It really is pathetic. If they "win", what it will really be about is the public FORCING them into office simply to force the administration out. The right is absolutely correct about one thing, and only one thing; the dems have absolutely no coherent message. Not even a bad coherent message. I think any defeat of the Republicans and an inheriting of this complete mess by the dems, may well turn out to be an even bigger disaster than just letting the GOP continue to drown in their own mess. The hour is late and the dems have done absolutely nothing to even prepare to deal with the situation; it's almost like they're Bush wanting to go into Iraq; they have no idea what they'll do when they get to Bagdad. Let me tell you what awaits them:
BECAUSE they have not PREPARED:
(a) They have not told the truth about the situation to the American people: THE WAR IS ALREADY LOST.
The dems are therefor going to walk into this situation and find themselves choosing between either becoming the bearers of bad news, or worse...
(b) They're going to do something REALLY stupid, and CONTINUE to evade the necessary task of conceding defeat in Iraq, and they'll spill yet more American blood for nothing.
Either one of these is certainly going to make their time as a majority very short lived.
Another sad fact is there is indeed a very good chance that in the short term, pulling out of Iraq is going to result in more violence. It is both unwinnable if we stay, and the full consequences of what Bush did and should be held accountable for, have probably yet to unfold. If the dems are in power when those looming consequences do unfold, guess who gets blamed.
In short, the only way for the dems to return to power in a lasting way, would have been for them to PREPARE; to prepare the country for what is certainly coming, to educate the country so the American people understand that Bush broke it beyond any repair by anyone, including the dems. But just like Bush in Iraq, they have no plan if they "win". It is therefor inevitable that gale force political winds generated by a thousand fingers pointing are going to buffet an already confused and divided party into a public display of complete ineffectiveness that will probably insure a vicious return to power by the neocons in 2008.
Watching all of this for me, is like watching a slow motion train wreck about to happen; dems are out there claiming their competence can "win" this war. They're out there claiming we need to confront Iran as "the real threat". They're out there trying to get the job on the GOP talking points, and if they do, they will simply find themselves in the political trap of political traps.
We do need to get out of Iraq, as quickly as possible. But people must realize that like Vietnam, it may well be a real blood bath after we do. We could see vengeance on a million or more Sunni. We can not stay and alter the situation. Staying is only delaying the inevitable consequences of our defeat. Make no mistake about this; when you choose to start a war, anything less than a decisive victory, IS A DEFEAT. We lost. In large measure, we lost by choosing to stay and attempting to impose our influence regionally through permanent, massive, multiple military bases. Those are never going to fly in Iraq. Remaining there day after day, taking casualties and being impotent to alter the paradigm to fit that goal; this is the real defeat.
When the GOP swept into power, they did so with a coherent if not eloquent message; The "Contract with America". The dems have no message other than the ones waiting for them once they arrive as a majority. They will then either have to take the message to the people and suffer the backlash of painful truths, or worse, ignore reality and continue down the path to ruin this administration set us on. With 67 days left, I find little to be optimistic about.
The Democrats have precious little time left to unify around a plan. They had better do it fast or they'll have prematurely unfurled their own "Mission Accomplished" banner, only to find themselves in the mother of all political quagmires. It won't surprise me a bit.
