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RedditOn November 14, I was the guest speaker at the first of a new series of conversations with journalists, policy-makers and activists sponsored by Democracy for NYC--a local coalition group of Democracy for America, the organization founded by Howard Dean after his presidential campaign to channel grassroots energy into vehicles for social change. It was a spirited evening. I spoke briefly, see below, and then a lively Q & A followed.
It's terrific to be here with Democracy for NYC a key part of the progressive grassroots infrastructure in this country. For me, this election was a "how sweet it is" moment. And I'll never feel the same way about a "thumping."
As Bill Greider wrote this week in The Nation, this was "a deliverance election...the great retribution." It was that accountability moment we've been waiting and working for. Progressives all across this country from old-fashioned precinct workers to bloggers brought in hundreds of new activists and thousands of new voters. Many of them are disenchanted by machine politics and hungry for a radical break with status quo politics.
This election showed people got it. It showed that Americans are a far better people than this cynical White House took them for with its divide, distract and scare tactics. I've always believed that any politics especially a progressive one that takes a "blame the people" attitude as its starting point is, well, dead on arrival.
We celebrated on November 7th. But on November 8th, at The Nation, we understood it was time to get to work. Yes, the political space has been opened; we are back in a reality-based world. Brought back in through what was a revolt a great "thumping" powered by voters' opposition to open-ended and disastrous occupation in Iraq; rank corruption, metastasizing scandals and ethics problems; and an administration that was out of touch with how people are working harder than ever to keep up. And then there's that trans-partisan issue: incompetence. Whatever trace of competence this White House had was buried in the sands of Iraq and drowned in the floodwaters of New Orleans.
We also know that we can't leave the building of a more humane and progressive future to timid or wobbly politicians in Washington. After all, some of this nation's finest moments, reforms and changes have come when political parties are pushed into action from outside --by independent reporting, by passionate people and popular movements driving their ideas and principles into the electoral arena.
In these next months, we will need a savvy and effective insider-outsider strategy that engages this new Democratic congress. And we're going to need longterm strategies to build a more humane and progressive politics. After all, as Bill Greider points out, "turning around a political party and certainly a politics isn't done in one or two election cycles."
A week after the election, let me challenge some of the mainstream pundits, the conventional wisdom, political analysis or, rather, blather that's been forming. Let me separate fact from spin.
Spin #1: "This election was a victory for centrists."
That's way too simplistic and overlooks the fact that 100 or more candidates ran aggressively on populist economic issues against unregulated free trade, offshoring of US jobs, against special interests and corporate excesses. Sure, a few winning democrats offered conservative views on guns and abortion. But virtually all ran as "pocketbook populists." The so-called Blue Dog Caucus may have expanded but the progressive caucus did too. And it remains the larger in fact, it will be the largest and most diverse group in house at 71 members. Also significant, at least ten progressive caucus members will chair house committees including stalwarts like John Conyers and George Miller. And some 35 will become subcommittee chairs. New members like John Hall of New York, Bruce Braley in Iowa, Carol Shea-Porter and Paul Hodes in New Hampshire, Keith Ellison in Minnesota all ran on platforms to bring troops home, promote economic fairness, make elections more honest and government more ethical and promote energy independence.
Spin # 2: "Democrats have mandate for bipartisanship not change."
Enough with bipartisanship! It's too bad that partisanship has become associated with cable show food fights. These are times when principled partisanship is needed as we confront some real and substantive differences--from economic vision (here we're going to have to really challenge the Wall Street wing of Democratic Party too). But already we see the breakdown of bipartisanship on Bush's renomination of six extremist judges for the federal appeals court; on Medicare reform; on the White House's efforts to push John Bolton back into the United Nations; on attempts to push passage of illegal spying on Americans. Is Bush going to sign a federal minimum wage increase and an effective prescription drug benefit under Medicare? If so, as one commentator put it, "then we can all sing bipartisan kumbaya."
Spin # 3: "Congressional hearings designed to restore oversight and accountability are obstructionist, petty, partisan and a waste of time."
