Hawks, Doves, Eagles and Ostriches
The Moose asserts that the patriotism and national security are powerful value issues.
Since the Vietnam war, one of the most significant factors in the culture war has been the battle over faith in country as much as faith in religion. It is not an accident that the proliferation of flags on lapels was first initiated during the Nixon days.
It also explains why Republicans attacked Kerry so viciously with the swift boat slime and suggesting that he was vaguely "French". The GOP understood that Kerry's opportunity in inoculating himself on the cultural front was his heroism in Vietnam. If Kerry captured the flag, the GOP could not effectively exploit this wedge issue. That is why the Republicans so relentlessly fought the second Vietnam war. Bush, Cheney and Rove might have avoided the first one, but they were virtual members of SEAL Team One in this engagement.
The donkey must realize that merely putting the flag logo on their buttons and stickers or even running a war hero will not be sufficient in this cultural war over patriotism. Americans must be convinced that Democrats will be as relentless and ruthless as Republicans in defending the nation against our enemies. Defense of country is directly related to the safety value. Nothing ultimately hurt Kerry, who is a genuine American hero, more than his perceived ambiguity on the war - "I voted for it before I voted against it."
Although it might have not gone down well with the Michael Moore crowd, Kerry could have gone to Bush's right on the war on terror by advocating more troops and removing terrorist sanctuaries in Iraq. Toward the end of the campaign, Kerry pointed to the failure to nail Osama at Tora Bora, but by then it was too late.
Remember, the first JFK went to Tricky Dick's right on national security in '60.Ultimately, Democrats will have to develop a comprehensive strategy in the war against terror. This war could last many years into the future and the donkey cannot be seen as a dove. Hawks usually, if not always, win our Presidential elections.
Yes, the Bushies have horribly mishandled Iraq. But, right now there is far more trust that the Republicans will destroy our enemies and protect America. When the Democrats responded to the Republican "wolves" ad with the "ostrich and eagle" ad it was not exactly clear that the donkey was the eagle.
In short, national security and the related cultural issue of patriotism, may be the most significant value issues in this past campaign. The donkey needs to soar like the eagle again, if not a hawk.
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Saturday, November 06, 2004
With age, the Moose grows fonder of forty-two.
Bill Clinton possesses a profound understanding of American politics. Yes, he had his flaws. But he had an empathy and connection with the heartland that is rare in our political life. Although the right did not permit it, he truly attempted to be a "uniter and not a divider".
On this weekend after the donkey's defeat, the Moose was reminded of Clinton's illuminating brilliance. In a speech to the Urban Land Institute at the New York Hilton, he perfectly diagnosed what ails his party. The New York Post reported,
Clinton attributed Kerry's loss to the Democrats' failure to combat how they were portrayed by Republicans to small-town America.
"If we let people believe that our party doesn't believe in faith and family, doesn't believe in work and freedom, that's our fault," he said.
Let the Moose dream - why not repeal the 22nd Amendment, and while we're at it let's also pass an amendment so Governor Granholm can ascend to the presidency.
Clinton-Granholm '08!
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Friday, November 05, 2004
"Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure, than to take rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy nor suffer much, because they live in the gray twilight that knows neither victory nor defeat. "
P.S Mooseketeers - the Moose has been overwhelmed with your wonderful emails- thanks and keep them coming -the Moose will read them all and greatly appreciates hearing from you! Bully!
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The Moose suggests that the donkey may not be the only one with a problem with social conservatives.
It has now entered the conventional wisdom that Democrats must develop a strategy to reach more traditionalistic voters. The Moose shares this CW - sometimes it is actually correct. But it should not be overlooked that the Republicans may suffer from the rising expectations of social conservatives.
After all, the religious right truly delivered for the Bushies. They mobilized their forces and now they want to be rewarded. They don't want to return to the pews and remain quiet as church mice. Note this quote by Christian right leader Dr. Dobson in a must read article in yesterday's Times -
Dr. Dobson said he told the caller that many Christians believed the country "on the verge of self-destruction" as it abandoned traditional family roles. He argued that "through prayer and the involvement of millions of evangelicals, and mainline Protestants and Catholics, God has given us a reprieve."
"But I believe it is a short reprieve," he continued, adding that conservatives now had four years to pass an amendment banning same-sex marriage, to stop abortion and embryonic stem-cell research, and most of all to remake the Supreme Court. "I believe that the Bush administration now needs to be more aggressive in pursuing those values, and if they don't do it I believe they will pay a price in four years," he said.
