The GOP's blunders regarding the Schiavo matter have been manifest. There is no question that they have become somewhat splintered and that right minded people (Left, Center, and Right) are asking hard questions about the social conservative path that the nation is headed in. Now what??
We've all spent a lot of time watching coverage of the Schiavo situation on TV and reading about it in various forums on the net and in particular here on dailykos. There is no question that social conservatives have severely miscalculated by bringing this event to centerstage. There is no doubt that the overwhelming majority of Americans believe that this should have remained a private matter and that GOP efforts to galvanize support for saving Schiavo was a bad idea. There also seems to be a consensus on dailykos that this presents some opportunity for Progressives to frame the issue going forward. The GOP is the party of invading private space, monstrously big government, and even legislating private morality along the lines of theocracy. Ok, so now what??
I haven't seen many Democrats on TV discussing these issues. Although this is something they must seize upon, the Democrats appear absent. Maybe the reason is that they believe that it would be just as bad for them politically to be seen as fueling the fire on this incredibly distasteful Schiavo story. Or maybe they believe that the GOP is doing the dirty work for them i.e. that they're hanging themselves. Frankly, I'm not sure but I do know this: the conduct of the GOP over recent weeks needs to be exploited. I cannot recall a time when the Progressives have literally been handed an issue to frame the entire debate (a la George Lakoff.)
We are the party of privacy, enabling of liberty, protection of intimacy, of sensible government, of promoting regular people and the decisions they make, of refusing to use a fringe view of religion to promote government and politics, of celebrating the living and providing people of all shapes, colors, and means, the opportunity to be the best they can be. To be sure, timing matters. It is not useful to make these points as a sick woman lies dying in a hospice. But at some point someone's got to take the bull by the horns and say it. The days of polite politics are over. Unlike Reagan and O'Neil, George W. sure doesn't spend his off-time hanging out with Progressives. We need to attack and soon. We need to shape the debate on this forum and we need to tell our representatives to move on this and fast. So here are the questions: Who?? How?? When??