Turn-around Time

During the time preceding the last election, Democrats played a hard game getting the American people to believe that they were "moderates". What is a moderate, anyway? A moderate is someone who avoids making decisions on issues, or rather refuses to state their decisions on issues, in order to satisfy the greatest number of people on both sides of the political spectrum.

For much of the history of the Democratic Party (20th Century), Democrats have been Liberals. They were proud of their political stances and their ability to cause social upheaval whenever they got a chance. Unfortunately for them, Liberalism is no longer a viable political tool. Most Americans don't consider themselves to be Liberals. In fact, most American refer to themselves as Conservatives.

Democrats have realized that Liberalism as a political tool is dead. Saying that you are a "liberal" is a ticket to electoral failure. Therefore, Democratic strategists embarked on a policy of "hidden liberalism" while draped in a cloak of "moderate-ness". The mainstream media saps (except for Fox News) ate this up and spewed it out to the American people and, in fact, became shameless contributors to the Democratic cause. Democrats called themselves "moderates" all over the country. The DNC went so far as to hand-pick their new "moderate" members, but maintained a core of extremely Liberal leaders such as Nancy Pelosi, Ted Kennedy, Charles Schumer, and a few others who actually call the shots.

Democrats succeeded in winning only a slim Congressional majority, notably in the Senate. There they only maintain a one-vote advantage. This is hardly a mandate. They won't be able to govern without the input of Republicans. Why is it that during a 6th year election cycle...with the President having extremely low approval ratings and who is waging a generally unpopular war...Democrats were unable to achieve a mandate? Answer: The majority of Americans are still Conservatives, but ceded to historical trends in order to get Washington to pay attention to them. The election was as much a repudiation of Republicans who didn't hold true to their Conservative roots as it was a choice to try another path.

Democrats have already fallen prey to the Dark Side of the own political strategy. Already, newly christened Democrats who actually are "moderates" or "conservatives" are demanding that their views be respected by their Ultra-Left liberal leaders. This is creating some tension in the ranks, but will be more evident when the legislative process gets under way. Pelosi and her underworld minions promised to work together with Republicans (in order to dispel the fears of many of those dreaded government shutdowns)...but opened up their new Congress by shutting Republicans completely out of the process. Is this her "new direction"? The cracks in the Democrats glass armor is already spreading....and soon it will shatter completely for all to see.

It will be interesting to see how Democrats plan on getting an agenda through to the President without input from Republicans...considering they will need his signature to make their goals become law. They could try and use a government shutdown to force the President's hand. However, they would be forgetting that this is the President's last term. President Bush would have nothing to lose by accepting a shutdown to put pressure on unruly Democrats. Democrats run the risk of getting absolutely nothing done for two years...and having no one to politically punish for it in 2008. It will be THEY who are left with two years of baggage, not Republicans. The result may well be that Republicans sweep the Congress and win the Presidency in 2008.

Perhaps a Democratic win in 2006 is just what America needed in order to see Democrats for what they truly are...before they make a decision in 2008.