Or as another religious conservative organizer ever so subtly put it, "The president rode our coattails."
With a few modest exceptions, the Elephant hasn't exactly delivered for the religious right. The big money men have gotten the goodies while the Bible folks have delivered the troops. It appears that may no longer be good enough with a re-election victory attributed to the righteous folks.
But there is trouble in paradise! Incoming pro-choice Judiciary Chairman Arlen Specter initially threatened Armageddon if the President sends a pro-life Supreme Court nominee to Congress. But then the religious right threatened him with the wrath of the Lord and he retreated. Senator Frist, who has '08 ambitions, will be closely watched to see if he delivers the goods for the social conservatives.
They're making a list, checking it twice to see who's going to be naughty or nice!
Meanwhile, the President did not fare well in the election with moderates and independents. These voters may be further turned off if the GOP panders to the religious right.
All of this is not to say that the donkey doesn't have to worry about getting his act together on value issues. But the Moose is making the point that the elephant cannot be care free on the cultural front. Gary Wills put it nicely -
"In his victory speech yesterday, President Bush indicated that he would "reach out to the whole nation," including those who voted for John Kerry. But even if he wanted to be more conciliatory now, the constituency to which he owes his victory is not a yielding one. He must give them what they want on things like judicial appointments. His helpers are also his keepers."
The Moose bellows - Amen Brother!
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Thursday, November 04, 2004
The Moose salutes the ever insightful Congressman Rahm Emanuel for these wise words-
"Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter got elected because they were comfortable with their faith," said Representative Rahm Emanuel of Illinois, a former Clinton aide. "What happened was that a part of the electorate came open to what Clinton and Carter had to say on everything else - health care, the environment, whatever - because they were very comfortable that Clinton and Carter did not disdain the way these people lived their lives, but respected them."
He added: "We need a nominee and a party that is comfortable with faith and values. And if we have one, then all the hard work we've done on Social Security or America's place in the world or college education can be heard. But people aren't going to hear what we say until they know that we don't approach them as Margaret Mead would an anthropological experiment."
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The Moose pledges to be ever vigilant for hubristic Elephant droppings - today's winner - that debonair apologist for the comfortable Grover Norquist -
""Once the minority of House and Senate are comfortable in their minority status, they will have no problem socializing with the Republicans. Any farmer will tell you that certain animals run around and are unpleasant, but when they've been fixed, then they are happy and sedate. They are contented and cheerful. They don't go around peeing on the furniture and such."
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The Moose Counseling Service continues its therapy for disconsolate Democrats.
Slowly, my donkey friends are working through Elizabeth Kubler Ross' stages of grief. The empathetic Moose feels your pain. In fact, about twelve years ago, he was in your place. The Moose had just lost his job in the Bush I Adminsitration and he we beginning his new gig at the Christian Coalition. Democrats were in complete control of the White House and Congress. The Moose thought he had joined the losing side.
However, the Elephant retooled as an insurgent guerilla political fighter. He embraced a reform agenda of transforming an ossified Democratic Washington. Led by Newt Gingrich, the G.O.P. developed an alternative program and offered the Contract with America. Assisted by liberal overreach, the Elephant seized Congressional power and has not relinquished it since.
This elephant experience can be instructive for the donkey. As the Moose sees it, the biggest problem for the D's is that they have steadily become culturally removed from the heartland of America. Specifically, they often appear disdainful of religiously observant people. Check out this quote in today's New York Times,
"I have been made to feel by the liberal people that my faith makes me weird," Ms. Johnson said. "I don't wear my religion on my sleeve either; I'm quiet about it. But I firmly believe that my country was founded on faith, and when I saw the popular vote this time, it made me feel like I'm not such an outsider, that there are others like me, and a lot of them."
The Moose can attest that nothing motivated religious conservatives more than their perception that liberal elites have contempt for their faith. Once, a Washinton Post writer characterized them as "poor, uneducated and easy to command." That quote alone was a inestimable recruiting tool.
Even though Republicans are in political control, much of the country believes that liberals dominate our culture - and that it is deteriorating. Democrats need to spend less time in Hollywood and more time at Pentecostal prayer meetings. Too many Democrats scoff at President Bush's profession of faith. They snickered when then Governor Bush pronounced at one of the primary debates that Christ was his favorite philosopher. That may very well have been the moment when W. solidified his relationship with the religious conservatives - more important than his position on gay rights and abortion.