For six years, Congress's oversight function has been corroded and atrophied in a one-party Republican Congress. A vigorous examination of the administration's misconduct is not only necessary to restore checks and balances and our Constitutional system, but it is the politically necessary response to voters' overwhelming rejection of the current Congress's failure to assert itself in this area.
Hearings whether into war profiteering, oil industry influence, excessive CEO compensation, expanding health coverage, the plight of Iraqi vets, or executive branch misconduct are vital, not only for oversight, but to bring attention to ideas long missing in our national debate, and to lay the ground for more far-reaching legislation. If designed strategically, they will also help change our national conversation over the next two years. And oversight should not be a Republican or Democratic issue; it is for members of the Constitutionalist party those true patriots who support the rule of law.
Spin # 4: "This was the end of Republican/Bush era not the end of the conservative era."
A lot of GOP pols and pundits are arguing that this election was a repudiation of the current Republican party not of conservatives or their movement. But this election marked the end of a conservative era that began in 1980 . The question now is: What comes next? Democrats will need to be bolder, less risk-averse, and speak to people in ways that are relevant to their lives.
(Some of that may mean redefining centrism so that it is not the centrism of Beltway pollsters and pundits. Americans, after all, talk about wanting to be governed from the center but it's a different center one that deals with issues that are at the center of their lives. One that seeks a politics that speaks to and includes affordable childcare and health care, quality public education, retirement security, a living wage, environmental protection, clean elections and a principled not a messianic foreign policy.)
Conservatism today stands for what? Certainly not the four pillars it used to stand on: less government; a strong defense; lower taxes and family values. Instead, we've had a crude and reckless foreign policy, an agenda of tax cutting for the richest among us, small government has sunk into an orgy of looting the Treasury by corporate cronies, and alliances with religious right have morphed into fanatical attacks on science and education and stem cell research.
Spin # 5: "Progressive bloggers are pushing the Democratic Party too far to the left."
I don't get it. If a large majority of country opposes war, isn't it the centrist MSM types who are out of step with the mainstream of this country? And in more important ways, blogs are democratizing the public square bringing in those who've been kept outside the political process for too long and challenging the old establishment matrix of pollsters and pundits.
Spin # 6: "The election system worked surprisingly well this time around."
Much of the mainstream media in a semi-instant analysis proclaimed that the electoral system worked well this time. It's true we didn't see Florida 2000 or even Ohio 2004. But it's just wrong to suggest the problems voters encountered on Election Day weren't serious. There were problems that led to thousands of eligible Americans being denied the opportunity to cast votes. We need real, meaningful election reforms from fixing flawed voting machines to districts that are rigged to be uncompetitive, to ending a system in which partisan secretaries of state decide who can vote and which votes will be counted to abolishing modern day Jim Crow laws and tactics that suppress the vote. Let's do some democracy promotion at home!
This is a moment to celebrate. It's the beginning of the beginning. A chance to reopen our political space and end the assault on our constitutional design. It's a time to loosen the shackles on our political imagination and work with determined idealism and grounded realism. It's a time to build, or rebuild, a stronger and independent progressive movement in states and communities across this country. It's a time to strengthen capacity, hone strategy and craft ideas.
I'm a great believer in what Studs Terkel said not long ago: "action engenders hope." These are times for coordinated action and thinking done with passion, moxie, savvy. And for an insider-outsider politics that supports political leaders at all levels who commit to a politics of principle and conviction not one of contributions and connections.
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Katrina vanden Heuvel
Thoughts on politics, current affairs, riffs and reflections on whats in the news and whats not--but should be.
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KVH wrote: "A lot of GOP pols and pundits are arguing that this election was a repudiation of the current Republican party not of conservatives or their movement. But this election marked the end of a conservative era that began in 1980."
So did 1994 mark the end of liberalism? Can we not return to liberalism? If we do how has liberalism changed? Is it more centrist and less to the left? If liberalism has made a full comeback, then why can't conservatism?
Posted by urmygyro at 11/16/2006 @ 3:23pm
Hurray! I have beat the Nation haters to a post of their much hated Katrina!
Posted by rlh_1984 at 11/16/2006 @ 3:25pm
I'll take this line, URMY...
"Spin #1: "This election was a victory for centrists."
