Political Left Grapples With Election Post-Mortem
By Carol Devine-Molin (11/09/04)
Shocked! Befuddled! Angry! That’s how Leftist elites in the Democratic Party characterize themselves in the wake of John Kerry’s failed presidential bid. Actually, to those of us observing these politicos and bigwigs, the word “embittered” seems more apropos. And mainstream media (MSM) types – the Democratic Party’s cohorts and hatchet-men – are exhibiting signs of being frazzled as well. If you look closely at the “on-air” media personalities – even the very staid ones – you can detect micro-expressions of emotional upset. No doubt about it, they’re all hurting badly. It’s difficult not to feel a bit sorry for them, until, of course, we remind ourselves of just how especially wicked they’ve been to President Bush over the course of this past year.
Democrats seemed to think they could brow-beat this nation into a Kerry victory, with their non-stop “in your face” lies and vitriol. Instead, a great many Americans were repulsed by the obnoxious rhetoric of film-maker Michael Moore and other Leftist propagandists bent on destroying President Bush and the GOP. It’s a pity that the terms “overkill” and “over-the-top” have lost all significance for the Democrats. And the fact that Michael Moore is planning a film sequel, “Fahrenheit 9/11 ½”, for the purpose of continuing his obsessive Bush-bashing and Republican-bashing, is further testament to the fact that Lefties are clueless about the impact of their incredible viciousness. But then again, the elites might be focusing on energizing their march-in-lockstep true believers with another Moore flick. This obvious propagandistic effort is certainly not going to win over Middle America, which has had its fill of Democratic mean-spiritedness. You really have to wonder if the Democrats have learned anything from this past election. In order to aid their party, the Democrats really need to learn how to reach out to the red-state citizenry.
Unfortunately, the political Left is so terribly indoctrinated that they’re mired in their own BS, seemingly unable to break free. We continue to see how they’re patently out-of-touch with mainstream America. Sure, the nation expected gnashing of teeth and lamentations by Democratic Party stalwarts. However, we’re now being subjected to the Left’s loony conspiracy theories of a “stolen election”, and sour-grape threats to abandon America and move to Canada. As to the former, even the Kerry camp said flat-out that the election was not stolen; the votes were just not there to contest results. As to the latter, Conservatives will graciously help Lefties pack their bags if they’re serious about Canada. More importantly, it’s time for the Left to get a grip on reality and grow up, with some anger management therapy if necessary. Republicans have overcome difficult political circumstances and thrived. We had to put up with eight years of Bill Clinton, the same Bill Clinton who failed to effectively deal with numerous terror attacks on his watch that only emboldened the Jihadis and led to 9/11. When it came to national security judgments, Clinton left much to be desired.
Despite all the nastiness that the Left-leaning crowd has heaped upon President Bush during this campaign season, he has more than persevered. In fact, President Bush and the GOP are now flourishing: In addition to the president’s successful reelection bid, the Republicans hold 28 of the governorships, strengthened their control in both Houses of Congress (notably with 55 seats in the Senate), and won the battle of ideas. As it turned out, “moral values” was a key issue in this overall election, catapulted to the forefront by public concerns over gay marriage and partial birth abortion. And certainly social conservatives were pivotal to President Bush’s victory, which the GOP has readily acknowledged. In sum, state bans on gay marriage passed overwhelmingly pursuant to ballot amendments in eleven states, including Ohio that was the lynchpin for the president’s reelection.
The excesses of the Left-leaning crowd – and its utter lack of traditional morality and concomitant efforts to shove fringe ideas down the throats of ordinary Americans – were election breakers for candidate Kerry. Americans, by and large, believe that marriage is a sacred institution involving one man and one woman, which has deep historical and biblical roots. But, to its peril, the Democratic Party chose to ignore that reality. Essentially, the Democrats always go one bridge too far on these social matters, and this time they got one heck of a backlash. Mind you, President Bush, former NYC mayor Rudolph Giuliani (who is a social liberal) and even John Kerry are all on record as opposing gay marriage, but in favor of “civil unions” for gays that would protect their rights as couples. Bill Clinton, who is an excellent political strategist on domestic matters, advised Kerry to get on board the bandwagon upholding conventional marriage; However, Kerry would have none of it, fearful of antagonizing his Leftist base. That was a strategic blunder for Kerry, who alienated many of the electorate that were only too happy to vote for a gay marriage ban.
