As voters line up to vote in Dixville Notch...
I am excited as hell.
Gore's loss in 2000...the way the Republicans hammered on Clinton...these last three years of the Bush administration...especially those first months pre-9/11 where GWB spelled out exactly how conservative and hard line he really was....are all FRESH IN MY MIND.
Friends, this is the beginning of the end of the administration of George W. Bush.
And at this juncture....in the face of a couple tough trends...I want to take a moment to redefine ABB and reaffirm our commitment to kick GWB out of office in 2004....
It's been tough of late here on dKos.
It seems like Iowa hit some folks a little hard.
So much so that the whole rationale for ABB...the idea that nine Democrats could duke it out for the nomination but we'd all end up on the same team...grew less appealing to some...even intolerable.
It's time to put those feelings aside and focus on a new definition of ABB.
ABB is negative....it's "anti" Bush.
As it stood, it was a rubric that seemed the best way to demonstrate the common ground between us...our burning desire to kick this President out of office as the first step in taking back our country and our political process....
but rhetorically....ABB has a weak point...."ANYBODY"....
it's too vague, it's too nebulous...it plays into the oldest canard in the liberal Democratic internal dialogue...."the lesser of two evils".
Let me offer a suggestion....when someone asks you where you stand....
why not just reply...
"I'm a Democrat, I support my candidate...and we are going to defeat George Bush and take our country back in 2004."
that is: TCB......
Take our Country Back!.....
Take Care of Business!....
and Totally Committed to defeat Bush!....
We are Democrats. We are a feisty, diverse, contradictory lot....but, goddammit, our backs are against the wall and we are going to win this one by pulling together or not at all.
You know, there will be dark days...weird moments...
I personally found the level of anti-Kerry BS here the last few days one of them.
But I can tell you from my soul....I am HUNGRY and energized to GOTV and defeat George Bush....and eager to work with ALL of you here to that end....
as much we can get on each other's nerves, there are great ideas here on dKos and great people....folks who've given their time, sweat, blood and tears because they know that our values are the ones that will prevail at the end of the day....values that will help us take back the Presidency and the Congress and, yes, take our country back.
And tonight begins the voting that will start that movement.
Friends, the time is NOW....
screw ABB....let's TCB!!