Polishing A Turd
I guess when your worldview is permanently overcast, things like this start to look like a cloud with a silver-lining.
At the end of the day, the numbers were not there. We don’t have 41 votes to oppose cloture. Markos touched upon the problem of the margin of error, and the perception of Red State Senators that a filibuster would hurt them politically at home. Perhaps they know best, but it seems to me that since there has never been a Democratic filibuster of a Supreme Court nominee (the Republicans filibustered Abe Fortas), I think they (with the help of the Media) talked themselves into believing that.
. . .
Dems are learning, unfortunately slowly, to fight. We lost this battle, but at least Dems threw some punches. And that is progress.The battle lost was monumental and I think even we don’t fully realize it yet. There is no putting a happy face on this result. But I do feel somewhat heartened by the fact that Dems threw a couple of punches this time and tried to stand up for principle, for the nation, for what is right. Not enough Dems. But more than before.
If this were the Special Olympics, they’d get a hug and a cookie, but this is real life and we shouldn’t be sugar-coating failures this big. “Hey, at least you got second place” doesn’t cut it anymore.
With the Bush’s approval numbers at the lowest point in his Presidency, the GOP wrapped up in a bribery scandal, and the President openly-admitting to impeachable offenses, you guys are still screwing up. Even if the numbers aren’t there, the lack of any Democratic unity is shameful. Hell, not only are you guys unwilling to defend our rights to the end, but you can’t even be bothered to defend yourselves when every media outlet in the country is insisting that you’re part of the Republican bribery scandal. What happened to the party that successfully fought the President’s Social Security privatization? Is the only time you guys show any spine when you don’t have an election to worry about?
Look through the archives of this site and you’ll see that I’ve always been a political pragmatist. I’ve defended Lieberman, Dems who opposed gay marriage, and the vote to authorize the Iraq war, but this is the straw that’s broken the camel’s back. You cowards have been playing a game of political rope-a-dope for a decade now and it hasn’t gotten you anywhere, but now that your opponent has tripped, you’re still too chickenshit to throw a punch. Why should we believe you won’t be as craven once you actually gain power? Let’s not forget that it was a Democratic Senate that passed the Patriot Act.
Stuck with a two-party system, you guys are naturally going to get my vote, but you’ve got a long way to go before you earn back my respect.
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i’m going to print up some t-shirts that read “my congressman grabbed his ankles and i didn’t even get a hug and a cookie” …
Comment by schmoopy — January 27, 2006 @ 9:33 am
“Stuck with a two-party system, you guys are naturally going to get my vote”
Exactly why they feel that they can continue to screw you over with impunity.
“but you’ve got a long way to go before you earn back my respect.”
Jeez, I’ll bet they’re really crying about this.
If you keep voting for abusive schmucks, then don’t be surprised that we have a government of abusive schmucks.
Comment by anon — January 27, 2006 @ 11:18 am
Stuck with a two-party system, you guys are naturally going to get my vote …
Fuck that. I’m not playing that game anymore. Why should they get your vote? What, exactly, are you looking to accompllish with that vote?
I’m not voting for assholes anymore just because they don’t have an R next to their name on the ballot. If someone like Dean will run and continue to fuck up Republican shit when it matters, he’ll get my vote. But I’m not voting for any of these ClintonGephardt warm bodies anymore. I’ll piss away my vote on a third party before I give it to these clowns who do nothing while a would-be fascist president appoints a fascist to the Supreme Court.
Comment by Cakesniffer — January 27, 2006 @ 11:38 am
“Stuck with a two-party system, you guys are naturally going to get my vote, but you’ve got a long way to go before you earn back my respect.”
that’s bullshit! seriously? you think that’s gonna make a difference? that’s like a battered wife who still stands by her man while he keeps kicking you in the head.
they don’t care about your respect- they care about votes. you should hold these bastards accountable- and the only way to do that is by NOT voting for them when they don’t represent you.
Comment by mona — January 27, 2006 @ 11:58 am
I honestly don’t know what to do – I’m sick and GFD tired of being so constantly disappointed by the cocktail circuit democrats in congress, so incapable of party unity, so afraid of a fight, and pathologically incapable of mustering anything but a token effort to defend a legacy that the majority of Americans support? Why do they deserve our vote at all if they take us for granted and treat us like we’re radioactive during elections?