Really?....Steny Hoyer versus John Murtha for Majority Leader? (with Hoyer the "pro-Iraq war", if you must, candidate winning???)
Where was Waxman or Dennis Kucinich's name on that list of possibilities?
Posted by Mask at 11/16/2006 @ 3:27pm
Posted by RLH_1984 11/16/2006 @ 3:25pm
Who here "hates" "The Nation", RLH?...or Ms vanden Heuvel?
Not me. I think they and she are wrong sometimes, but I don't "hate them".
Posted by Mask at 11/16/2006 @ 3:28pm
She's obviously dillusional. Stop searching for the latest tax shelter and embrace reality!
Posted by woodyee at 11/16/2006 @ 4:07pm
"Spin # 5: "Progressive bloggers are pushing the Democratic Party too far to the left." and Ms vanden Heuval's "counter-spin"....
This one too is a fallacy. Polls show the majority of Americans oppose the war, a majority of the progressive bloggers oppose the war....
"ergo the progressive bloggers represent a majority of Americans"!?!?!?
That's like saying a majority of redheads like orange juice, and a majority of Illinois state highway patrol men named Frank like orange juice....ergo, a majority of Illinois state highway patrolmen named Frank are redheads!
Posted by Mask at 11/16/2006 @ 4:09pm
URMYGYRO, Katrina Vanden Huevel,
CHECK!
URMYGYRO, you are 100 percent correct. Conservatism, in its purest and truest form, is not dead, only the current Bush/GOP brand of radicalism which is and should be dead. Katrina is gloating far too early. What she does not realize is that the Democrats are setting themselves up to be defeated in 2008. How, you may be wondering? Here's how. Nancy Pelosi has already said that impeachment of Bush is off the table. So, what is going to stop Bush from commiting more and more transgressions against the rule of law? Pelosi and Reid have both said that cutting off funding for the insane war in Iraq is off the table. So the war will be an issue in 2008 with the Democrats getting their heads chopped off because if it. If I was Bush, I would set up concentration camps in the Nevada dessert and confine all Democratic registered voters. This will ensure victory at the polls in 08. Also, I would launch pre-emptive strikes against Iran and North Korea. Afterall, since impeachment and the cutting off of war funds as legislative tactics are completely off the table, what is going to stop Bush and Company from finishing what they started? Cowardice breeds defeat and to this point the Democrats are showing that they have no true intentions of curbing the Bush White House in any meaningful fashion...................
CHECKMATE!
Katrina, you are right about one thing, what the voters voted for on 7 November was change and checks and balances. Will the Democrats in Congress deliver or will they prove that the rightwingers were correct in questioning the moral courage of the Democratic Party.................
Posted by POSEIDON at 11/16/2006 @ 4:48pm
Poieidon -
What does it really mean to be a "conservative" today anyway? Seems to me conservatives define themselves by what ideology happens to be in power. Where were all the conservatives voicing opposition to "the current Bush/GOP brand of radicalism?" They standing behind him in support. When things were good for the GOP, Bush II was cut from the mold of Reagan (certainly not his father!!). Now, after they get trounced in the election, conservatives still claim victory, claiming only conservative Dems won, the GOP losers were not conservative enough. And now all conservatives hail Bush I and his advisors - the "true" conservatives!!"
My head is spinning.
Posted by Hman23 at 11/16/2006 @ 5:34pm
When the Republicans were in full swing after 2004, I cannot recall a single poster here critical of the current GOP or Bush and their supposed lack of conservative principles. It was not until public sentiment showed the GOP was heading for electoral trouble that people here started hedging and preparing. And now after the results are in its like a losing football team claiming the other side didn't really win, it was only because the quaterback threw three interceptions.
Posted by Hman23 at 11/16/2006 @ 5:38pm
hmmm, these threads have become a certifiable hamster love fest.
but if talking makes you feel better about your defeat, if it helps you to work through the emotion... talk away
Posted by Will C. at 11/16/2006 @ 10:20pm
a true conservative is like the Loch Ness monster or Bigfoot. everyone talks about its existence, but no one has come up with any proof.
