet. So one may surmise that God, unlike Bill O', truly is fair and balanced. .. and all's well that ends well.

It is a great idea not to go. Stay where it is safe Mr. President. We want you to retire in one piece and continue to have a great life.

Why pretend now?

This is really too bad. I was looking forward to Bush highlighting all his achievements and successes over the last eight years. I actually think him doing so on the day Gustav hits land would be a perfect opportunity, as it would remind the people that what little success the President may have had over the last eight years was overshadowed by some enormous failures, such as the response to Katrina.

The republicans need to lead because the democrats in LA will not but they are the first to blame the right for their own stupidly.

Bussh & Chetney would do more harm than good to attend the GOP Convention! It's already visible that McCain is an extension of the Bush regime and by either one of them attending would confirm it!
I am a Republican and I favor Barack Obama; I want to see 'change' and not 'death'.I want to see a president who serves theAmerican people and not a dictator who has devastated America and the world! Bush is the worse president that ever sat in office! You think Nixon was bad, he did nothing in comparison to what bush has done, Bush has killed over 4000 Americans in addition to thousands of innocent lives aboard! That’s not deserving impeachment and prison time?

Palin is a lightweight, has a lower educational profile(BS) than an recent Vice-Presidential candidate. She squeaks when speaking, and does not give the aura of being Presidential. We the women of Hillary will not vote her and her conservative policies that goes against what Hillary stood for. Who does McCain think he is trying to con us with this imposter.

Parts of New Orleans and the lower ninth ward look the same three years after Katrina. Katrina victims are still suffering and have run into unbelievable road blocks in order to rebuild their lives. This administration has done very little to help remove the road blocks put in the way of rebuilding these people's lives. All of a sudden in an election year and on the eve of the Republican National Convention they are so concerned? Give me a break ! I have already heard on the news how different things are now because of the Republican governor, I guess that is the difference.

I am not one who believes omens, but if you are, then Gustav should be a good reminder of the complete failures of Bush's domestic policies. The Republicans would do well to postpone their convention until next week or at least extend it into the weekend and cut Monday and Tuesday.

And McCain is drawing a sigh of relief. Now these shmucks are trying to make up for Katrina? Too little, too late. We will never forget that debacle.

What a telling indictment of the sorry condition of the GOP, when you are ashamed to have it's leaders at your own Convention. Wow!

McCain is Bush/Cheney so it won't make any difference. Katrina victims are victims all over again, victims of McCain/Bush politics.

They weren't wanted there anyway. This way they keep the little bit of dignity they have remaining.
Bush, Cheney, Mc Cain and Palin can meet at the White House week after next.

Bush and Cheney not going to convention? As an excuse, Gustav is an answer to Republicans' prayers! (Another reminder to be careful what you pray for...)

I wish the people of the Gulf Coast safety and as good of an outcome as possible. I have no use for these 2 giving speeches, so nothing lost there.

Amazing that BOTH Pres. Bush and VP Cheney will skip the convention "due to Hurricane Gustav." Incredibly transparent and convenient way to distance J. McCain from their unpopular regime.

Let VP Chaney stay home but President Bush should attend the convention without using the excuse of the Hurricane Gustav; especially with First Lady Bush attending. Lack of HIS support will only hurt McCain and Palin. Why not just hand over the presidentacy to Obama?

The weather gods must be Republicans. Gustaf's timely entrance takes everyone's focus off politics and McCain's unfathomable choice of running mate. It also provides the party the perfect excuse to 'relieve' an extremely unpopular president from (dis)gracing the convention with his presence. After all, did anyone really expect the man born with a 'silver foot in his mouth' to say anything that could help his potential successor. On top of that, a national disaster would give the republicans tha perfect chance to turn their media event into a fund-raising event for Gustaf's victims. No amount of campaigning could give them the sort of goodwill that would generate.

For a party whose economic and foreign-policy track records this past decade have been so abysmal, anything that takes the focus off the real issues that affect America's future can only be a good thing. The McCain camp might consider hiring a troop of rain dancers if this storm works out well for his popularity.

this is great. democrats are going to be disappointed that they won't get the pictures of bush cheney and mccain.

CNN reports that President Bush and VP Cheney will not attend the
RNC because of 'Hurricane Gustav'. In this case, this is an example of 'a convenient truth'. Because of Gustav, the RNC will be able to
absent the President and VP from the convention, for political motives,
at the same time giving the President and VP an opportunity to
hopefully exonerate themselves for their lack on leadership during Hurricane Katrina, also for political motives. I personally believe it is too late for both.