Take it from the Moose - Mr. Donkey, your views on economic growth and health care access are not going to be heard unless broad swaths of America believe that you are one of them.
Moose Correction - Several Mooseketeers have helpfully noted that Congressman Lloyd Doggett was also a survivor of the DeLay purge - thanks and Hook'em Lloyd!
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Wednesday, November 03, 2004
The Moose wishes to send his friends in the press a gentle reminder.
Now the Elephant controls all levers of power in Washington there will be no genuine oversight on the Administration. Of course, that has been the case for the last three years - no Congressional oversight and uneven scrutiny from the media. The press has even given up demanding press conferrences from this President. The Moose acknowledges that the Administration has not been exactly forthcoming with information or access. Transparency is to the Bushies what garlic is to vampires.
With conservative Republican margins strengthened and hubris riding high in the G.O.P. saddle, we will need the fourth estate as never before to serve as the public's watchdog. Watchdogs yes, lapdogs, no!
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The Moose notes some bright spots for Democrats.
The Moose possesses a Masters of Social Work from a major midwestern institution of higher learning (Go Blue). He is therefore a semi-professional in assuaging the emotions of distraught donkeys. He is committed to finding the pony in this pile.
The Moose has no doubt that the Elephant will over-reach in the second Bush term. Second terms have been historically ugly for Presidents, and there is no reason to believe otherwise this time around. Scandals will emerge and power will corrupt. For instance, all Mooseketeers should keep an eagle eye on the Indian Gambling hearings that will resume in the Senate next week. This ugly matter involves key players in the Republican establishment including cronies of Tom Delay, Ralph Reed and other political scoundrels. And, it is only a matter of time, that the corruption of power catches up with the concierge of K Street and chief House bug man.
All of this is not to mean that the donkey can relax and watch the elephant implode. Far from it. As the Moose has mentioned, Democrats need a major overhaul. They cannot concede the south and expect to lay claim to the White House and Congress any time soon. Organization is fine - ideas and message are far superior. It also wouldn't hurt the donkey to get in touch with rural voters and the exurbs - Virgina Governor Mark Warner can be helpful with that. And the Moose adds as a former big-wig with the Christian Coalition - it wouldn't hurt if some Democratic elites attended Pentecostal camp meetings.
Finally, the Moose wants to salute Congressman Chet Edwards. He is a Democratic hero. He represents the Waco Dr. Pepper Museum, the Texas Ranger Hall of Fame and the Bush Ranch. And he was the only Democratic House Member to survive the DeLay redistricting purge. As the Moose hails from Edward's district, he tips his antlers to him.
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The Moose offers some day after observations.
It is becoming increasingly clear that the elephant has prevailed. The Moose comforts the donkey that the sun will still rise, seasons will change, babies will be born and life will go on. No need to check yourselves into the Betty Ford Depression Clinic.
Kerry ran a hard and admirable campaign. He endured the vicious and ferocious Republican swift boat attack with dignity. It is a stain on the honor of Republicans and the right wing punditry who promoted this vile smear on a man who risked his life and limb for country. John Kerry is an American patriot and hero.
The reality is that it was always going to be an uphill struggle to defeat a sitting commander in chief during wartime. The Moose would fault the Kerry campaign for never developing a compelling theme. When incumbents have been defeated in the recent past (Ford, Carter and Bush I), their challengers offered a distinct vision as well as a biting critique.
The Moose is struck that the Democrats came this close despite the incumbent's clear advantage of leading a country at war. It is an indictment of the manner by which this administration has conducted this war that they only barely held onto power. The Moose believes that we cannot allow Iraq to become a failed state, but the Administration must shoot straight with the American people on the price to be paid and the real situation on the ground. The Moose is not holding his breath.
The Moose notes that the power of social issues far outweighed the factors of the youth vote or the "wired revolution." Obviously, the Moose is fond of the internet, but neither cyberspace nor 527's are substitutes for finding a way to reach middle and lower income voters who are motivated to vote by their perceptions that Democrats are "soft" on moral values. Without changing their principles, Democrats must find a language and a sensitivity to communicate to voters of faith who might agree with the party on economic concerns. And where were the youth voters inspired by the Deaniac Revolution and invisible to pollsters because they own cell phones rather than hard lines? Jor Trippi call your office.
