A week ago, as polls and pundits predicted a tight presidentialrace and warned of recounts and a protracted legal battle for theWhite House, we might have predicted the nation was on the verge ofa fiasco worse than it endured following the 2000 election.

Thankfully, we would have been wrong.

Although it was late into the night – actually into the weehours of Wednesday morning – before Americans knew with certaintywho would lead us the next four years, little – if any – of thepredicted brouhaha over voter fraud, vote suppression, provisionalballots or other potential problems materialized.

President Bush and the Republicans scored a decisive victory inTuesday’s election, suggesting the country continues its movementto the right. Bush beat Democratic Sen. John Kerry by more than 3.5million votes nationwide on a night that also saw Democrats losefour U.S. Senate seats and four U.S. House seats.

When Ohio, the last pivotal battleground state to be decided,tilted toward the president, Kerry himself saw the writing on thewall, admitting there were not enough uncounted absentee andprovisional votes to change the inevitable outcome and conceded thestate and the race to President Bush.

The senator is to be commended for his swift and graciousconcession, choosing not to put the country through the turmoil of2000 and instead encouraging Americans to begin the healing processafter a hard-fought, often-bitter campaign.

Bush and the Republicans deserve congratulations for a race wellrun. The president delivered to voters a straightforward messagebuilt on his convictions, and voters rewarded him with a secondterm.

Bush’s stated goals for the next four years are lofty. Thepresident has faced and will continue to face challenges as hepursues the war on terrorism, attempts to reform Social Securityand the tax code and attempts to nominate worthy judges committedto the Constitution and the rule of law to the federal bench.

We congratulate Bush on his re-election and wish him continuedsuccess in the next four years.