How convenient! They're just so caring, concerned, and conscientious, it brings tears to my eyes. Too bad they couldn't run for a 3rd glorious and prosperous term.

please they havnt cared about this country the last 4 years why start now

You know that this is just an excuse for the Republican party to avoid the strong Bush-McCain connection that the Democrats made so clear in Denver this week. The hurricane is a "convenient" out for the RNC to put distance between McCain and Bush-Cheney on major media outlets this week. These folks are hypocrites to the very end!

I wouldn't donate my money To this hurricane cause through the Republican convention. Donate directly to Red Cross and all the other organizations.

The reason that Bush and Cheney are not attending the first night of their convention has less to do with their desire to do something useful to help following Gustav's landing, as the fact that, 3 years from Katrina, they would be sitting targets as people remember and talk about what they were doing when Katrina landed.. Americans should not mistake their absence for anything else. John McCain certainly doesn't want them on his stage – I'm sure he didn't really want them anyway.

I am a Katrina survivor, and it is not only the republican failure during Katrina, but their failure since. Thanks for the thousands of volunteers who have helped where the administration failed and continues to fail.

Yeah, they've found a convenient "out". It's too bad, though. Would've been great to see them standing up there representing their party while McSame tries to pretend he's different from them.

I am glad they will be addressing the hurricane so I am glad they are taking care of business and staying put. Even better, I am glad those two will not be polluting my state with their presence. "Heck of a job, Brownie".

i wonder what excuse they would have made for not attending had Gustav not been an issue...hmmm...

Even nature is PO'ed with the republicans this time. Go figure!

Anyone wondering what excuse would be used to keep Bush and Cheney away from the convention need speculate no longer. Will they provide a video message to fill their alloted time? No reason the hurricane should prevent that. It's a little late for McCain to try distancing himself from Bush. He lost me when he voted for the torture bill.

Poor Laura, Now she has become the face of this shameful administration. Go ahead girl, stand by your men!

Brooklyn NY

there you have it. this is the legacy of bush-cheney..they are ashamed of their own legacy.....

Katrina was under planned and Gustov is over planned.
It's like when you leave a chip shot short, you hit the next one long.
Katrina was NOT a devestating huricane, it WAS the levy breaks that caused 90% of the destruction.
With the flood systems upgraded, I will stick my neck out here, and predict bad results, but NOT catastrophic.
The storm is a gift to the McCain campaign. It puts the bad press over his VP selection on the back pages, and we will not get to see how divided and poorly attended the Convention would have been.
They will SPIN all the no shows, that were already NOT coming, into storm no shows.
I hope Gustav drops to Cat 2, so Bush and Cheney can still show up. LOL

It is very important that Bush and Chaney get it right this time. I think they should change the convention dates, republican will lose a lot of media coverage from Hurricane Gustav. They will lose a lot of thunder. Let us pray that the Hurricane will fizzle out before it reaches land.

Steven

KY

Oh, please. A storm in New Orleans prevents him from going to Minnesota? Funny how everyone else is going to make it. This is just an excuse to get him (and Cheney) off the stage since everybody knows McCain would just give us four more years of Bush and Cheney and they don't want anybody to think about that. The GOP will try to use this for all it's worth to make themselves look good, but we all saw last time how much they really care. They will have a telethon to raise private money (a good thing in itself but not as a replacement for government) because they know their style of government doesn't help people in real need.

Isn't this enough to show how the republicans prioritize the country first and sacrifice their own stuff even it is a very important one for them? Surely, the Obama supporters will find a way to always say it's not enough or it's a fake or whatsoever and then blame, attack, scold, scape goating, etc etc to whatever the republicans do no matter what.

What an excused? Actually they are big liability for Republican politicians this election.

I feel so terrible for the people of Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas to have to go through this again. After the Focus on the Family (James Dobson)video director decides to ask other evangelicals to pray for rain of biblical proportions to wash away Obama's speech. He gets his wish but the only problem is that it is going to affect many people's lives and screw up the Republican convention. And they call themselves Christians. Shameful. I guess the lesson learnt is that you have to be careful what you wish for.

Also, it is terrible that McCain and his campaign sees this as an opportunity for tv exposure. Don't they understand the pressures they put on these people to host them during times like this just so that they could look like they are concerned. So sad. Thoughtless. Have your convention and leave the experts to help the people.

John McBush can represent Bush and Cheney.

I am not a republican but am glad this administration is not going to come. I think MCcain would like that.