The Democrats and their allies are now beside themselves. Understandably, they’re attempting to grasp what went horribly wrong for their political camp. If the Democrats are truly dedicated to improving and reinventing their party, they must start with honest assessment. Lashing out and denigrating the red-state electorate – with some elites dubbing the heartland of America “Jesusland” – will only be deleterious to the cause of the Democratic Party. New York Times columnists Maureen Dowd, Paul Krugman, Tom Friedman, and others of their ilk are clearly out-of-control, and should stop the subtle and not so subtle attacks on GOP voters in Middle America. If the Democrats lost, it’s their own fault, and they need to avoid blame-shifting. Besides, the Left is not going to get away with trashing Republican-voting people-of-faith without suffering political consequences. And that’s the long and short of it.
Now, for a no-holds-barred look at the political terrain: Things do look awfully bleak for the Democrats. And it involves much more than John Kerry’s loss. Foremost, the Democratic Party is a bastion of liberalism that: a) has lost touch with mainstream America, and b) no longer constitutes a national party with widespread appeal, as Senator Zell Miller has aptly underscored. Moreover, the Republican power realignment that’s been underway since the Reagan presidency is formidable – Significantly, Republicans have won five out of the last seven presidential elections. Moreover, in 2004, President Bush carried 31 states as opposed to Senator Kerry’s 19 states. For the time being, the red-state, blue state divide seems fairly entrenched, and represents a tough challenge for the Democratic Party. It will take the Democrats a generation – about another twenty years – before they can even hope to recapture power comparable to that of the GOP status quo. As for Democrats, their reemergence as a national party can only be accomplished with a good deal of soul-searching and sustained effort toward change.
As it stands now, Republican power is only poised to grow. It should not be lost on the Democrats that the current success of the Conservative movement – which is the lifeblood and ideological engine of the GOP – developed as a consequence of over forty-years of grassroots Conservative activism and the considerable tenacity of the Conservative spirit. The Conservatives continue to circumvent the liberal MSM, utilizing alternative media sources such as direct mail, talk radio, the Internet and the Fox Cable News Channel to get their ideas out to the public. In this 2004 election, the Republicans – utilizing the Conservative message – made notable inroads with Hispanics, Evangelical Christians and women. Success breeds even more success and the GOP is now in a position to maneuver its Supreme Court nominations past Democratic obstructionists. In fact, the Democratic Party’s chief obstructionist, Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle of South Dakota, was just defeated by Republican John Thune. Now that has to be further demoralizing for the Democrats.
Frankly, Senator Kerry was a very flawed candidate for the Democrats, which stemmed from his character and leadership shortcomings. That being said, Kerry’s problems were evident from the inception of his public life, when he had no qualms about slandering our Vietnam soldiers before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in 1971 – Thank heavens for the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth who effectively made the case that Senator Kerry was unfit to be commander-in-chief. It’s now undeniable that the “Swiftees” impacted the electorate with their television ads, media appearances, and bestselling book. In addition, Vietnam Veterans Against John Kerry and the POW/MIA groups were helpful in the overall endeavor that defeated John Kerry. It should not be forgotten that the vets were very much the heroes in this presidential election; Their activism helped expose the real John Kerry during his military years.
In the final analysis, the arrogance of Kerry and his team cannot be underestimated. The lesson here is that you can’t bamboozle the American public; all will come out. Amazingly, the Kerry campaign thought that it could gloss over his Senate record that was anathema to the interests of national security. Kerry is, and remains, extremely Left-leaning and a dove, with a twenty-year Senate voting record that can be accurately characterized as anti-military and anti-intelligence in nature. A great deal of Americans readily understood that this type of record was incongruent with being a wartime president. Moreover, instead of demonstrating clarity, consistency, strength and resolve, Kerry’s message to the public was often muddled. And, yes, it stemmed from Kerry’s propensity to be contradictory. Habitual flip-flopping might seem “nuanced” to the elites, but it’s an indication of an unsound mind to the inhabitants of the heartland of America. Kerry projects as an extremely glib individual that isn’t particularly trustworthy. During the debates, many came away with the feeling that they were watching a slick attorney, rather than a prospective leader of the free world. Kerry also presents as a rather cold elitist, which is not conducive to likeability. It’s not surprising that Kerry was never able to personally connect with mainstream America in a significant way.
On the other hand, President Bush is essentially the anti-Kerry. Bush’s words are heartfelt, clear, and his message unwavering. And he’s likable, trustworthy and sound in his judgment. His values are the values of mainstream America. Moreover, Bush explains what he’s going to do, why he’s going to do it, and then he follows through. And, without a doubt, these character and leadership attributes propelled the majority of Americans to reelect President Bush.
(Printer friendly version) Email: Carol Devine-Molin
