The Michael Barone column points out the fragility of the Democratic majority. The Democrats have cheated death in the past few elections by recruiting a large number of congressmen in more conservative districts in the South—and then expecting all of them to be the willing servants of a far-left House leadership.
Something had to give, and if we're lucky, it could give way next week. It will definitely give way in November.
Democrats tried to fool moderates and independents in right-leaning districts by running supposedly "moderate" candidates—whose votes were then used to support a far-left agenda. These House members can slightly improve their chances of re-election by voting "no," but they will still be blamed for putting Nancy Pelosi in charge and letting the health care bill get as far as it did.
Democrats also tried to fool their far-left base by trumpeting a large congressional majority that did not, in fact, have a mandate to enact the left's agenda.
In effect, Democrats could only gain power by lying to the world about who they were and what they wanted. And the lie is going to come crashing down in two directions. It has already driven away moderates and independents—and it is now about to demoralize and disillusion the party's "base," as the administration and congressional Democrats are forced to sacrifice piece after piece of the left's agenda.
So the Democratic Party Death Watch is back on.
"Obama's Liberal Base 'Disengaged'," Mimi Hall, USA Today, March 11
Is President Obama losing his base?...
Polls show that liberals and blacks still approve of the job Obama's doing. That approval, however, doesn't necessarily mean they will make the effort to vote, and many of the activists and groups that worked to get people to the polls in 2008 say they're not inclined right now to help Democrats in the fall.
"The energized base which transformed the nation and elected our first black president (is) now disengaged," Democratic political strategist Donna Brazile says. "If this was September, I would hit the panic button."…
[John] Yoo, who wrote the legal memos authorizing the use of controversial interrogation techniques against terrorism suspects, will speak at the [University of Virginia] in Charlottesville on March 19. He will be greeted by protesters, from groups such as Veterans for Peace and the National Accountability Network, who are angry that the Obama administration has declined to prosecute him for the so-called torture memos.
Organizer David Swanson calls the administration's positions on protecting state secrets and war crimes "a disaster."
The American Civil Liberties Union concurs…. If Obama has suspects tried before military commissions, "he will betray his campaign promise to restore the rule of law, demonstrate that his principles are up for grabs and lose all credibility with Americans who care about justice and the rule of law," ACLU Executive Director Anthony Romero says….
"The liberal wing of the Democratic Party is now in shock," says longtime Democratic activist-turned-blogger Chris Bowland, 52, of Santa Rosa, Calif. "It's very clear the party hates us and has no respect for its base."
Bowland, who this month changed his party registration to the Green Party, says the Democrats are going to pay for it at the polls in November.
"Who is it that shows up to man your phone banks and who goes knocking on your doors? Unions and left-wing activists like me," he says. But Obama has broken his campaign promises and now, "we've had it. I'm done."…
"It's the perfect storm" for Obama, he says. "All the conservative groups are coalescing out of anger and all the liberal groups are disappearing out of anger. If he moves to satisfy one, he destroys himself with the other.... He's in a really tough spot."
Robert Tracinski writes daily commentary at TIADaily.com. He is the editor of "The Intellectual Activist (TIA)" and contributor to "The Freedom Fighter's Journal."
Something had to give, and if we're lucky, it could give way next week. It will definitely give way in November.
Democrats tried to fool moderates and independents in right-leaning districts by running supposedly "moderate" candidates—whose votes were then used to support a far-left agenda. These House members can slightly improve their chances of re-election by voting "no," but they will still be blamed for putting Nancy Pelosi in charge and letting the health care bill get as far as it did.
Democrats also tried to fool their far-left base by trumpeting a large congressional majority that did not, in fact, have a mandate to enact the left's agenda.
In effect, Democrats could only gain power by lying to the world about who they were and what they wanted. And the lie is going to come crashing down in two directions. It has already driven away moderates and independents—and it is now about to demoralize and disillusion the party's "base," as the administration and congressional Democrats are forced to sacrifice piece after piece of the left's agenda.
So the Democratic Party Death Watch is back on.
"Obama's Liberal Base 'Disengaged'," Mimi Hall, USA Today, March 11
Is President Obama losing his base?...
Polls show that liberals and blacks still approve of the job Obama's doing. That approval, however, doesn't necessarily mean they will make the effort to vote, and many of the activists and groups that worked to get people to the polls in 2008 say they're not inclined right now to help Democrats in the fall.
"The energized base which transformed the nation and elected our first black president (is) now disengaged," Democratic political strategist Donna Brazile says. "If this was September, I would hit the panic button."…
[John] Yoo, who wrote the legal memos authorizing the use of controversial interrogation techniques against terrorism suspects, will speak at the [University of Virginia] in Charlottesville on March 19. He will be greeted by protesters, from groups such as Veterans for Peace and the National Accountability Network, who are angry that the Obama administration has declined to prosecute him for the so-called torture memos.
Organizer David Swanson calls the administration's positions on protecting state secrets and war crimes "a disaster."
The American Civil Liberties Union concurs…. If Obama has suspects tried before military commissions, "he will betray his campaign promise to restore the rule of law, demonstrate that his principles are up for grabs and lose all credibility with Americans who care about justice and the rule of law," ACLU Executive Director Anthony Romero says….
"The liberal wing of the Democratic Party is now in shock," says longtime Democratic activist-turned-blogger Chris Bowland, 52, of Santa Rosa, Calif. "It's very clear the party hates us and has no respect for its base."
Bowland, who this month changed his party registration to the Green Party, says the Democrats are going to pay for it at the polls in November.
"Who is it that shows up to man your phone banks and who goes knocking on your doors? Unions and left-wing activists like me," he says. But Obama has broken his campaign promises and now, "we've had it. I'm done."…
"It's the perfect storm" for Obama, he says. "All the conservative groups are coalescing out of anger and all the liberal groups are disappearing out of anger. If he moves to satisfy one, he destroys himself with the other.... He's in a really tough spot."
Robert Tracinski writes daily commentary at TIADaily.com. He is the editor of "The Intellectual Activist (TIA)" and contributor to "The Freedom Fighter's Journal."
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