Why is CNN reporting that Cheney is skipping the convention "due to Gustav"? The media has already reported that McCain's camp was trying to distance themselves from Cheney, so Cheney was scheduled to go to Georgia (not Georgia in the U.S.) and not even be in the country during the RNC.

There are some things that are above politics and this is one. I am sure there will be plenty of disgusting or ridiculous comments on this board but I am an American before I am a Democrat or a Republican, I pray for my countrymen's safety.

Well, it's not as if McCain actually wanted them to come. He doesn't want to reinforce the truth behind the Democrat's McCain: More of the Same arguments.

This is convenient for the Republicans.

That is okay with the Nightingale. I think they were a terrible team and glad to say goodbye to them

Hello John McCain and Sarah Palin. Welcome to Washington. I hope you have a great four years in the the White House.

obama is risky and I don't want to gamble with my country. Obama is as you know a roll of the dice. Who wants that?

Obama is left so far left he doesn't know where the middle is.

Go McCain

Are you kidding me? The only chance the Republicans have to winning this election is to distance themselves from Bush and Cheney as far as possible. This country is heading in the wrong direction in all aspects both foreign and domestically.

No great loss.

Best news McCain's had in a while. They have a plausible excuse to stay away.

Who cares? I don't even want to ever see them again. They should both be impeached for war crimes, war profiteering, torture, illegal spying and on and on and on. McCain is the same – only even more dangerous for all he can think of to react with is bomb, bomb, bomb , kill kill kill. He has no idea what is real, evidenced by his comments that the ecnomy is strong. And Palin, what a joke! A gun toting ex beauty queen who wants to teach 'intelligent design' in public schools, whose claims fame because she has a Down's Syndrome child- but unlike most parents , does not care to stay close to raise that child but rather wants to be on the campaign trail! Her husband is an oil man and of course she is for more drilling. Not what American needs or wants.

How lucky can the Republicans get??!!?? They didn't want either one of them to be there anyway, but couldn't think of a good reason they wouldn't be-now we will get to watch Bush being Johnny-on-the-spot as Gustov hits Louisiana.

I hope and pray the people in the hurricane's path will not suffer another devastation like Katrina and it does look like everyone is better prepared than 3 years ago, thank God for that, but it sure is a lucky break for McCain...

Bush will lead New Orleans again to prosperity. He was decisive in his action during Katrina, thank God he will be here again to move in with force to help clean up after Gustav. I'm for Bush/Cheney '08

Gustav covers an even darker potential disaster, the republican convention

Republicans prayed that God would rain out Obama's night in the stadium in Denver.

Looks like it's raining on the GOP convention instead ... although with the popularity of Bush & Cheney, their lack of attendance may be a blessing in disguise.

Then who's going to present McCain with his birthday cake while New Orleans is destroyed this time?

what a godsend. now mccain can continue with his amnesia proclaiming maverick

Unlike being able to get out of the mess of the War in Iraq, Bush and Cheney were fortunate this to use the hurricaine as a exit strategy to avoid public attention at the GOP convention to themselves and their horrific misdeeds as the chief elected officials of the United States.
No matter. Their words and actions will follow McCain as he loses the presidential election. The electorate wil not forget the irrevocable harm they have caused the nation the past 8 years.

Maybe he will sleepwalk thru this hurricane too!

At least Bush is concerned about THIS hurricane!

More likely is that with their low approval ratings, they were asked not to attend.

Awwww. I'm sure Senator McCain must be simply BROKEN-HEARTED over his not having to be in proximity to those two!

I can only hope that the Bush regime does a decent job this time. Those poor people don't need a repeat of the tragedy of Katrina.

Maybe somebody told them their Katrina response didn't go over so well.

Oh sorry Obama- you are going to have to mention actual issues now instead of constantly trying to connect him with Bush.

A blessing in disguise for the party.

I doubt the Republicans really want them there anyway.

8 years into it they start caring about America? Quick take a picture it only happens during an election year.

That should help McCain, big time.

Sure bet the Republicans have been blessed since there prayers have been answered.

Smart move to keep Bush & Cheney out of sight, but it's not just Katrina that McCain needs to avoid reminders of – he really needs all of the last 8 years to be swept under the rug & forgotten.
Can he keep Bush & Cheney hidden in an undisclosed location for the next two months?

They will skip the convention because they are poison to their party!

For the first time ever I am ashamed to be an American after what Bush fascist administration did to this great country.

How...convenient.

Does anyone remember Stewart Shephard praying for torrential rain during the DNC invoking the name of God. Hope these so called evangelicals understand now that the name of the Lord should not be used in vain. Let us hope hurricane Gustav does not leave destruction or deaths in its wake.