The issue for donkey is neither moving to the right nor to the left. The Democrats have the opportunity to become the true reform party. It is not as if Bush won on a positive mandate. His main message was "vote for me or they will kill you." With an increasingly ossified Republican establishment now fully in control of Washington, Democrats can truly become the insurgent party advocating fundamental reform in political and governmental institutions on behalf of the middle-class. It might be helpful to consult the old Gingrich playbook on how a minority party can seize power. Yes, the Republicans back then had voter mobilization, but they also were a party of ideas and seized the reform agenda.
Democrat governors can also be helpful in encouraging a progressive reform agenda. The state houses is where we will likely find much of the energy in the Democratic party.
So, after sitting shiva for your loss, be of good cheer Democrats. This too shall pass!
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Tuesday, November 02, 2004
The Moose shuns all exit polls and contemplates big thoughts.
America is a nation at war. Yet, our political process is failing us. In the remarkable days following 9/11, there was an opportunity to unite the country behind a politics of national greatness. Yet, that moment was soon lost as politics returned to business as usual. The partisan polarization of the past twenty years has sent our politics into a downward spiral. The bickering between the two parties and the special interest feeding frenzy dominate our political life as if our country had never been attacked and the nation was not at war. Republicans and Democrats continue to view each other as enemies not as worthy opponents with good intentions but differing philosophies.
Also absent in our politics are any notions of sacrifice or placing the national good before the special or parochial interests. This has become an odd war in which our political leaders act as if nothing has changed while they also tell us that we are involved in a titanic struggle. While a generation ago during the Cold War, President Kennedy challenged us to ask not what our country can do for us but rather what we can do for our country, today we are told to ask not what we can do for our country but what our country can do for our stock portfolio.
As a Republican, John McCain put it, “My friends, we are at war. Throughout our history, wartime has been a time of sacrifice. At the beginning of the war I said it would be long and difficult, and would require a great deal of sacrifice on everyone’s part. But about the only sacrifice taking place is that by the brave men and women fighting to defend and protect the liberties we hold so dear, and that of their families.”
With the deficit exploding and the cost of the war totaling into the hundreds of billions of dollars, Congress and the Administration cut taxes disproportionately for the wealthy. Congressional appropriators shower special and parochial interests with billions and billions of dollars in pork barrel spending. For instance, according to the Congressional Research Service, the number of Congressional earmarks found in the 13 annual appropriations bills only continue to grow. In 1994 there were 4,126 earmarks. In 2004, there were 14,040! Consequently, future generations will be forced to shoulder the burden of the deficit while our current leaders are satisfied to delay the day of reckoning.
Access to Congress is sold to the highest bidder with those Americans who cannot afford big contributions or well-heeled lobbyists are left out of the deliberations. Major public policy, such as by Vice President’s energy task force, is made without any public scrutiny or transparency. With one party-control of the legislative branch, Congressional oversight is almost non-existent.
America deserves better than this. For the past twenty years there has been a steady deterioration in the character of our political life. Politics has become a blood sport in which the objective has become to score points while blocking nominees or legislation in the pursuit of partisan advantage. Meanwhile, serious problems ranging from global warming to the fiscal state of nation deteriorate because our leaders cannot work together for the national interest. While politicians wear flag pins in their lapels and boast of national pride, their actions are deeply unpatriotic.
What is desperately needed is a new politics of progressive national greatness that places the national interests before special and parochial interests. This is politics that will demand serious sacrifice from both our leaders and citizens. We cannot afford to luxuriate in either massive tax cuts or parochial government spending when we are in a time of war. We must set aside crude partisan calculations and do what is right for the country.
We will need both innovative ideas and leaders who are willing to forge bi-partisan alliances that confound the usual ideological divisions of left and right. On behalf of our national interest, we must be willing to reform the tax code, entitlements, the budget process and our electoral system. Our troops on the front lines are sacrificing their very lives for the national interest. Is it too much for our leaders to put country before narrow political gain?
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A contrarian Moose mischievously muses that a Bush defeat would amount to a loss for liberalism.
Mooseketeers, please hear the Moose out before you click away into cyberspace. A decade ago, the Moose recalls sitting in meetings with Gingrich, Norquist, Reed and other once-revolutionaries plotting against an ossified liberal establishment. Our complaint was that the Congressional Democrats were devoid of ideas and their goal was to hold onto power at all cost. Of course, the liberals were disdainful of the taxpayer and expanded the federal government with wild abandon. In short, the liberals who were controlling Washington were corrupt and addicted to power.