Posted by johannesrolf at 11/16/2006 @ 11:38pm
hinterlanders eat your heart out. I come home from work at 11pm and at half past I'm eating Sashimi de luxe, delivered. that's New York.
Posted by johannesrolf at 11/16/2006 @ 11:39pm
Posted by JOHANNESROLF 11/16/2006 @ 11:39pm
JR, I live in a city of less than 100K...in the South...
and I can get sashimi delivered. That's America.
Posted by Mask at 11/17/2006 @ 08:53am
R, I live in a city of less than 100K...in the South...
Posted by MASK 11/17/2006 @ 08:53am
but you said you manage a hardware store in New Jersey
mahwah if I remember correctly, which is west of new york
Posted by Will C. at 11/17/2006 @ 09:30am
Posted by WILL C. 11/17/2006 @ 09:30am
Uh, no....must be confusing me with one of your other "hamsters".
Posted by Mask at 11/17/2006 @ 10:00am
JOHANNESROLF,
How I love sashimi... I was wondering what the status of the Freedom Tower was, and if they'll actually finish it before Gaudν's Sagrada Familia in Barcelona is completed...
Posted by chimichenga at 11/17/2006 @ 10:07am
and if they'll actually finish it before Gaudν's Sagrada Familia in Barcelona is completed...
Posted by CHIMICHENGA 11/17/2006 @ 10:07am
When I went in 1999, the tour guide said....2030. (so 24 years)
Posted by Mask at 11/17/2006 @ 10:25am
So will the Freedom Tower in lower Manhattan be done by 2030? Last I heard there was still just a hole in the ground.
Posted by chimichenga at 11/17/2006 @ 10:32am
Chimi, ask your Sushi chef to make the sea urchin in the cucumber boat for you, a visual treat.
the freedom tower has reportedly been started. who will agree to work there is another question.
the Gaudi church, a great work of art by a unique artist will continue to inspire, completed or not.
Barthelona is an enchanted city, the "Paris" of Spain.
Posted by johannesrolf at 11/17/2006 @ 10:34am
JR,
You know your sushi. Though it's not bad here, it's not US quality, but at least the prices are good.
Nice to see you have the Castillian accent down.
Funny you should mention the question of who would be willing to work in the new tower. My uncle was in the first tower getting breakfast on the ground floor when the first plane hit. I know he wouldn't dare work in any building there...
Posted by chimichenga at 11/17/2006 @ 10:42am
Great writing, speech and analysis, as usual Katrina. We LOVE YOU!!
Posted by lewwelge at 11/17/2006 @ 10:44am
JR,
You know your sushi. Though it's not bad here, it's not US quality, but at least the prices are good.
Nice to see you have the Castillian accent down.
Chimi, make your own, get the freshest fish, some sticky rice, some wasabi and whoosh. can you get the little cans of wasabi powder?
in Barcelona it's Catalan they speak, a matter of no small importance.
I enjoy your posts,
Posted by johannesrolf at 11/17/2006 @ 10:52am
Great writing, speech and analysis, as usual Katrina. We LOVE YOU!!
Posted by LEWWELGE 11/17/2006 @ 10:44am | ignore this person
of course we do, not least for providing the space for our little chat room.
Posted by johannesrolf at 11/17/2006 @ 10:53am
yes will, these threads have become a certifiable hamster love-fest. did you hear about the crazy hamster who lived in his parents' basement, worshipped ann coulter and sent the fake anthrax letters? it turns out he was an avid blogger. always blogging about the great ann coulter.
could it be our little hamster barry-libzsuks-stupidlibs-aludra? or are there many hamsters who sit in their parents' basements and write about the great ann coulter?
Posted by loveloki at 11/17/2006 @ 11:02am
Posted by CHIMICHENGA 11/17/2006 @ 10:32am
Sorry wasn't specific....meant the Sagrada Familia
Posted by Mask at 11/17/2006 @ 11:08am
No, there are also hamsters with military rankings who spend an inordinate amount of time modeling their fatigues in their mother's mirror and polishing their guns inbetween foolish bouts of praise for their favorite knave here in the virtual universe...
Posted by chimichenga at 11/17/2006 @ 11:11am
Liberty - if you watched football, you'd know that the defense has to actually catch the bad passes for it to be an interception.