One of the failures of this administration is all of the money wasted to re-build a city that should never have been there to begin with. If Gustav wrecks New Orleans again, I hope our politicians will be wise and brave enough to say "Enough!" (Gee, where have I heard that before?)

But then, when it comes to our politicians, I've always been more of an optimist than they deserve.

Who is tracking the broader story of how many republicans are using gustav to get out of being seen with their party soul mates. Much was made of a couple democrats skipping out early. Are we keeping count of all the republicans bailing on McSame.

This is very convenient for the RNC. Now they have an "excuse" for separating the Bush administration from the convention.

It s too bad he can't eat cake with John McCain like he did on the day after Katarina.

Making vacation plans again, eh George?

How convenient? If they had high approval ratings and there had not been a Hurricane Katrina would the story be the same?

I think BOTH parties should have the opportunity to work with the Red Cross and other service organizations to help the people in the hurricane states.

I hope the Red Cross doesn't become the pawn of the Republicans. I really have my doubts that the Republicans are going to become "service-oriented" out of love for mankind.

This is a great opportunity for the Republicans to "look good" and anticipate votes!

PS–I don't think all those politicians are going to be welcome in Louisiana after this hurricane.

Will Mitt Romney be attending, after this punch to his guts?

IMAGINE THAT THE PRESIDENT AND VICEPRESIDENT NOT COMING TO THE CONVENTION, I WONDER WHY? YOU CAN BET ITS NOT BECAUSE OF A STORM.

I think it's great George and Dick have the good sense to put the country's safety before their political interests...

this year.

Because, you see, last year, when Katrina hit, George was kickin' it at John McCain's birthday party. Literally eating cake.

Still...George, Dick and John, there is no crying in baseball...and there are no do-overs in disasters.

By the way, great forward-thinking on the trailers, FEMA. Turns out they're like projectiles, hunh?

Yeesh.

I don't believe that Gustav is the entire reason that Bush and Cheney are not attending the convention.

there's little doubt that if the bush/cheney administration had done such a wonderful job on the aftermath of katrina, Gustav would have no basis to haunt them now

A god's send for McCain....Bush and Cheney not showing up.

McCain and RNC have been trying to find a noble way to keep both Bush and Cheney as far away from their convention as possible and now it seems Mother Nature has provided a good excuse to do just that–not that the duo are in any position to stop what Mother Nature intends to do by not appearing at the convention; we just hope and pray the loss and damage from the storm is minimal even as these cowboys start packing and and prepare to vacate the corridors of power for the good of the nation and the world.

How convenient – they weren't wanted anyway. What do you suppose they'll do instead? Stay home and count their oil dollars? Wait for Gustav photo ops?

Gee how convenient, the McCain-Bush convention without Bush or Cheney.

Bush-Chenny were looking for the perfect excuse not to attend (Mcain does not want them there anyway), they know their presence their does not help Mcbush in any way in November. Funny, remember that Bush was hold hold up in Crawford when Katrina struck, preferring to get video briefings instead of interrupting his vacation, I wonder what has changed....mmmmhhh

At least they aren't just sitting around like former DNC chair Donald Fowler and Rep. John Spratt (D-SC) who were joking about how the hurricane was going to hit.

Michael Moore lauded God on the potential natural disaster too.

Seems like the Dems WANT people hurt so they can get their way.

Whew, the Republicans won't have to have Bush/Cheney on national TV reminding everyone what a disaster the last 8 years have been.

For all the nation, I hope that this time Bush can get Federal reaction to a hurricane disaster right. He's had three years to figure it out.

No gift has ever been greater to John McCain. That said, he'll need more than that. A lot more.

It really doesn't matter if they attend or not, now is not the time to show concern for my home, New Orleans. With days ticking away until the general election, this should serve as a vivid reminder of the GOP neglect who now romances this entire nation for a chance to show yet again who is important to them: Big business and industry. Watch which companies aid in the rebuilding after THIS storm... more to come. Vote YOUR CONSCIENCE '08!

This is the best news McCain has gotten in a long time.

i dont think they ever really wanted to be there. they dont want to expose themselves to the protesters they were facing. but,with st.paul police going around raiding their offices and homes before hand,they probably had nothing to worry about. besides they still have wars to start in russia and iran.

Yeah right the Hurrican – O.K. How convenient for McCain!!!!!!!!

Hurricanes come and go in that area every year and NOW =both= the Prez and Vice Prez have to be at their desks (or...er...somewhere) for Yet Another One so as to miss their party's presidential convention.

