6/6/2003
For a conservative like myself to assert that the Clintons are not the problem for the Democratic Party is more than a bit controversial, but hear me out on this. In truth, the Clintons are to their party as the cough is to a cold… a mere symptom of much larger issues.
Think on this, when President Clinton took office in 1992, Democrats controlled both houses of congress, the White House, and held a majority of the governorships in the United States. The effective third-party candidacy of H. Ross Perot, who was able to win 19% of the vote, most of whom were conservative, split the party’s vote and gave President Clinton his first term in office. On top of all that, the liberal voice was THE dominant voice in the media. The new media had yet to make its appearance and talk radio had yet to become a force.
Now lets contrast that picture to what we see today. Republicans now control the White House, both houses of congress, and a majority of the governorships in the country. Whats more, talk radio and the new media, spurred on by the growth of the Internet, as well as cable news shows, has given conservatives a wide array of options for reaching out to mainstream Americans. Even more interesting is the fact that in the 2002 mid-term election, President Bush led the charge against Democrats, resulting in winning back the Senate and picking up seats in the House, something that has never happened before for the party in control of the White House.
Is there any end in sight for the troubles of the Democratic party? I’m sure there is, we just can’t see it yet. A Washington Post article today highlights the [url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A21166-2003Jun5.html]continued infighting amongst Democrats[/url], an issue which will surely hinder them during the 2004 campaign unless they can resolve their differences.
Even worse is the fact that Democrats seem to be campaigning on all the wrong issues. As James Taranto of [url=http://www.opinionjournal.com/best/?id=110003599]Opinionjournal.com[/url] notes, campaigning AGAINST a war that we’ve already won is hardly a winning political strategy. In truth, negativism and reactionism seem to be the two most popular strategies coming from party leaders these days. Whether you are Terry McAuliffe, the DNC chair, Nancy Pelosi, the Democrat’s leader in the House, Tom Daschle, their leader in the Senate, or any number of other party leaders. With a few exceptions, they all seem hell-bent on whining their way into history.
Which brings me back to my original point, the Clintons are not the problem. Yes, they have remained around and when they are out making headlines — a common occurence — they serve as a major distraction, making it harder for fellow party leaders to get media attention. But they remain in the spotlight, not because anyone wants them there, but because no one has arrived to take their place for Democrats! When you have no leadership, no vision for the future, and no unity, you take whatever you can get. It just so happens that what you can get right now, sadly enough, is Bill & Hillary Clinton.
This is an enourmous problem! What is worse, Democratic leaders have yet to indicate that they see this problem for what it is. Until they do, there will be no light of day, just this continuing erosion of their party’s power. As liberals so often say, “regime change starts at home.” They should practice what they preach.
2 Comments
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Comment by free online casino — 12/12/2004 @ 7:33 am