Please indulge a rather irascible Moose who has something he wants to get off his chest (or antlers). The donkey has little appeal and the Moose will remain as independent Bull Mooser because it is clear, with a few notable exceptions, that the Democrats remain hostage to liberal special interest groups. He is probably not alone in that belief. A number of Democrats will vote to confirm Roberts. Yet, every Democratic Senator who aspires to be President, save one, will oppose his nomination. Why? For the simple reason that the interest groups who are influential in the primaries are calling the tune. Is that too harsh? Ask yourself - would any of these Presidential wannabes want the rigid ideological standard that they apply to Roberts to be applied to a nominee they would offer for the court if they were given the opportunity? Would they suddenly depart from the precedent that has been set since Bork and urge their nominees to answer everything directly and completely that they are asked by the Senate? Don't think so. Honesty is often the first victim of ambition. Want to understand the dynamic of this nomination? Exhibit A - "He got the message loud and clear, didn't he?" Kim Gandy, president of the National Organization for Women, said of Mr. Reid on Tuesday." It is rare these days for a Democrat to win the White House. It was twelve years before the last Democrat won. And it will be at least eight years before the next possible victory. In 1992, Bill Clinton allayed the fears of the In the next three years, there will probably be other opportunities for Democrats to prove their mettle. But on the Roberts test, they largely failed to show they were more than a party that is solely animated for hatred for everything Bush. At the moment, the GOP is increasingly desperate straits. The devious machinations of Karl Rove cannot save the party. The Republican hard money advantage cannot rescue it. The GOP nose dive will not be reversed by its vaunted message machine.
The only force that can save the Republican Party is the Democratic Party.