Oh yeah...THAT's the reason alrightee!

How convenient for McCain and his people! I'll bet that they were hoping for a way to keep Bush and Cheney away from the convention! Now they have an apparent good excuse.

Even the climate is against McCain!

Saved by the bell.

Great now these guys will get to skip two responsibilities. Do these guys have the easiest job or what?

What a joke! The only reson that George isn't going to the convention is that McBush doesn't want him there. John Mc Cain needs to distance himself from the Bush administration as much as possible and even George Bush knows it. How repulsive is it that they would use hurricane Gustav as an excuse? What? They are so concerned for the well being of the people of New Orleans? Give me a break!They are probably more afraid of what the storm will do to their off shore oil rigs more than anything else. How convenient.

What a gift to McCain!

WHAT Skip it??? 3 Years ago you went to have a fundraiser in San Diego for one of your Republican friends when this was going on in New Orleans, also you gave other countries money and help and didnt do nothing for your own American people in New Orleans and now cause its a political season you want to come help ????? SHAME ON YOU MR.BUSH how Patriotic is that ? I dont know ,only the 26% that still support him only knows.

...And ?...He's missed the last 8 years of being President

Isn't that convenient??

well Jon King, to answer your question to Senator Dodd as to whether John Mccain would continue to party at this convention regardless of Katrina?, your answer is YES he would as he was having a birthday party on the day Katrina hit

The writing's on the wall for the repubs...

I'm sure that was a hard decision for the Republicans – have the president who presided over one of the worst hurricane responses in US history NOT show up at RNC convention to remind everyone...wonder if those levies will hold after 3 years of improvements...

Why is so much attention being focused on Bush and Cheney not attending the convention because of the hurricane??

They should have been there the 1st time when Katrina struck...thousands of people were left to sleep on rooftops while Bush did nothing!!!

Republicans don't want him (or Cheney) in attendance, want to distance themselves from this failed administration as much as possible. If it wasn't this storm, they would find some other reason.

This has to be one big relief for the GOP and John McCain and Sarah Palin and all those attending. What a stroke of luck for everyone who want to distance themselves from the failed Bush administration.

Now they are ready to respond to this Hurricane? What happened when Katrina was a day away from making landfall?

They can do better than that.

Stop your oil policies that is destroying our environment. Or better still, Take you GOP Oil suckers out of the white house. We need alternative cleaner enrgy now.

Bush/McCain/Palin = DRILL, DRILL, DRILL oil; = Environmental pollution = Terrible Weather disasters!

Bush and Cheney not attending? What a break for the Republican Party.

The perfect storm. The perfect excuse.

I bet the RNC is breathing a HUGE sigh of relief.

How convenient! They're both skipping the convention because they're both bad for the Republican party and bad for the McSame ticket. How nice that they're able to use a hurricane to their advantage. A Lousiana one at that!

The Republicans seem to be pretty transparent these days. They were looking for any reason to keep Bush and Cheney away from the convention and here it is. What is he going to do, sit in the White House and watch the weather channel for 4 days?

Why does it take Bush AND Cheney to skip the convention? What cowards! Incompetent cowards!!!

Convenient. Not sure why Cheney has to skip it if only to keep him away from all that 'maverick change' that the GOP is trying to sell.

Of course they won't be there. We're facing a national challenge and they understand that they need to take care of business. Who cares what it looks like, they have decisions to make and people to take care of. Congrats Sarah Palin, you're my hero! I've been holding my breath since June when I heard you were on the short list. Go get em in Washington! Babbi Goodwin, Alaska Teacher

whatever they do it doesn't matter, the public will "read" the overlap of these two events (Gustav – RNC) in only one way – no more of the same!
Obama/Biden 2008!!!!

THEY WON'T BE MISSED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yes correct. Instead of flashy dashy speeches and wooing people, they have REAL work to do so let them do the REAL work they must. Obama can simply keep on making speeches and doing nothing as he has done for his entire political career.

Palin ran a state for crying out loud and put corrupt politicians who took big oil bribes in jail. How can Democrats possibly NOT like that?

And McCain is seen uttering a sigh of relief and a prayer of thanks.

A blessing in disguise for the Republicans, perhaps...

Gee there's a supprise.

How convenient ! They didn't want to go anyway.....they need to stay as far away from McCain as possible for McCain to have any chance ! What is this supposed to sound like ? They actually have concern about the hurricane ? PLEASE ! Give me a break !

Why all of the concern now, all of the sudden, no concern in three years..

What would they have said anyway???

Republicans caring about the people of New Orleans? Must be an election year.