David Corn (TomPaine): Sleeping With The Enemy

[Dudley_DUright]

The day the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court announced that under the state constitution gay and lesbians had the right to marry a person of their own gender, I was speaking with a Republican operative who is no fan of the president.

"This is what's happening right now at the White House," he said. "As soon as Karl Rove pops open the champagne, he picks up the phone and calls Ralph Reed"—the former Christian Coalition whiz kid who now heads the Bush-Cheney re-election campaign in the Southeast—"and says, 'Ralph, make it happen.' That's all he has to say. Ralph knows what that means. He and the campaign have already ID'ed the congressional districts where people will be enraged by the prospect of gay marriage. They have lists of the churches, of the pastors, of the people in the pew. They have contacts with the Christian radio stations, with the newsletters. Whether Bush says much about gay marriage or not, there will be a full-force effort on this front. It won't be visibly tied to the Bush campaign. The mainstream media might not be able to see it. But it will be there. And it might win the election for Bush. But, then, Bush might not even need this. Isn't he the luckiest man in the world? It makes you wonder what the hell God is doing."

It might have been odd to speak of Bush's divine good fortune the week polls showed his approval rate dropping to about 50 percent. (And a few days later, a CNN poll showed that 54 percent had doubts about Bush's trustworthiness.) But my conversation mate had a point. As social conservatives were being fired up for the 2004 race by the heathens of Massachusetts, Congressional action was bouncing in Bush's favor. The Republican leadership of the House and Senate was pulling together two pieces of mega-legislation: the energy bill and the Medicare bill. Both were complete sops to special interests—especially the pharmaceutical industry. But Bush was earning headlines that made it seem that Washington, under his command, was tackling complex and pressing matters of the day.

"Imagine him on the campaign trail," the GOP op said, "telling people he was the first president since LBJ to significantly expand Medicare and get it to cover prescription drugs. Who cares what else is in the bill? Even if the Democrats try to sell it as a payoff to special interests, the burden will be on them to explain why they wanted to prevent old folks from getting help—even if it's not enough—with their drug bills. What are they going to say? They opposed it because in a few years there will be an experiment involving private companies competing with Medicare? Yeah, that's going to sell. I tell you, it has to be something with God. This guy does not deserve this kind of luck."


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http://www.tompaine.com/feature2.cfm/ID/9495

[ramapo]

1. Dems Outmanuevered at every turn

Yep, maybe Dubya's right when he said God picked him because he comes out smelling like flowers everytime.

The Medicare bill analysis is exactly right. The Dems went a long way towards handing the '04 election to Bush. Best they can do now is sign on and try and take some credit.

His Thanksgiving Day excursion was political genius. Gotta give them credit.

Every dog has its day.

[Jack Rabbit]

2. Democrats need to ignite the base and organize

That's what the Republicans do that the Democrats can't or won't.

The Democratic base seeks leadership. The so-called leadership of the party betrays the base at every turn. Leading Democrats even pen pieces that seem to say the problem with the Democratic Party is that there are too many Democrats.

Democracy is not a top-down organization. The base of the Democratic Party does not moderate its views because Al From and Bruce Reed think opposition to a war predicated on lies scares soccer moms.

When the Democrats in the Senate roll over and die in front of a White House-led rightwing assault on Medicare, the party's base throws up its hands in despair. Our leaders are collaborationists.

If we in the base of the Democratic Party want our country back from Bush and his minions, then we must first take our party back from the Vichy Democrats and place it in the hands of fiesty leaders dedicated to restoring democracy in America by battling the rightwing assault on freedom, not collaborating with it.

I will not contribute to the DNC. Under Terry McAullife, the DNC has been adrift and has lost one election after another in spite of Mr. Bush presenting the Democrats one opportunity after another. If the wizards in the DNC are too timid to denounce a war-time president for wasting time and resources on creating opportunities for war profiteers in a way that did not reduce the threat of terrorism one bit, then any money given to them is wasted. MoveOn is doing the DNC's job and has been for months. They get my money.

[Martin Eden]

3. Right on, JR!

There is more than enough ammunition to shoot down a 2nd term for the liar-in-thief. The DNC are either incompetent or co-opted. Regime change will have to be a grassroots movement.

[Vitruvius]

4. "You cannot do a good deal with bad people" -- like the Rethugs.

They'll promise you anything, then shaft you every time. Since their word means nothing, any "deal" or "agreement" is worthless.

When will the Democratic "leadership" learn this?

The Bu$h Rethugs are professional swindlers. In their political dealings, and in their business dealings (Enron, Halliburton, etc).

And how the Democratic leadership expect the people to trust them when they're dumb enough to get swindled again and again by the same old Rethug swindlers. People don't want or trust weak fools as their leaders.