The Moose argues that the Republican establishment has morphed into their caricature of the left in a brief decade. From the K Street Project to the explosion of pork barrel spending, the G.O.P. has become what they once fervently opposed. If you add unaccountability to the mix, the conservative power structure today is a mirror image of the Washington liberal establishment back in ’94.
The Moose is prepared for another revolution – perhaps it is occurring as the Moose writes…
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Monday, November 01, 2004
The Moose warns that history might repeat itself if Kerry is elected.
The Moose Polling Service (MPS) has no great insight on the outcome of this election. As a matter of fact, the Moose discounts all measurements of voter sentiment from now until the ballots are counted - better to consult a ouija board. However, the Moose has a premonition what will happen if Kerry is victorious.
In short, if Kerry wins, Republicans will move on Wednesday to delegitimize his victory. The Moose is not necessarily referring to ballot challenges, although that will likely occur. What the Moose is referring to is an attempt by the vast right wing conspiracy (take the Moose's word - he was there and Hillary was exactly right about this term) will seek to strangle the Democratic Presidency in its crib.
If Republicans control Congress, expect Delay and company to declare that they will fight to the death to preserve the Bush tax cuts and stymie the Kerry "liberal" agenda. The right-wing talking heads will question whether the troops will willingly serve under a "traitor". For a model of what to expect from the right, just review the early days of the Clinton Administration - but now the G.O.P. controls Congress and a significant cable media outlet. The swift boat attacks will seem like a day at the beach compared to the conservative onslaught following a Kerry victory
And don't expect a significant Republican crack-up. The right will be united in opposition - in fact it thrives in that environment.
It is therefore imperative that a newly-elected President Kerry immediately send a message that his new administration will be one of national unity. He will need to find Republican allies and place them on his transition team. And the Kerry team must be disciplined so as to not provide the right with easy targets.
If Kerry wins, Democrats should luxuriate in the triumph, but the Moose warns his donkey friends not to let down their guard. The elephant will not take the loss lying down.
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The Moose weighs in on what happens if Bush wins.
While the Moose is rooting for the donkey, the elephant obviously could triumph tomorrow. If that is the case, expect some flowery unity rhetoric from President Bush both in his victory statement and inaugural address. It would be nice to believe, following a polarized election, Bush would finally deliver on being a uniter and not a divider. Given his track record, there is little reason to believe that he will have a born again experience transforming himself into Mother Teresa-like healer of the breach.
The objective of Boss Rove is to do unto the nation what he and Delay have done into Texas - destroy the Democratic Party and its institutions. It's obviously much more difficult to achieve this at the national level than in the conservative trending Lone Star State. But, that doesn't mean that the Bushies won't use the levers of the executive, legislative (and eventually the judicial) branches to further eviscerate Democratic constituent institutions and strengthen the power of corporate America while redistributing wealth upwards through perpetual tax cuts.
A second term will not necessarily mean that conservatism will consolidate power. Government spending,and particularly parochial pork barrel appropriations and corporate welfare will soar as Republicans continue to mimic the old Democratic lords of Congress and buy constituencies.
The K Street Project will further pressure the business community to march in lock step with the GOP. The only problem here is that the concierge for K Street - Mr. DeLay may be forced to surrender power due to his ethic problems.
Say good-bye to small government conservatism. Welcome the era of big government corporatism.
If the donkey lurches to the left after a Bush victory it would only play into Rove's hands. He would love for the Democrats to marginalize themselves and make his job easier. The challenge for the left would be to build an alliance with the center, and even moderates within the Republican Party, to oppose the excess of an emboldened Republican Party. Ultimately, the Democrats would have to have to return to the laboratory and work with Democratic Governors to develop pragmatic solutions and alternatives. In short, Democrats would have to become a party of ideas once again. The party would also have to figure out how to woo back lower and middle income voters who are culturally alienated from Democratic elites.
Want to know the what happens after a Bush victory? Actually a well-known Bush ally already gave us an idea on the big screen -
"What is best in life Conan?"
"To crush your enemies, see them driven before you, and hear the lamentations of their women!"
LATER- THE MOOSE ADDRESSES A KERRY VICTORY
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