What Democrats should never, never, NEVER say if they want to win in 2006

[derby378]

Brace yourselves, because derby's gonna break it down for you, and you do want to turn Congress blue in November, right?

Terrorist Surveillance Program

derby sez: No. In fact, HELL no. If you actually use this phrase in any campaign speech, press release, or blog posting to refer to Bush's domestic eavesdropping debacle, turn in your donkey lapel pin on the way out and notify William Pitt at PDA so he can help find a worthy replacement. It's a simple logic thing: If you refer to this NSA wiretapping as "terrorist surveillance," and if, in fact, all Americans are probably being monitored by this program, then - in the eyes of the White House - all Americans are suspected of being terrorists.

Homeland Security

derby sez: OK, OK, I know we have an entire Federal department that bears this jingoistic, Goebbelsesque name. That's neither your fault nor mine. But the DHS has become synonymous with fraud, waste, mismanagement, incompetence, and what Carlos Mencia would call "Dee-dee-DEEEEE!" The DHS transformed the once-proud FEMA into a drooling shell of its former self; just ask Michael Brown. When the government's version of hurricane relief in New Orleans is more likely to be a platoon of Blackwater mercenaries than a pontoon boat filled with disaster relief workers, you know this whole concept of Homeland Security is in real trouble.

You want real domestic security? Promise to pass bills that shore up our fire departments, our paramedics, our Coast Guard, our park rangers, etc. And I don't want to hear one word out of any Dem candidate in support of privatizing any of these agencies. In case you forgot, fire departments used to be private companies that required homeowners to sign service agreements with them - for example, Pyro Pete's fire engine wouldn't stop to save your home from burning down unless there was a Pyro Pete medallion mounted on your front door. Some matters are simply too important to be left up to private corporations. More on that later.

You want to make sure our airports remain secure? You don't need the TSA in order to do it. All they seem to do is confiscate children's toys, make nursing mothers sample their own breast milk out of carry-on jars, and threaten to arrest you if you don't thank them for the privilege. And it doesn't help for TSA agents to treat their fellow Americans as though they're common criminals. Defund the TSA so that its employees can find real work somewhere. Surely the government can provide decent security at our airports without this additional layer of bureaucracy. You'll have more money for scent dogs, explosives detectors, CBRN detectors, and supplies for law enforcement and tactical units at airports in case some idiot tries to make things go pear-shaped again.

Oh, and one more thing - cut the umbilical cord that DHS has plugged into FEMA and set it free so that we can rebuild FEMA into the institution that it once was.

English as our "National Language"

derby sez: ¡Chupa esto, pendejo! The Republic managed to endure for over 200 years without an official language. 'Nuff said.

War on Terror

derby sez: Yeah, right. Bush promised a War on Terror. Instead, we've got a Reign of Terror. This phrase does not belong on the lips of any Democratic candidate. Instead of chasing the terrorists responsible for 9/11, we're gunning down innocent families in Haditha and torturing teenage pickpockets. You say "My Lai," I say "Haditha." You say "Hanoi Hilton," I say "Abu Ghraib."

More to come...!

[electropop]

1. Thanks very much; right on the money.

If I ever hear a Dem using (especially) that first Rovian/Orwellian phrase, I'm gonna :puke: It's the height of idiocy to buy into and implicitly endorse this hideous crime.

[Vincardog]

2. Right, War on Terra = ILLEGAL OCCUPATION OF IRAQ

Terrorist Surveillance Program = UNCONSTITUTIONAL WARRANT LESS SPYING
Homeland Security = SS

[No DUplicitous DUpe]

3. "Bush promised a War on Terror. Instead, we've got a Reign of Terror."

Great Line.

Thanks, derby

:-) :kick:

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

4. Well said! I agree on all points.

[The Deacon]

5. I'm glad

somebody else finds the phrase "Homeland Security" a little Goebbelesque. After it was invented (back in the '80s & 90s by PNAC types, btw) I always expected their websites to feature a link to the National Alliance. 'You vil gif up your fingernail clippers for die Fatherland!'

[Pacifist Patriot]

12. I found it a lot Goebbelesque and cringed when it was first uttered.

[derby378]

13. Ve vill protekt ze Fatherland...

Yeah, I know exactly what you mean.

[The Witch]

6. K & R, damn it!

Well said!!!

[annabanana]

7. ....almost:

refer to Bush's domestic "ILLEGAL" eavesdropping debacle

[femrap]

8. Living in the state of Ohio where we have

endured more than enough of dirty and stolen elections, I want every Democratic Candidate in this state to have one paragraph in their stump speech that discusses Blackwell, Electronic Voting, and Stolen Elections. Blackwell is still going to be counting our votes in '06....even as he runs for Governor.

If he engages in his dirty tricks again, don't you think, by the Dems having mentioned this during their campaigns, that the voting citizenry will be more inclined to DEMAND ANSWERS?

Need to work on the framing of this issue so the pugs won't be able to turn the issue around on us. Any ideas?

