By any measure the arch of the Senator Obama's life has been amazing. Starting with his humble and painful life story, his achievements as a student, young attorney, professor, local organizer and elected official stand out and would a be source of pride in any of the families of his attackers. His biography embodies the possibilities that are in our DNA as a nation and this story has not fully been told.
From the start of his campaign he has comported himself with dignity and class while speaking to the issues the nation truly cares about and has unified not only many wings of the democratic party but created what I believe is a new wing that is pragmatic but is driven by the same idealism that is at the core of our party. The DNC convention will be a fitting marker for an amazing American. We should not be afraid to tell the story and celebrate the man.
But the DNC convention that will be launched today in Denver should be as much about the future campaign as well as a full-throated and clear headed exposition of the mature leader our party has proudly chosen. There are many reasons to be more focused on what the Republicans as a party have wrought and that is the message of this diary.
In this celebration of Senator Obama we should not forget that the real monster we are focused against is not the now faux "maverick" McCain but what is hiding behind in the republican greed machine. The "party of business" has hidden for a generation behind a culture war by marketing hating gays,reviling abortion, pressing censorship, violating privacy and loving guns as surrogates of all we hold dear in this country and that make us great as nation. These formulations allowed disparate groups including evangelicals of all races, the rural and urban working class and those very fearful of the future and change to gather with the economic elites to beat a rather unusual common drum. This drum takes the form of a nationalism that defines many neighbors as internal and external enemies that threaten a potentially pure, gun wheeling christian nation.
The wheels have been coming off that parade throughout the Bush years but they must be called, from now on, as the Republican
Years. Bush is being eclipsed but the group that ran the country for him are all here and ready to continue the party. Bush was no more the real President than Cheney was simply his vice-President.
The entire Republican machine that fed at the trough for eight years will survive Bush's tenure if we simply fight McCain. During Bush's ascendancy evangelicals increased contributions/membership, the republican party had free propaganda, new monies and foot soldiers, the NRA had ballooning membership and donations, the war profiteers had a wonderful season and on and on. But that has begun to screech to a halt. The economy in on the brink of stagflation and the real estate boom and bust now has real casualties. The collapse of the dollar due to the national debt crisis is a tangible example to everyone that we no longer rule the economic world and the price of gas has hammered it in the most removed citizen/consumer that politics can have real consequences at home.
We need to make the case that we are not running just against McCain but against the last eight years of REPUBLICAN LEADERSHIP and where they have led the nation. It was a coordinated assault on the treasury of the United States that has left the nation weakened for probably another generation. We need to wake the nation up to what has actually occurred under the Republican leadership.
Denver needs to further introduce our great candidate but more importantly to clarify what four more years or Republicanism could mean.