The Democrats Are Still Blowing It

Taking a break from the studying of economics and cost-benefit analysis, I've had a little time to start looking over the news headlines. The Roberts' hearings have wrapped up, with the Senate now scheduling to confirm Roberts to the Supreme Court. President Bush made a major prime-time speech last Thursday in New Orleans (Nothing surprising there, considering his poll numbers have been dropping like a stone). But there is one question I have to ask--what are the Democrats doing? Where are the Democrats? Why don't we hear more of them standing up against the corruption of this administration?

Look at where this country has gone. Five years ago, we were at peace with the budget deficit placed under control, and a surpluses on the horizon. What do we have now? We are in a lost cause of a war in Iraq, which is wasting billions of dollars and young American lives, we have tax cuts benefiting the wealthiest Americans, budget deficits on the horizon as far as the eye can see, and now a complete disaster area in New Orleans which will cost us even more billions of dollars that we don't have. Whatever reconstruction and disaster aid that is going into New Orleans is being funneled through no-bid contracts to Haliburton (who is also handling a no-bid contract for Iraq's reconstruction).

We have a president who has lost touch with reality. The only base of support this president has is his conservative ideological base and the Religious Right. Bush has lost support of the moderates and independents. And yet, those moderates and independents are not going rush headlong into the Democratic Party's outstretched arms--not if the Democratic Party can provide some alternative direction and vision to take this country, than the tired old "me too" Bush-lite-slogans they've been preaching for the last five years. What have we heard from the Democrats? We need to support the troops and finish the job in Iraq--in a war that's already lost? Roberts is qualified--even though he's refused to answer just about every question the Senate posed for him regarding his views? Democratic senators lying down and dying because they can't get the Bush White House to release legal papers that Roberts wrote while he was in the solicitor general's office? Deficit spending and tax cuts to the wealthy--Democrats haven't made a peep on that issue.

I find it ironic that the one top Democrat that has started attacking President Bush has been former President Bill Clinton. Here was an individual who was impeached by the neocon Republicans for having sex with an intern, but who left the country in better shape politically, economically, and diplomatically, than our current president will ever have a chance to (Bush will never be impeached for the far graver crimes he's committed against this country). A former president is now breaking tradition to criticized his successor.

So where are the other Democrats?