It defies description

[kentuck]

Less than two years ago, the Republican Party was totally discredited and humiliated in a national election. They had broken every campaign promise and had driven the nation into a ditch. Even today, our nation struggles to recover from the disaster they left behind. It was almost as if they stole all the cattle and set the barn on fire.

Yet, here they are, ready to sweep back into power with a landslide victory over the Democrats. At least, that is what we are told. After being totally humiliated by a skinny, black politician from Chicago just 22 months ago, they are prepared to take the reigns of government once again.

By all rights, they should have gone the way of the Whigs. They did not deserve to exist as a political Party, let alone compete on a national scale. They were that destructive. They were that incompetent. They were that despicable.

[Ron Green]

1. Axiom #1:

People aren't very smart.

[Javaman]

13. Corollary #1:

When the opposing political party down, don't let them get back up.

[trotsky]

31. We made that mistake in 1993.

Clinton elected, Democrats control Congress, we have Poppy Bush and a whole mess of important Republicans caught up in Iran-Contra and what do we do? Let 'em off the hook. Could have destroyed the Bush "legacy" right then and there and prevented Dumbya from even trying to run for dogcatcher.

Oh, and how did the Republicans thank us for calling off the dogs? By sicking them on Clinton. "I belong to no organized party. I am a Democrat." -- Will Rogers

[Enthusiast]

37. And propaganda is effective....nt

[Kurt_and_Hunter]

2. Nonsense. The polls are all rigged. We are going to gain 50 seats.

And when we don't gain 50 seats it will be because the voting machines are rigged.

(Your OP is dead-on. This is the most inept destruction of political position and and advantage since forever.)

[BeFree]

3. That's the facts

You speak the truth. Not that you really meant to, but you did.

[Radical Activist]

4. They aren't taking the reigns of government, but Fox News thanks you

for spreading yet another Republican meme. Assuming that Republicans are going to win only serves to demoralize Democrats and embolden Republicans.

[bluedave]

5. ads

Us Democrats don't seem to be able to respond with kick ass rhetoric--in need of lessons.

[Kurt_and_Hunter]

6. What does believing that 2+2=4 do?

Probably something dreadful, but it is not optional.

Reality is not optional.

[Radical Activist]

8. Reality is that the media has been pushing the same narrative

about Republicans taking Congress for a year. But if polls taken 3-6 months before an election actually meant anything then Hillary Clinton would have been the Democratic nominee and Kencrick Meek would have lost the Democratic nomination for Senate in Florida. It's isn't reporting. It's campaigning.

[Beetwasher]

19. The Election Hasn't Happened Yet, But Somehow It's Reality That The Repubs Are Going To Take Over

Congress? I think you have an odd definition of reality. You realize of course there has to be an election first before your prediction becomes reality. And there ain't no guarantees that it will.

[JuniperLea]

28. You were spoon fed those numbers...

And still you expect them to add up. Interesting.

[saltpoint]

7. Frustration over the economy, IMO, is the longer

shadow over voters' anger right now, and not the endearing charm of the Republican Party.

And as for the midterms, it ain't over til it's over.

[FSogol]

9. Unreced for spreading right wing memes. n/t

[kentuck]

10. You wouldn't know a right-ring meme....

if you drank it from a glass...

[FSogol]

16. This is a RW meme: "ready to sweep back into power with a landslide victory over the Democrats"

It won't happen.

It is the meme of the week as proclaimed by GOP press releases/wishes shown to all of us as "news" and "polls" from our "liberal media."

[kentuck]

17. And what was the next sentence?

?????

[FSogol]

18. Then why all the hand wringing?

:shrug:

[kentuck]

25. Who's wringing hands??

I'm only asking how such a disastrous Party could possibly get back into power so quickly after they made such a mess. Even before the mess is cleaned up...

[Bluenorthwest]

11. Rec'd because this is not a right wing meme

and also because of your stupid emoticon.

[SammyWinstonJack]

12. Rec'd

[uponit7771]

14. ...and they still are, their stupidity is scary

[kentuck]

15. But why??

Why are they back so soon competing for control of the government??

[FSogol]

20. Several resasons.

1. Two party system. They can't really disappear without something to fill the void. Dick Armey tried hard to have his version fill the void but will fall short.

2. Too easy to take the opposite tack. Party A wants X. Very easy for Party B to claim they want Y. They might not really care about Y, but Y will get them votes, power, money, etc.

