Posted on 12/27/2004 1:02:08 AM PST by kattracks
A centrist-leaning cadre of Democratic intellectual foot soldiers has declared all-out war on its liberal base, saying it needs to be transformed, if not pulled out by the roots, before the party can win again.
In a bitter soul-searching debate over their party's future, and what needs to be done to halt its decline, no postelection self-analysis has triggered more political buzz among Democrats than a New Republic magazine critique that calls for ending the influence wielded the party's leftist, antiwar wing in its presidential-selection process. "[John] Kerry was a flawed candidate, but he was not the fundamental problem. The fundamental problem was the party's liberal base," said New Republic editor Peter Beinart in a scathing attack on left-wing activists who oppose President Bush's war on terror.[snip]
In a sobering diagnosis of the overriding influence of the radical left in the party's 2004 campaign, he singled out two as the most powerful of all: "Fahrenheit 9/11" filmmaker Michael Moore and the Internet activist group MoveOn.org, whom he compared with the party's Henry Wallace wing in the late 1940s "who saw communists as allies in the fight for domestic and international progress."
[snip]
But if you think the party's liberal leadership has learned anything from its last defeat, or was persuaded by Mr. Beinart's cogent analysis, think again.
On the contrary, his critique led to an outpouring of angry counterattacks from liberal antiwar Democrats, some of whom incredibly argued he had not proven his point that al Qaeda and other terrorist groups were a serious danger to the United States.
[snip]
If the Democrats' grass-roots base refuses to make this the axiom of their national security beliefs, they are destined to suffer many more election losses to come.
(Excerpt) Read more at washtimes.com ...
Well, he's right about TNR. I might disagree with them much of the time, but I've been checking up on it lately. Beinart absoultely gets it on the war on terror, and he gets why the party keeps losing. Beware, if they listen to him, we won't keep our majority for long, especially if we don't start cutting down spending.
/ sarcasm
They still don't get it. They're more concerned about Ohio instead of the danger the United States faces. Whatta party!
The "Federalist" party went away, will the Democrats join them in the ashbin of history???
Now that's pretty funny! The sarcasm in your whole response is great. You have been paying attention.
The funny thing is that MOVEON.ORG declared that they now "own" the Democrat party.
No one wants to admit it or think about it...but the Democrats have morphed themselves into some kind of 1936 socialist wack party. Nothing they say makes any sense anymore. The realities we face against such things as terrorists who want to kill as many Americans as possible does not concern them. It doesn't even register.....
The funny part is, if Beinart & Co. were ever successful in pushing the anti-war libs out of the Democratic Party, the media would be among those purged. |
"Some Democrats are allergic to the use of force. They still have a powerful influence on the party. That's certainly a problem,"
These are probably the same people as the anti-war activists of the 60s and early 70s.
The American left never thought the USSR was a threat. I cannot imagine the 'rat party tossing out their commies.
I am waiting for Hillarys brownshirts to appear. The current Dem party reminds me of 1932 Germany with a touch of 1916 Russia thrown in for good measure.
These people are dangerous to say the least and what is worse is they are willing to run a scorched earth policy against America to regain power.
The reality is that the so-called moderate democrats, deep down inside, really believe most of the stuff that spews out of moveon.org. The Michael Moores and Howard Deans simply have the intellectual honesty and the guts to confess what they really think. These idealistic people with the younger following represent the future of the party.
The older, more moderate democrats are hardly moderate at all. These guys and gals came of political age in the days of Hubert Humphrey, George McGovern, Jimmy Carter and Tip O'Neill. These are the people that took over the party when the real pro-defense Truman/Kennedy democrats left for the GOP or George Wallace.
These older democrats who complain about the younger extremists are the ones who sent their kids to elite leftist prep schools and then to elite leftist colleges. They let their "limousine liberal" kids go and protest the WTO or G8 and hobnob with environmental extremists. And now they complain that their kids, whom they exposed to liberla extremism, are not extremists.
Howard Dean for DNC chair!!!
The Democratic party is slowly killing itself in America today....How are these far left, anti-social space cadets think they are going to deal with in your face be-headings????...
I go with uprooting the crime syndicate, throwing it down the chipper/shredder, and watch the tree of liberty give fruit, shade and beauty to all.
Billie Rat " Well let's see, we used to stand for this this and that, but we didn't win. Now let's stand for that that and that, so we can win. End of crisis! Let's go smoke some dope!"
And these people really think crap will work?
Beinart has asked his fellow party members a fair question: "whatever happened to Scoop Jackson and Sam Nunn?" And let's be honest here. If it's to survive, our democarcy NEEDS a loyal, effective opposition because that's the only way to keep the ruling party honest. Power corrupts, and the Republican Party has acquired a lot of power in the last 30 years. As much as I admire the George Bushes, the Newt Gingriches, the Karl Roves and the Roger Aileses of our party, they remain fallible politicians. We've come this far because we were FORCED to devise convincing, logical arguments for our postions. Now the Democrats need to do the same...for ALL our sakes.
And .. if you look back in history - some of the fiercest hawks in the govt used to be DEMOCRATS. You can see, by looking at the leaders they have chosen .. how the party has become the wishy-washy appeasers.
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