Where's the Democrats' fighting spirit?
By Eugene Robinson
WashPost
Friday, November 12, 2010
"Why don't they fight back?"
That's the question I've been hearing from the Democratic Party's stunned and dispirited base. For the past month, I've been on a book tour that has taken me to Asheville, N.C., Terre Haute, Ind., Austin and elsewhere. Everywhere I go, supporters of President Obama and his agenda ask me why so many Democrats in Washington don't stand up for what they say they believe.
I confess that I don't have a good answer. What I can say with confidence, however, is that the White House and Democrats in Congress ignore these grumblings at their peril. Call it polarization, call it conviction, call it whatever you like: These are not wishy-washy times. If you don't stand for something, you get run over.
We saw this principle in action last week. Anomie among the Democratic base was not the main reason the party suffered what Obama called a "shellacking" in the midterms, but clearly it was a factor. Elements of the party's traditional coalition - minorities, women, young people - voted in much smaller numbers than they did in 2008. The "enthusiasm gap" turned out to be real, and it had real consequences.
I've been hearing frustration at the willingness of Democrats to accommodate a Republican Party that refuses to give an inch. To progressives who may not understand the subtleties of inside-the-Beltway thinking, this looks like surrender.
(More here.)
WashPost
Friday, November 12, 2010
"Why don't they fight back?"
That's the question I've been hearing from the Democratic Party's stunned and dispirited base. For the past month, I've been on a book tour that has taken me to Asheville, N.C., Terre Haute, Ind., Austin and elsewhere. Everywhere I go, supporters of President Obama and his agenda ask me why so many Democrats in Washington don't stand up for what they say they believe.
I confess that I don't have a good answer. What I can say with confidence, however, is that the White House and Democrats in Congress ignore these grumblings at their peril. Call it polarization, call it conviction, call it whatever you like: These are not wishy-washy times. If you don't stand for something, you get run over.
We saw this principle in action last week. Anomie among the Democratic base was not the main reason the party suffered what Obama called a "shellacking" in the midterms, but clearly it was a factor. Elements of the party's traditional coalition - minorities, women, young people - voted in much smaller numbers than they did in 2008. The "enthusiasm gap" turned out to be real, and it had real consequences.
I've been hearing frustration at the willingness of Democrats to accommodate a Republican Party that refuses to give an inch. To progressives who may not understand the subtleties of inside-the-Beltway thinking, this looks like surrender.
(More here.)
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2 Comments:
It's time to "Move on."
when you get your ass kicked to the tune of over 600 democrats being booted out of office in Congress, governships and state legislatures, do you expect the Demcorats to have a 'fighting spirit'? The Democrats weren't just booted out of office, they were grabbed by the belt, dragged across the ground on their sorry asses, and dumped off on the curb next to the rest of the garbage for weekly collection. And while the Democrats were sitting there next to the weekly garbage, we gave them a good swift kick up side the head as a parting shot for how bad they screwed things up even worse the George Bush could possibly imagine.
The country has resolutely rejected the economic policies of the Democrats hoping the Republicans have learned their lesson. And with people like Chris Christie leading the way and several Tea Party backed victories in Congress we may finally get our fiscal house in order. The country has seen the results of full-fledged, boot-on-the-throat, runaway liberalism and the liberals' addiction to power and has completely rejected it. If the Democrats think 2010 was bad, wait until 2012 when another crop of decades-serving Democrats are up for re-election.
Let's hope it takes another generation or two of time to pass before we put unchecked liberalism back in office. If 2008 to 2010 is any indication of how unfit for office unchecked liberalism is, then the country is doomed and we may as well split things up now.
I am not willing to give the GOP a pass, but i only hope they have learned their lesson and will offer major scaling back of government in the next two years.
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