3. Fox News. Fox treats their ideas as having merit and the rest of the media in an attempt to not be called liberal doesn't disagree. The most ridiculous ideas are debated as equals with some of the most nonsensical Anti-Constitutional slop (Arizona immigration, 14th amendment repeal, etc.)

[kentuck]

24. You're finally making sense...

:-)

[Ganja Ninja]

23. I blame it solely on the bluedogs in our party.

They tore this party apart during the healthcare negotiations. They ruined the party's agenda by allowing the GOP to filibuster everything and were the primary reason so many people have lost faith in the Democrats ability to deliver on their promises.

[Jackpine Radical]

26. Don't just blame it on the Blue Dogs.

Blame it on their puppet master. Rahm. And whoever it was ( :sarcasm: ) that put him in the White House and let him sabotage people like Bill Halter.

[Name removed]

21. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Jackpine Radical]

27. If elections don't matter

(and I don't dispute you on this), then the 2008 election didn't matter. As I once commented, Obama is the furthest-left President...that we are allowed to have. A little social liberalism, but generally pro-corporate fiscal policies that involve solving social problems by pushing money at the top of the national food chain. It sort of works, but you get a lot less bang for your buck than giving it to the people nearer the bottom would do.

[blindpig]

22. Who is incompetent?

Seems like we got quite a competition for that title.

How is it possible that a party that was in ruins is even in the game?

Well, the way health care was handled was a disaster, the small positives in it are grossly outweighed by the negatives. By giving deference to the monied interests any time anything comes up the Democrats have utterly failed to differentiate themselves from the previous administration. No one who can read believes that the US is out of Iraq. People gotta have a reason to vote and 'the other guy is scarier' is not cutting the mustard.

Should have been a cake walk, but by deferring to the rich and conservative interests while not doing a damn thing for the people(where are the goddamn jobs?)it's all down the tubes.

So we have a President who puts policy over politics, hurray. But when that policy is overwhelmingly favorable to the capitalists don't expect people not to notice.

[leeroysphitz]

29. The kind of political capital we had could have been used to move MOUNTAINS

but our leaders, for reasons that have never been made even remotely clear to me, squandered it all, every fucking ounce on NOTHING. On garbage HCR legislation that doesn't even solve the initial problem.

I'm staying home. If dems crash and burn then they crash and burn and If they don't like it then maybe next time, if there ever is a next time, they will remember who the fuck it was that brought them to the party in the first place.

[Yuugal]

32. We did in fact move mountains

mountains of cash into rich people's pockets courtesy of the dlc hacks who are running the show right now. I think when Oblahblah promised us:

1)reimportation of prescription drugs
2)no backroom deals
3)no lobbyists running the show

and then after the election he turned around and cut a backroom deal with lobbyists to kill the reimportation of prescription drugs.......well, breaking 3 promises at once was a clear enough indication to me of just how epic the fail would be.

Now he gives a pretty speech and we are all supposed to line up and say, "Thank you sir may I have another". Many on DU like to say how dumb the US is but I think the polls are showing the people were paying attention to all the promises and now they are mad nothing has changed. Perhaps it was when he flat out lied and said he never campaigned on the public option that finally broke voters faith in our party.

Either way, I really can't blame people for voting against the dems this time around since they seem to only fight the republickers when they are in the minority. For my own part, I'll vote for progressives dems where I can and progressives where I can't.

Don't stay home though. Vote for progressives and let the dlc dems know you were in the booth but didn't choose them.

[bigmonkey]

33. This "all or nothing" ranting really discourages a lot of people.

By that I mean the rhetorical tendency to highlight only failures, and then drive the analysis toward a declaration of total failure, when, sure enough, some show up. Since the result is never "everything", the declaration is always total failure, since it can only be one or the other. Lots of rhetorical force, very little positive political import, quite a bit of negative political import.

Your partner isn't dancing the way you want, so the hell with them, you're never dancing again?

[leeroysphitz]

34. I can't just find a more compatible partner? I have to give up dancing altogether?

This is a wonderful position you choose to take considering the gist of your snarky reply.

[bigmonkey]

35. Just my point, it works both ways.

You're saying you're "ditching your partner", as far as I can tell. This is the government you and I helped bring into power. We came with them, just as they came with us.

[Blue_Tires]

30. ttt

[Hydra]

36. I've pointed this out before

The Repubs were six feet under, and a layer of dirt would have finished them.

Instead of getting his shovel out, President Obama offered them his hand and pulled them up and out, and gave them everything they needed to recover(and it was a LOT), while backhanding us instead.

As usual, if people didn't have a dog in this race, 2 + 2 would equal 4.