Rather than using the legislative branch’s tools (legislation, hearings, withholding funds, and impeaching an executive run amok), Democratic leadership seems to be playing a political game; acting powerless to check corruption and arrogance without a supermajority - perhaps hoping to establish their hegemony in 2008.
This is a grave miscalculation. Democratic loyalists were not responsible for the 2006 power shift, it was centrists like me who distrust both right AND left extremes. If they want our marriage of convenience to last, Dems must woo centrists with moderation, integrity, and commitment to the rule of law. Instead they have re-authorized FISA, continued funding Iraq, confirmed an AG who isn’t sure whether water boarding is torture, and taken impeachment off the table; all while whining that their majority isn’t big enough. The timing of this gamesmanship is terrifying.
The Dems’ continued passivity won’t scare the center further left. Instead, it may encourage the center to splinter. This might mean untimely support for a third party, support for the (rare) rational voices on the right, or complete withdrawal from the process. Given the razor thin margin currently endorsing sanity, these outcomes would be catastrophic.
My affiliation with the Democrats is a tenuous marriage of convenience. I don’t strongly identify with ANY party. I am socially progressive and fiscally conservative. I am a veteran and believe war should be a last resort. I am a small businessman who is painfully aware of the burden that policy choices can place on business and the economy. I worry about the nation that my grandchildren will inherit. I’ve bootstrapped my way to the upper-middle class through luck and hard work, and worry about how people less fortunate will pay for their health care when it is a struggle for me.
I watched in disgust and astonishment as the partisan gamesmanship of the Republican controlled Legislative and Executive Branches undermined and/or ignored Constitutional safeguards to create an unaccountable "Supreme Leader" in the space of six years.
I am ashamed that my government has engaged in torture, suspended habeas corpus, conducted wiretaps without warrants, launched an unprovoked war on Iraq under false pretenses, used the power of the judiciary and the justice department to tamper with elections, and a variety of other crimes that directly contradict the duty and oath that elected representatives swear to protect and defend our Constitution.
In response, I (and many people like me) invested time, money, and energy in 2002, 2004 and 2006 to support the Dems - trying to restore a balance of power to a government that had gone astray prior to 9/11 and gone mad afterward. The majorities in the House and Senate finally shifted, but no change in direction is apparent. I have written letters in vain to my Representative (a Democrat), to my Senators (both Dems), posted comments on blogs... all trying to encourage a return to a Constitutional form of government that is subject to the rule of law. I am disappointed, discouraged, disillusioned, and furious.
I believe the message to our elected representatives should be this: represent us and do your job. Don’t represent the party first and the constitution second. Don’t represent corporate donors first and the people second. We are a nation in crisis – the time for leadership is now. We must right the ship of state before we quibble about whether its heading should be a little more to the left or right. The opportunity for our leaders to act appears to be slipping away.