And as far as Maasch and your critiques of Bush, they came very late in the game, when the writing was on the wall and you were preparing your excuse.
Posted by Hman23 at 11/17/2006 @ 11:13am
JR,
Ahh, yes, Catalαn, you are correct. But the "theta" (c and z) is what I meant. I actually learned my Spanish over there, but have long since lost the accent...
There's OK fish here, and though I can cook better than plenty of women I've cohabitated with, I'm not very motivated to try my hand at Japanese, though sashimi isn't that difficult.
MASK,
I'm hip to your groove, I'm just exaggerating the eternity it is taking to put some more office space in lower Manhattan.
Posted by chimichenga at 11/17/2006 @ 11:15am
LL,
Why don't you just retire to the Phillipines where you can actually act on your delusions of grandeur and posture as someone who isn't just a Don Nobody aging without grace, but not without a knack for memorizing scripture and spewing it like a chimp flinging feces? Though I don't doubt you are increasingly disenchanted with your Titans of Faith and somewhat dispirited at this juncture, you were the ultimate lickspittle for so long here, making your latest gripes all to plastic. Tell us, what great wisdom to you proffer in order to get the country back to its truly Christian ways?
Posted by chimichenga at 11/17/2006 @ 11:32am
the eternity it is taking to put some more office space in lower Manhattan.
the problem is that there is very little demand for office space in lower Manhattan. Midtown has been expanding west like crazy and there is now a glut of office space. the downtown area is much more mixed now, with many former office buildings being converted to luxury apartments. the lease holder of the WTC has his head in the sand on this issue, the Port Authority is the same. the mayor has a wider view. the new governor will have a lot of clout and may untie the gordian knot.
Posted by johannesrolf at 11/17/2006 @ 12:26pm
Posted by CHIMICHENGA 11/17/2006 @ 11:15am
JR has it right, demand for office space pretty weak in NYC. The Freedom Tower should "go condo".
As for the Sagrada Familia, fascinating that a structure begun in 1888 would take ANOTHER generation to complete, in an era of 21st Century composites and computer design, huh?
Posted by Mask at 11/17/2006 @ 12:42pm
Feliz Viernes, amigos!
Posted by lewwelge at 11/17/2006 @ 7:45pm
Uh, no....must be confusing me with one of your other "hamsters".
Posted by MASK 11/17/2006 @ 10:00a
so your saying you don't manage a hardware store in New Jersey Mask?
or is it just not in Mahwah?
or did I catch you lying?
Posted by Will C. at 11/17/2006 @ 10:51pm
because I will spenmd time looking for that post Mask
Posted by Will C. at 11/17/2006 @ 10:52pm
HMAN23,
That is Poseidon, friend..........
Now, as to your post: What you describe is rightwing lunatic spin for which I do not subscribe to. I have been on Bush Jr.'s case from the get go. No doubt about it. There is nothing conservative about Bush Jr. This is how I define conservative and liberal:
1. Balancing the Budget: Bush 43 has added more debt to the nation in six years than presidents 1-42 did in over 200 years
2. Foreign policy: Humble, internationlist, non-imperial. Bush 43 has embarked on radical crusades that has gotten America bogged down into the 21st century's first Vietnam
3. Lowering taxes: Fees for services have gone up, passport fees etc. while cutting taxes for the wealthy. This has created a sea of red ink that can not be ignored
4. Sound defense: Bush's national defense policy has been anything but strong and sound. He has made America weaker and less safe.
Trust me when I tell you, Bush has been the worst president in U.S. history and the facts bear this out.
Poieidon -
What does it really mean to be a "conservative" today anyway? Seems to me conservatives define themselves by what ideology happens to be in power. Where were all the conservatives voicing opposition to "the current Bush/GOP brand of radicalism?" They standing behind him in support. When things were good for the GOP, Bush II was cut from the mold of Reagan (certainly not his father!!). Now, after they get trounced in the election, conservatives still claim victory, claiming only conservative Dems won, the GOP losers were not conservative enough. And now all conservatives hail Bush I and his advisors - the "true" conservatives!!"