I want to write Chris Redfern, chair of ODP, and see if he can coordinate this with all Dem candidates running.

[freefall]

34. Excellent point. Let's hope those in control in the

Democratic establishment come to their senses and act on it.

Peace,

freefall

[Uncle Joe]

9. How about American Surveillance Program, we can call it ASP

for short like the poisonous snake.


Kicked and recommended.



:kick:

[derby378]

10. I like the way you think

:toast:

[Uncle Joe]

11. Have a good weekend derby!

:toast:

[TankLV]

16. DOMESTIC Surveillance Program. Much more to the point.

That's what almost every other dem is rightfully calling it - keep it that way.

[Ron Green]

17. "Domestic Spying Program"

That sounds more odious.

[Uncle Joe]

20. That sounds like we are doing surveillance on the hired help.

It seems to me as the vast majority of people being spy-ed on are Americans, American Surveillance Program hits the nail on the head.

[blondeatlast]

14. Yes, yes, oh YES!

How do we forward this en masse to the DNC and Congressional Democrats?!

This is possibly the most useful post I've read yet on DU--and that's quite an impressive feat.

[derby378]

15. You likey? Aw, shucks...

:blush:

Thank you.

[987654321]

18. Que Buena!

You are right on the money, clear and to the point.
I truly hope our candidates nationwide follow that guide.

[derby378]

19. You want some more? Here's more!

"We Are At War"

derby sez: Er, uhm, since WHEN?!? Where on Earth is the Congressional Declaration of War against Iraq? There isn't one, is there? "Oh, but Congress gave our President the authority to enforce some UN resolution and destroy Saddam Hussein's stockpiles of weapons of mass..." Yeah, yeah, blow it out your big red ear, you spineless sycophant. Millions of people around the world demonstrated against the US-led invasion of Iraq before it even started because they knew that there was no evidence of WMDs, no evidence of an actual nuclear weapons program, and no real military force that could threaten Kuwait, Iran, or Saudi Arabia, let alone the United States.

So you want to call it an undeclared war. OK, let's play that tune. You call this a war? To steal a line or two from Sam Kinison, the invasion was like a bad impression of a war. And let's not forget that back in 1991, a reporter was able to capture a platoon of weary Iraqi troops with nothing more than a videocamera. And George W. Bush wanted the American people to believe that these Iraqis were a serious threat to America and the rest of the world? The only WMD in all of Iraq when we poured over the border in March 2003 was Saddam Hussein's own intestinal tract after a healthy serving of baba ghanouj. That's it. If you seriously thought that an impoverished nation with no navy, no air force, harsh international sanctions, a rag-tag army, and a delusional dictator was some sort of imminent threat to America - you've been had. On a Biblical scale, no less.

The Patriot Act

derby sez: It's actually known as the USA PATRIOT Act. Democrats should call it the Traitor's Testament. Too much bad stuff in this bill to give it justice here. But Senator Russ Feingold (D-WI) deserves mad props for trying to shut this thing down.

More to come? Who knows? Stay tuned...!

[VP505]

25. How about the

USA FASCIST Act

[PegDAC]

33. In the tradition of Newt,

how about "Contract ON America II"?

[blondeatlast]

21. Beefing up our security infrastructure--a clear winner; not a DIVERSION.

"National Language"--yeat another UNNECESSARY law; Congress wasting it's time on trivia like this while Obie What's His Name still wanders the Afghanistan/Pakistan mountain ranges.

The Republic managed to endure for over 200 years without an official language.

A-effing-men.

The Republicans: Weakening the Republic one unnecessary law at a time.

[AX10]

22. .....

Democrats = A Strong and Free America. Republicans = A Weak and Oppressed former America.

[Up2Late]

23. Yup.

Nuf Said.

[VP505]

24. OMG derby,

you couldn't have spelled it out any plainer,well said, I hope you have printed this up and sent Mr Reid, Mr Liberman and a few others in Washington a copy.

[derby378]

27. Not yet, but that's a damn fine idea if I ever heard one

I can probably leave Joe Lieberman off the list, though - it looks like Ned Lamont is going to defeat him in the CT primary. That can only mean good news for grassroots Dems.

And thank you for the kind words!

[madeline_con]

26. Never forget Fallujah...

where the stringing up of a few mercenaries (a group once disavowed by the U.S. gov) caused the wholesale masscare of innocent civilians, complete with the use of napalm.

[derby378]

29. I thought it was white phosphorous (?)

Guess it's academic at this point - if either of them touch your flesh, you're in a world of hurt.

[me b zola]

28. I agree with every word you wrote. K&R n/t

:kick:

[blondeatlast]

30. Kick--recommended hours ago! nt

[JWS]

31. I agree exactly

What's the point of Democrats getting congress if they sell out America in the process?

[Skidmore]

32. Agreed, derby, but it is going to be hard to hide a lot of those

"me,too" votes by Dems in both houses of Congress.

[derby378]

35. Monday morning KICK!

:kick: