Greg Sargent has already pointed out the GOP response to the Lieberman loss, one which we expected (
link):
[The GOP] will use Mr. Lamont's victory to portray Democrats as a party weak on national defense, and his affiliation with blogs to present the Democrats as captive to the extreme wing of the party,
But going mostly unnoticed in the midst of the CT Senate primary was a WaPo Poll that shows Democrats beating Republicans on National Security issues, Iraq and fighting terrorism (link):
Which political party, the (Democrats) or the (Republicans), do you trust to do a better job handling the U.S. campaign against terrorism?
The answer: Democrats 46%, Republicans 38% That's right: this poll's respondents preferred Dems not just on Iraq, but on the broader war on terror.
There you have it. In the midst of all the alleged mean blogger hoopla that was dragging the Democratic party so far left as to make them weak on National Security, the American people saw something they liked. And it wasn't what Republicans were doing.
This poll really puts the lie to GOP spin. And if this poll result holds true in other polls, expect the GOP to dig in even deeper and then look for alternative smears when that one doesn't work.
Four weeks ago my friend, netroots endorsed candidate Eric Massa, wrote about the National Security issue here. Here's part of what he said:
At least Democrats have managed to force some debate of his "stay the course" nonsense. Although they have not gotten the respect from the media they deserve, the efforts by Democratic leaders on Iraq seem to be bearing fruit anyway if the Gallup poll is a good indicator.
Democrats have also called for more diplomacy. A recent survey of Foreign Policy experts (link) and the recent developments in the Middle East have once again made obvious the lack of sufficient diplomacy by the Bush administration. Six years ago President Clinton left us with hope of peace in the Middle East. Under President Bush, that now seems more and more unlikely. He seems content to merely blame Hezbollah (link) even as Lebanon is making an appeal to the United Nations.
These and other related National Security issues favor Democrats. They need to re-emphasize their Real Security Plan and take away the one remaining issue where Republicans are more "trusted" than the Democrats.
We have some real opportunities because people see that we are trying to do the right thing, the rational thing, on these issues. They aren't buying the GOP spin.
Incidentally, Eric is in the middle of a fundraising drive. (link) Please go show him a little love.