My head is spinning.
Posted by HMAN23
Posted by POSEIDON at 11/17/2006 @ 11:18pm
LOVELOKI,
Do I suspect jealously of anorexic Ann? Although her fan base should be locked up for life ya gotta hand it to her. With skimpy clothing and a skanky look, she can attract anything bad..........
Posted by POSEIDON at 11/17/2006 @ 11:21pm
Pos, I guess Loki's post hit home.
Posted by johannesrolf at 11/18/2006 @ 06:36am
hey poseidon. how are you? no i am not jealous of ann coulter. since she's obviously carrying such a heavy load of issues that she makes courtney love seem healthy and well balanced, i try to find empathy or sympathy or something for her. but no, can't do it. i'm not that nice.
i am very curious to see if our frequent creepy poster who always hollers about the great ann coulter comes back here. i think it really was that guy. he loved to blog on political blog spots according to the news.
Posted by loveloki at 11/18/2006 @ 11:20am
"because I will spenmd time looking for that post Mask
Posted by WILL C. 11/17/2006 @ 10:52pm"
Nope, no kooks here....
Posted by john maasch at 11/18/2006 @ 11:57am
this is a great article kvh! excellent job of separating facts from spin. i am watching closely and keeping my fingers crossed. we need investigations, prosecutions and reforms. i really liked the parts about the constitutionalist party and the dems being too risk-aversive.
Posted by loveloki at 11/18/2006 @ 12:39pm
Nope, no kooks here....
Posted by JOHN MAASCH 11/18/2006 @ 11:57am | ignore this person
I'm so relieved.
Posted by johannesrolf at 11/18/2006 @ 1:21pm
An example of the pathological, close-minded elitism of the left--the exclusive owners of that infallible sense of relevance: "Please refrain from straying off-topic and making personal attacks. Your comment may be edited or removed at the discretion of Nation staff. Our goal is not to stifle debate but to keep it relevant."
Posted by JerseyJack at 11/18/2006 @ 1:37pm
you don't know Jack. you don't. the policy here is extremely relaxed, I've been posting for a while and I am unaware of anyone being censored. if you took the trouble to stick around a while you would see that too. but to come here just to fling shit, well it gets you ignored, bye.
Posted by johannesrolf at 11/18/2006 @ 1:41pm
A note to Katrina and the Nation--there's no blog discussion on it, but Dan Zegart's article, "The Gutting of the Civil Service," in the 11/20 issue, is an incredibly important issue. In case we thought we would get rid of Bush no later than 1/20/09, think again. He's replacing career civil servants with hard-right conservatives in civil service positions. So they'll stay around long after the (expletives deleted) Bush era ends. I'd like to see more discussion on this topic.
Posted by nsbishop at 11/18/2006 @ 2:03pm
NS, surely important, but what is there to be done? I suspect the next dem pres will have the same opportunity.
Posted by johannesrolf at 11/18/2006 @ 2:53pm
jersey jackass stumbled upon a thesaurus. too bad he didn't trip over a logic book in the process.
Posted by loveloki at 11/18/2006 @ 3:02pm
Posted by JERSEYJACK 11/18/2006 @ 1:37pm
Yeah, it's like a statute with no teeth. You can say whatever you want, don't worry.
Posted by urmygyro at 11/18/2006 @ 3:59pm
Concerning the election itself, while there was nothing approaching Florida or Ohio, I just read a column about a report from a group looking at the exit polls and the reported votes. They found that the exit polls, based on several thousand voters, showed that the Democrats should have had about twice the margin of victory over the Republicans that they did. The margin of error in the poll was small enough that the odds of these results were 1 in 10,000. It looked as if the voting machines had arrived at the polling places already programmed to give the Republicans sufficient margin to win, but not enough to arouse suspicion. Since the voting machines were sent out in early October and the Republican support deteriorated substantially after this, the built-in margins were not enough to assure a Republican victory. This is something that needs serious examination if we are to prevent another stolen election in 2008.
Posted by danmiller at 11/19/2006 @ 12:03am
The report on the discrepancy between the exit polls and the actual reported votes can be found at the following sites.
