NEW YORK - George Soros' dream is President Bush losing in November — and so far, the billionaire philanthropist has donated nearly $13 million to independent groups that also want to turn that vision into reality. "I'm merely putting my money where my mouth is," Soros told The Associated Press.
After surviving the Nazi occupation of his native Hungary and giving away billions of his self-made fortune to charitable causes, Soros is entering national politics in a big way for the first time. He says he is too disturbed by Bush's policies to do nothing. "This is not a normal election. These are not normal times," Soros said.
The Bush administration, he said, has flouted past rules of international relations by declaring war in Iraq after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. He urged Americans to defeat the "Bush doctrine" by ousting the president on Nov. 2.
"If we re-elect President Bush, we are endorsing that doctrine and we have to accept the consequences," Soros said. To that end, Soros has given millions to three liberal-leaning organizations that also want to a Bush defeat: $10 million to America Coming Together, which aims to mobilize voters; $2.5 million to the MoveOn.org voters' fund, which places anti-Bush advertising; and $300,000 to the Campaign for America's Future.
He also has pledged $3 million to the Center for American Progress, a think tank led by John Podesta, chief of staff to President Clinton. This election year, Soros has spent about $4 million, more than any other individual, according to the Center for Responsive Politics, a nonprofit Washington-based group that tracks political donations. In recent speeches, Soros has referred to the Bush administration's anti-terrorism polices as a doctrine that has changed Americans from "victims to perpetrators." He says the fighting in Afghanistan and Iraq has claimed more lives than the Sept. 11 attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people in New York, Washington and a Pennsylvania field.
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=694&ncid=696&e=4&u=/ap/20040610/ap_on_el_pr/soros__campaign