Republicans struggling with insecurity

[struggle4progress]

<snip>
"I mean, at this point in the election cycle, that means the CIA is gonna be leaderless until next year. Am I right about that - that it's impractical to think that a full-time director can be vetted, announced, and confirmed (not to mention the pointlessness of the whole exercise given that Kerry may win and would want to pick his own man)?"
<snip>

To the outside world, it is looking more and more as though Mr Bush cannot keep his house in order. What is more, his national security credentials - which he was hoping would safeguard his re-election - look increasingly shaky.
<snip>

Republican party bigwigs are nervous, and their famous message discipline is slipping. As Mr Kerry takes the fight right into their back yard and they appear - heaven forbid - to be weak on defence, Republicans are taking on other traditionally Democratic characteristics.

Their ranks are appearing fractious and divisive, and there is backbiting - all areas in which Democrats used to excel. Not so in this election cycle. Ideological differences between the moderate and liberal wings of the party - a problem that has sunk many a candidate in elections past - are invisible this time around. The left has muted itself in the service of party unity and the goal of beating Bush.
<snip>

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uselections2004/story/0,13918,1231480,00.html

[cprise]

1. "The left"?

Where?

[Carl Brennan]

2. The Republican Convention will be crazy I think.

[Miss Authoritiva]

3. This is cyclical, like cicadas.

"Their ranks are appearing fractious and divisive, and there is backbiting - all areas in which Democrats used to excel.

Each party goes through periods of relative unity and cohesiveness and then fractiousness and divisiveness. It's almost as though success brings about failure. Candidates make contradictory promises to competing constituencies and then play them against each other, hoping to buy more time. Eventually, the cobbled-together coalitions fall apart.

So don't single out the Democrats. Every political party tears itself apart this way.