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/111806B.shtml
http://www.opednews.com/articles/genera_rob_kall_061117_clear_evidence_2 006_.htm
Posted by danmiller at 11/19/2006 @ 12:26am
LOVELOKI,
Fine, mischievious one. I would hope that you are not jealous of Ann Coulter. That would scare even me!! With Loki as part of your moniker you can't be all that nice. But bad is good. You intrigue me. What do you think of that poster on the rightwing blogs that sent people those envelopes? Of course the flying monkeys of Coulter, Michelle Malkin, and Laura Ingraham are more than happy to see fanatics like that attack liberals.
------------------------------------------------------------------ hey poseidon. how are you? no i am not jealous of ann coulter. since she's obviously carrying such a heavy load of issues that she makes courtney love seem healthy and well balanced, i try to find empathy or sympathy or something for her. but no, can't do it. i'm not that nice.
i am very curious to see if our frequent creepy poster who always hollers about the great ann coulter comes back here. i think it really was that guy. he loved to blog on political blog spots according to the news.
Posted by LOVELOKI
Posted by POSEIDON at 11/19/2006 @ 08:42am
LOVELOKI
Don't get happy yet. Democrats fear using the power they have..........Nancy Pelosi has already said impeachment is off the table.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
this is a great article kvh! excellent job of separating facts from spin. i am watching closely and keeping my fingers crossed. we need investigations, prosecutions and reforms. i really liked the parts about the constitutionalist party and the dems being too risk-aversive.
Posted by LOVELOKI
Posted by POSEIDON at 11/19/2006 @ 08:45am
JOHANNESROLF,
I guess it did hit home at that..............
Posted by POSEIDON at 11/19/2006 @ 08:47am
Nope, no kooks here....
Posted by JOHN MAASCH 11/18/2006 @ 11:57am
Maasch, (double negatives aside) we realized that you are kook a long time ago
But why be so coy about it when making your entrance?
Posted by Will C. at 11/19/2006 @ 11:17am
Wow! Mask can't fix somethin'!? And thanks DanMiller! I concur.
Posted by lewwelge at 11/19/2006 @ 1:09pm
Hmm. Everybody's a football fan? Wake up, kids. Mi esposa y yo estan viendo "Weeds;" el primera estacion de "Showtime" con Mary Louise Parker.
Escribeme, amigos!
Posted by lewwelge at 11/19/2006 @ 2:32pm
Principles and convictions.
All is well and good.
Wow! Vote for our family's
banned brand, yo homey!
Educate yourselves ese
Posted by lewwelge at 11/19/2006 @ 3:19pm
Gee, I really didn't mean to stifle the conversation con hablarme de viento y lluvia.
Posted by lewwelge at 11/19/2006 @ 7:14pm
Lo sciento, amigos. Hasta luego.
Sincerely,
Moe Spivak
Posted by lewwelge at 11/19/2006 @ 8:56pm
As a mother whose son is currently serving in Iraq, I am not in sympathy with all of the politicos questioning the voter mandate to get the hell out of there. We should never have gone in the first place; Bush's pro-war bandwagon channeled America's anger and has cost money and precious lives. How far must we go down the wrong road before Americans demand a u turn? Supporting a failed foreign policy of this failing president serves the interest of no one(save those whose war profit fortunes are increasing daily) Murtha is right on the issue of an immediate pullout.The fact that he lost is not indicative of any lack of dem support for doing the right thing. An earlier post names others who should have been considered and I agree. Guess republicans are not the only ones who have difficulty thinking outside the box. That said, it's time to stop debating this issue of loosing face, cut the crap, and do the right thing. Bring our sons and daughters home.
Posted by debbi at 11/20/2006 @ 08:35am
Thanks Debbi. You are so right.
With sympathy and hope, I encourage your continued civic/patriotic activism.
Posted by lewwelge at 11/20/2006 @ 10:43am
"PRINCIPLED PARTISANSHIP" Eh? Is that what Katrina would call her Socialist agenda? And what makes her think Dems have a monopoly on ethics & principles? Sounds like "Compassionate Conservatism" only with "P's".
Posted by CHIP THORNTON at 11/20/2006 @ 1:00pm