Ever since November 3rd, 2004 I've been pondering why I'm a Democrat. I, probably as many of you, was born of 2 democratic parents, and therefore I adopted their voting habbits. However, in the time since the 2004 election it has become something much more potent and intense than a habbit. And I'm sorry to say that it took someone as damaging to America as George W. Bush, in addition to a little age and maturity to finally understand fully who I am, and why I am that person politically.
First, I think it prudent to talk a bit about Bush, Cheney, and the rest of the gang. I think most Democrats and certainly too many people on this site fundamentally misunderstand GWB. The key observation that is made about him that I think is DEAD WRONG is that he is stupid and incompetent. On the issue of his intelligence, keep in mind that he is lazy. He was born with a silver spoon shoved so far up his ass that you could see your reflection in it when he opened his mouth, and therefore never had to try very hard at anything....it was always handed to him. Throw the tremendous wealth in combination with having a powerful & influential family tree, and you have a spoiled, entitled, lazy brat. I think he is quite capable and quite smart. However, he has a mediocre record on everything he's ever done because there were never any real consequences financial or otherwise if he failed at something (contrast that to Bill Clinton's Life). I think that Karl Rove and GW put together as a key part of their strategy years ago a persona that would be underestimated by default. Think about it....every time he has to debate someone, the public expects him to lose, so all he has to do is exceed thier already low expectations and it is a victory. That is one of the key reasons that he has been cut so much slack by the public....they held him to a lower standard than other people.
My point in all of that is that Bush isn't a fuck-up. The real problem is that he knew what he wanted to accomplish and he has accomplished it with amazing success. He wanted to be held to a lower standard. He wanted to defund the federal government, return the money to the wealthy & corporations that he thinks is rightfully theirs, and deregulate every industry that he possibly can (with the exception of any industry that profits on sexuality). The problem isn't that he has failed....HE HAS SUCCEEDED IN DOING WHAT HE WANTED DONE!! I think the democrats are missing the boat when they try to paint him as incompetent, dumb, and failed. I think the smarter strategy is to say this is the world he wanted to create. If you like it, keep voting for republicans...otherwise give us a look because we have a different vision of the future. By saying that he is incompetent, we are leaving the door open to the public that another republican might be a good president, and we all know that their fundamental priorities are different than ours. Start blaming the ideology instead of just the practitioner.
So that leads me to my final thoughts....why am I a democrat? After thinking long and hard these last 2 years, I honestly don't think that it is becuase of the positions on issues. My stance on most every issue mirrors other progressive democrats, but the potential for that to change is what really makes me a democrat. Over the past 200 years it has been the democratic party who with all its faults and incredible stints of stubborness has had the balls to change their minds about something when the facts told them that they should. We have always been for the common man, but we were a bunch of red-necked biggots for a long time. But over a period of about 40 years in the early & mid 20th century we became the party of equal opportunity. We were deficit spenders for much of the 20th century, but after some amazing internal battles Bill Clinton showed us that balanced budgets are the one-way ticket to accomplishing everything on our domestic agenda. The list goes on and on. I am passionate about what I believe today, but I REFUSE to become an idealogue like the right-wing fanatics. They are so sure that they know what is right and what is the truth that facts no longer matter. I will always be a democrat as long as I believe that being a democrat means adjusting our actions to reality and evidence rather than masking reality and doctoring evidence to justify our stubborn actions. I hope all in the progressive community will remind themselves of that from time to time.