November 10, 2006 at 13:30:48

The Perfect Storm of Citizen Revulsion

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By Bernard Weiner, The Crisis Papers (about the author) Page 1 of 3 page(s)

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For OpEdNews: Bernard Weiner - Writer

Ten findings on the clean-sweep GOP defeat in the midterm:

BEING FROZEN OUT IS GREAT

1. Democrats yelled and screamed when the Republicans shut them out of all meaningful political activity in Congress for the past five years (no amendments, no debate, no invitations to conference committees, etc.). It was one-party authoritarian rule, and the Dems complained loudly.

But being cut out of the loop of Congressional decision-making meant that the Democrats were ignored by those interested in buying and bribing their way to access. Instead, those lobbyists and corporations devoted all such corrupting efforts at the Republicans, who had the power to get bills passed.

And why did one third (one third!) of evangelicals, and many other moderate-conservative Republicans, vote for Democratic candidates on Tuesday? "Corruption" was cited way up there with Iraq and the economy and terrorism, according to the national exit polls.

In short, you never know how things will play out. What seems like the worst sort of calamity could turn out to be your lifeline later. Democrats know that well now.

THE "VALUES" VOTERS

2. Add the financial corruption (Abramoff, Ney, Cunningham, K-Street lobbyists, etc.) to the GOP House leadership's coverup of the Foley sex-scandal, and then factor-in the sex-and-drugs scandal involving evangelical leader Ted Haggard (who had close White House ties), and a perfect storm of revulsion was generated for so-called conservative "values" voters.

To keep those "values" voters inside the Democratic big-tent for more than simply this election, the Dems must keep their ethical noses as clean as a whistle. If they slide into the arrogance of power and start making under-the-table deals with lobbyists, or getting involved with illicit sex and drugs, or starting to act all high and mighty, much of the positive momentum of the 2006 election will be destroyed.

In addition, if Pelosi takes the party too much toward the accomodate-and-compromise center, the progressive base may rebel, with unforseen consequences. Quite a high-wire for her to walk.

A VOTE OF NO-CONFIDENCE

3. As many commentators have noted, the Democrats succeeded in making this midterm election a national no-confidence vote on the Bush Administration. By doing so, they didn't have to present a platform or agenda of their own.

All they had to do was point out the obvious: the thorough-going incompetence (Iraq, Katrina), the deadly mistakes (Iraq, Katrina), the lies and deceptions (Iraq, Katrina, EPA), the disconnect with reality (Iraq, Katrina, global-warming), the stubborn arrogance (Iraq), the mediocre nominations for high posts (Don Rumsfeld, Harriet Miers, Michael Brown, Bernie Kerik, Michael Chertoff), and on and on.

The one constant running through all of those areas, and more, is a steadfast hubris that refuses to budge to accomodate anything or anybody outside its narrow focus; Bush and his crew act as if nobody else's opinion, and reality, do not matter. Stay the course on everything. If that strategy takes the Constitution, the economy, the safety of the nation over the cliff, that's the price one pays for being right -- that was the atittude.

But now, with the GOP losing control of the House and Senate, the new Democratic majority in Congress is going to be forced to help initiate policy and to govern. In short, they need to develop a clear and compelling agenda.

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Bernard Weiner, Ph.D. in government & international relations, has taught at universities in California and Washington, worked for two decades as a writer-editor at the San Francisco Chronicle, and currently serves as co-editor of The Crisis Papers (more...)

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