Fewer than half of New Orleans's black voters will be able to participate
in upcoming city elections, thanks to passive opposition from the Bush
Administration and listless advocacy from Democrats.
Progressive groups that mobilized for the 2004 elections are
now dismissed as failures. But though they were unable to defeat Bush,
grassroots activists are creating waves across the country. They may be
the ticket to Republican defeat and the creation of a new movement.
John McCain is a war hero, a sometime Democratic ally, a crusader for
campaign finance reform. But the centrist maverick will most likely
take a turn to the right if he wants to get to the White House.
Bush's lavish subsidies and reckless attempts to export democracy
through the barrel of a gun violate conservative principles. Republican
realists are finally catching on.
The waning political power of the Bush Administration
poses a huge opportunity for Democrats to revitalize the party and
challenge the President's flawed vision of hurricane recovery and
continuing involvement in Iraq.
If everything goes according to plan, a voting bloc as influential as the religious right, but progressive, could be established.
The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe has been
monitoring elections in emerging democracies ever since the fall of the
Berlin wall, but now it has done something different a
In December the leaders of the Democratic Leadership Council, Al From and Bruce Reed, published an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal about what the Democrats had to do to attract heartland
At the close of 2004, progressives can be forgiven for feeling they've found themselves in a particularly bleak midwinter.


