The Republican Crack-Up

[kliljedahl]

By David Moberg
December 28, 2005

Bush’s bad year has created a political vacuum. Who will fill it?

Shortly after his reelection, George Bush bragged that he had bags full of political capital for his second term. But Bush both miscounted the political coins in his pocket and blew his wad on some bad gambles, such as the war in Iraq and Social Security privatization. Then he lost more with the bad luck, largely of his own making, of a botched response ot Hurricane Katrina

By late November , he was less popular than Clinton, Reagan or Eisenhower was at any point in their second terms, with his approval ratings down in the mid-30 percents. On the two leading issues for voters--the war in Iraq and the economy--his ratings were even worse.

And despite hard-core loyalty from the Republican base, there are signs of disaffection from both moderates and the party's far right, including anti-government budget-cutters and anti-immigrant militants. Cracks have even emerged in the previously impregnable Republican Congressional political machine over both scandals and strategy. "The hopeful sign is that on all kinds of fronts where Republicans hoped to be united and victorious, they're now defensive and disunited," says Roger Hickey, co-director of the progressive advocacy group Campaign for America's Future (CAF).

Crucial missteps
Bush's annus horribilus was partly the result of fundamentally flawed policies playing themselves out. It also reflected the breakdown of a duplicitous strategy to push through policies that a majority of Americans never supported and often misunderstood, as political scientists Jacob Hacker and Paul Pierson argue in their recent book, Off Center. But it also resulted from the grassroots pressure of progressives and--when they finally sensed Bush's weakness--some better-late-than-never political discipline from Democrats.

There were two turning points.



Keith’s Barbeque Central

[l.a.fireman]

1. dont fall for it.

I never believe it when the "people" say there is a crack up. The g.o.p. is a well oiled machine that will not crack up. We must have real ideas that most people agree with or we will not win elections.

[Jane Austin]

2. I fear that when Plan B doesn't work for them, they just go to the next

level, or Plan C.

And if that mockingbird won't sing . . . .

[RandomKoolzip]

3. Surveys and polls consistently show that American people,

on average, DO agree with liberal/center-left issues and platform planks. What they DON'T like is the labels ("liberal," "Democrat") attached to those issues.

Oh, and those ideas are "real."

[catmandu57]

5. Yes, but I and many others have a lot of fun throwing sand

into the gears of that well oiled machine, If we throw enough sand the motherfucker will blow sky high, what goes up.

[Toots]

4. But it also resulted from the grassroots pressure of progressives

That be us folks..:bounce: :bounce: :bounce: :beer: :beer: :toast: :toast: