What Democrats must do.

[flamin lib]

Two things that Democrats must do, one for our leaders and one for the rest of us.

Democratic leaders must begin to call for an organized pull out of our troops. They can point out that there is no progress in the move to democracy, that the country is falling into civil war and that every benchmark the President has given us has passed with no improvement in the country. When the Republicans say that they voted for the war point out that they did so with the flawed intelligence provided by the White House. They were lied to by the President, Vice President and all the usual suspects. Given bad information they mad a bad decision.

For the rest of us we must stop beating up on Bush. Bush is a lame duck and a complete failure. No change in SS, no change in tax system, no democracy in Iraq, not safer from terrorists, has not found bin Laden. His only success is that Paris Hilton will get her inheritance tax free.

Leave Bush alone and link everything negative to the Republican party at large. Make the word Republican a pejorative like the did with liberal. It isn't Bush's war, it's the Republican Administration's war. It isn't Bush's SS reform (deformity) it's the Republican's privatization scheme. It wasn't Cheney's energy bill, it was the House Republican's energy bill. Same with every other item we are now linking to Bush.

Bush can't run again. 2006 is coming and those guys are running again.

Get angry, get mean and get even.

Make the word Republican a foul word!

[bryant69]

1. I agree that we need to shift focus from Bush to Republicans as a whole

but don't necessarily agree with the method - I think we might be more effective if we talk about President Bush as the exempler of Republican values and ideals. Like how the Conservatoids tried to do with Clinton - they slammed into him a lot, sure, but they also painted him as a "typical" liberal. His flaws were "liberal" flaws and so on and so forth.

Bryant
Check it out --> http://politicalcomment.blogspot.com

[flamin lib]

3. That works too. As a part of an overall strategy of painting all

Republicans with the flaws of the Bush Administration. We're on the same page. We just need to drag the rest of the Republicans into the mess that Bush has made.

[emulatorloo]

2. you are on to something -- but better yet link Bush to repuglican party

rub their noses in their adoration of Bush. Bush is emblematic of thier failures and their corruption. . .Bush is the party the party is Bush.

[flamin lib]

6. Exactly! The failles of Bush are so public and open. The crap

the others do is hidden--Tom Delay pinning $1.5 billion to the Energy Bill at 4:00 AM avoiding all discussion and debate! Nobody sees that! Bush's failure in war and peace is out there for everybody to see and know. Link the entire party to Bush's mistakes and abuses of power.

[LittleClarkie]

9. Yep. We won't be running against Bush in 2008

So I think you are right. They have been marching in lockstep with him. Let them hang by that commitment.

[O.M.B.inOhio]

16. Right on. "We make no distinction between ..."

... those who plundered our coffers and those who abetted them
... he who paid no attention to his PDBs and those who gave him more power.
... he who squandered the good will of the world and those who patted him on the back
... between he whose agents rigged two presidential elections and those who casually dismissed the mountains of evidence. (darn, that means Obama, Clinton, and 97 other Senators)

OK, but the point is no administration can destroy an economy, brought discourse and journalism to new lows, ignite unparalelled anti-US hate, destroy and corrupt on this scale without lots of help. Everybody makes mistakes, even honest people. How about a Three Strikes You're Out rule for aiding the Cheney-Bush Junta destroy America or other good things?

[jsamuel]

4. you're quick

[rbjensen]

5. I think you nailed it.

The "hate bush" stuff gets in the way. And man I know it is hard not to dwell on it. But proactive is the way to go. Every time we fall into the "hate bush" rabbit hole we play into their hands. "See, they don't have any real ideas, they just hate, hate, hate."

Personally I don't try and bloody "Republican" as much as "conservative." There used to be a difference. I know a lot of Republicans who make some sense now and then. And they are getting as freaked by the far right as I am, and a lot of them are church goers. If we can come up with candidates without a lot of baggage from the past (whatever that might be) then we can engage these more centrist folks with talk about ideas rather than personality. Remember, we only lost by a few percent. I don't think those folks are all Bible thumpers.

Let Bush finish up and live with his legacy. We're spinning our wheels going after him.

My two cents and probably worth what you paid for it.

[flamin lib]

8. You're right, there are about 30% of voters who are

"true believers" on both sides. There are about 10% who are too stupid to justify the oxygen they consume. That leaves about 30% who can be influenced. We only need to influence 3-5%.

[BlueJac]

7. A good idea, keep thinking and fighting for the cause!

I think linking them together in every statement will be better marketing for the liberals. Bush and the republican party have been complete failures for the American people.

progressives will rebound, but it will take dedication and hard work!

[O.M.B.inOhio]

10. Use GOP, not REPUBLICAN

You don't want voters who, for whatever reason or history they have, feel that their 'team' is Repiblican to feel personally attacked. (Of course the war, the deficit, the torture, the graft is all their reponsibility due to their voting choice and intentional lack of foresight (plus election fraud)). But people get defensive when they feel they're being attacked.

So speak of the GOP of political insiders, the network of DeLay fundraising, of Noe/Taft corruption, of Cheney/Bush dishonesty with the public.

Speak of the Neo-con revolt that took GOP away from bread & butter Republicans (you can even strategically invoke the Reagan myth in the most reverent terms). Traditional conservatives who have libertarian or small government leanings ought to hate the super-state of the Neo-con GOP. States' rights, privacy, Union, Made-in-America... the GOP loses.

[emulatorloo]

11. very good point -- and KICKING EOM

[GreenPoet64]

12. I agree! Nominated n/t

[GreenPoet64]

13. Kick.

[GreenPoet64]

14. Kicking again . . . because

I really believe that Republicans have had it with * but will elect another nutty Repub in his place unless they become disillusioned with the party as whole.

[O.M.B.inOhio]

15. Every Repug in office has had their nose in *'s butt so long...

... we can't let them claim they don't stink.

The stink of corruption must rub off, the reputation. Then the Dem party party must then support most strongly the Dem candidates with the most consisently honest and antiBush records (even if they scream once), so their mannequin candidates can't say, "Hey my opponent also authorized Bush to declare war! She also voted for tax breaks for billionaires."

Do it, DLC, even if your focus groups say no.

[MazeRat7]

17. No we should do neither of those things...

1) We made this mess we need to clean it up

2) We need to keep bashing Bush for getting us into this mess.

Chinpy has fucked us as a country... the only way to "save face" with the remainder of the globe is to make this right. Monkey-boy is not the person to do that.. but there are others that can after his term is done. As much as I hate to admit it we are there, in Iraq, for at least another 10 years, if not longer. To leave now will make us irrelevant on the international stage (where peace efforts are concerned) for decades to come.

This will be the Bush "legacy".... and believe me history will not see it in a favorable light.

MZr7

[OrlandoGator]

18. "Republican" should become a synonym for liar, cheater and hypocrite.

I agree.