For lack of a better phrase, the Democrats keep shitting in our mouths and calling it chocolate cake. They can’t keep even the most facile united front together, and worse, people who betray us consistently (Like Joementum, who should have been kicked out of the party for Kissing Dubya,) manage never to be punished. Worse still, anyone with the balls to state the truth is left to suffer without any support. Hell, as has been said before, they don’t even have the stones to defend themselves against obviously disproveable smear attacks. How can we trust them to fight for us when they won’t even fight for themselves?
While I’m terrified of the consequences of dropping out of the election process entirely, and I’m fully aware that third parties will accomplish nothing (considering that despite their vivid fantasies, we don’t have proportional democracy), I feel that my vote today is just as wasted as it would be if I supported a third party. And at least then, I’d be voting for people who, albeit without any power base, at least attempt to do the things they claim they’ll do.
Over at ornicus, Dave Neiwert said “…if the Democratic Party wants any more of my money, they can just go fuck themselves.” I’m inclined to agree.
Comment by Ross A Lincoln — January 27, 2006 @ 1:55 pm
oops… that above post from “mona” was actually me. my computer remembered her from the last time she was on here.
Comment by tomN! — January 29, 2006 @ 11:54 am
oops… that above post from “mona” was actually me. my computer remembered her from the last time she was on here.
Comment by tomN! — January 29, 2006 @ 11:55 am
Ditto what Ross said. I know it seems like a contradiction that I would bash Dems only to promise them my votes, but there’s a method to the madness. A third-party vote or staying home would essentially be a vote for the GOP, and the only thing I find more loathsome than helping the cowardly Dems is voting for a Republican.
While you’re right that they probably don’t give a shit about whether or not they have my “respect”, I think having a moderately-successful blog gives me a little bit of leverage. Sure, I don’t have a seat at the table (nor would I necessarily want one), but I do have the eyes and ears of a few thousand of their most devoted supporters.
Comment by greg — January 29, 2006 @ 11:53 pm
Um… “helping the cowardly dems” IS voting for a republican! At this point, I don’t see how a dem vote is any less of a thrown-away vote than a third party vote…
(and this is actually mona, this time)
Comment by mona — January 30, 2006 @ 5:00 pm
i don’t understimate the legitimacy of your blog, or the influence you can have through it. the problem is that you’ve undermined any credibility you have with your statement that “you guys are naturally going to get my vote”. it makes all your arguments, and chastising of their political games, just as hollow as the empty promises they keep throwing at us. you complain that they are merely throwing us bones to keep us happy, but aren’t you doing the same thing?
besides all that, isn’t the way to reform the problem with this two-party system to stop giving in to it? you can’t fight a fire by throwing kindling on it. if everyone who is unsatisfied with the dems would turn around and pick another party, wouldn’t it make a huge difference, and possibly break the hold that the two parties have by elevating a third party into significant power?
don’t get me wrong- i’m not throwing out the dems completely- if they come up with candidates that are worth a damn, then of course that candidate will get my vote. but i’m sick of voting for these two-faced pussies who continue to kiss right-wing ass while treating their liberal base like they have the plague.
you need to make a stand- the other day you said you’re through with the dems, then a couple days later you tell them that they get your vote anyway… if you’re truly through with them, put your actions where your words are. otherwise, you’re no different than Reid when he calls the GOP the Mafia and then turns around and apologizes.
Comment by tomN! — January 30, 2006 @ 8:11 pm
There are varying levels of support at work here. Democratic press releases are going straight into my email trash. I won’t do a thing to help fundraise or GOTV. I won’t do any more “Sen. Bullshit gave a great speech today…” posts. I won’t accept any advertising for organizations or candidates affiliated with the Democratic party. And I’ll support the primary campaigns against all Democratic incumbents. The party needs a serious shakeup and I plan to hit back at them in any way I can. If they’re too stupid to do the right thing, I’ll do everything I can to shame them into listening to the conscience instead of their strategists.
But when it comes to voting, there’s one of two choices. Voting for or against the Republican party. It’ll be a cold day in hell before any of them get my vote. Even the GOP moderates are just the pleasant face put in front of a radical agenda, and I’ll do everything I can to stop that. Even if that means having to make an uncomfortable choice between retarded cowards and immoral scumbags. The phrase “lesser of two evils” has never seemed more apt than it does right now.
The only Democrat I really respect right now is Howard Dean because he’s been the most vocal defender of the party against the media’s Abramoff smears and he’s pissing off the beltway by spending time and money building up the local party organizations. There might be a few others, but I’m having a hard time thinking of them right now…
Comment by greg — January 30, 2006 @ 9:05 pm