Much has been made about the red state/blue state divide in American politics. However, unfortunately, people - with the help of the media - tend to represent this divide as political. But it isn't. Its primarily a cultural division, a cultural "war" that has spilled over into the political process.
Whats key to understand is the polarization that exists in this country is over CULTURAL issues - there is a cultural war at work that basically contrasts two lifestyles - cosmopolitan, urban culture with traditional rural and exurban culture.
Politically, there is no viable left in this country and there hasn't been since the early Cold War.
The Democratic Party has members that range from center left to center right, and is on balance a centrist party. The Republican Party has members that range from center right to right, and is on balance a right wing party.
By any intellectual and historic standard, no one currently in Congress could be considered "leftist" with perhaps a few exceptions - Bernie Sanders, Dennis Kucinich, Jim McDermott, Barbara Lee.
Political leftism would constitute a serious, probably radical attack on traditional institutions and power relations and would entail things like a dramatic redistribution of wealth, substantial cuts in the military budget, free healthcare and higher education for all, a guaranteed living wage for all citizens, etc.. This does not exactly represent the center of gravity in the contemporary Democratic party. In terms of war and the economy, Kerry is positioning himself almost to the center right (I don't necessarily have a problem with this, either - this is just the empirical fact)
Thus, the polarization is not about politics, per se. Rather it is about the lifestyle of the Bay Area, NYC, Boston, Seattle, etc. versus the lifestyle of Sugarland, Texas and Cobb County, Georgia.
Another thing - strident rightism does not have to equal fascism. Besides, the context within which people like Haider and Le Pen operates has mostly to do with issues like immigration and defense of traditional "French" or "Austrian" values and ethnic characteristics.
And - one last thing - liberalism is NOT leftism. Yet, because it is a fairly fungible ideology, it can incorporate some moderately left wing views. But it is a pro-capitalist ideology at heart.
