THANK YOU PRESIDENT BUSH… YOU’VE AWAKENED THE SLEEPING GIANT

[hyphenate]

THANK YOU PRESIDENT BUSH… YOU’VE AWAKENED THE SLEEPING GIANT
By Eric C. Bauman, Chair, LA County Democratic Party

To those of us who define ourselves as political activists, 2004 has been nothing, if not confusing. Since January, nearly every bit of expectation and conventional wisdom has flown out the proverbial window. Neither the pundits nor the Washington insiders have come anywhere near the target with their all-knowing predictions and pontification.

From misreading Democratic voter sentiment in New Hampshire and Iowa to the allegedly impenetrable anti-terrorism/war-hero shield surrounding George W. Bush, the surprises have shaken us and awakened us to the fact that this is no “conventional wisdom” election.

It’s been nearly a year since Karl Rove’s infamous strategy memo was leaked. That memo clearly described how the Bush re-election juggernaut would ride the crest of the 9-11 tragedy and the war in Iraq to victory in 2004. From the not-so subtle staged “mission accomplished” event on the aircraft carrier, to the selection of New York City as the site of the Republican Convention, this strategy has unfolded. The first television commercials Bush unveiled included scenes of the horrific aftermath of 9-11 and depicted him as a “great leader” who unified our nation and stood defiant in the face of the terrorists.

Despite anguished pleas from the families of 9-11 victims and outrage from those whose sons and daughters are on the frontlines of Iraq and Afghanistan, Bush has refused to exhibit any modicum of compassion or sensitivity. I suppose the age-old adage says it best: “all is fair in love and war… and presidential campaigns.”

But a funny thing happened on the way to the coronation – the facts began to get in the way. First it was former Treasury Secretary Paul O’Neill, who went on 60 Minutes and described Bush as aloof, disinterested and unfocused except on the issue of getting Saddam Hussein. And then, in a startling display of integrity and outspokenness, former National Terrorism Czar, Richard Clarke, detailed for the American people just how lax and unfocused the Bush administration truly had been in the fight against Al Qaeda.

Clarke, who honorably served Presidents Reagan, Bush Sr., and Clinton, before serving Bush Jr., told the nation that the first question Bush asked in the aftermath of 9-11 was whether there was a link to Saddam Hussein. When told that there was absolutely no linkage, Bush ordered Clarke to look even harder for the connection.

Clarke’s stunning testimony before the 9-11 commission set-off major alarm-bells at the White House. From chief attack dog Cheney, to Colin Powell, to the ubiquitous Condolezza Rice, the Bush attack machine launched a furious and relentless barrage on Clarke’s credibility. By week’s end, Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist was accusing Clarke of having lied under oath and demanding the de-classification of his prior testimony before Congress.

As each new wave unfolded, the White House was repeatedly forced to back away. First Cheney claimed “Clarke wasn’t even in the loop,” then Rice contradicted him. When the Chair of the Republican Party accused Clarke of being a partisan attack dog, Colin Powell rose to defend him as an honorable man and among the world’s top experts on terrorism. When Frist accused Clarke of lying under oath, Republican members of the 9-11 Commission and Republican Congressional staffers declared that there were no contradictions in Clarke’s testimony.

Meanwhile, the Bush political team put Rice on virtually every political talk show and news broadcast in a single week. Yet despite that massive public exposure, they spent weeks refusing to allow her to publicly testify under oath before the Commission, before finally giving in.

After ten days of negative fallout from Clarke’s book and the commission hearings, Bush’s so-called greatest strength was looking an awful lot like it a potential political disaster.

On the domestic front, Bush campaigned around the country touting the “great improvement” in the economy. But every job report continues to show the same thing: virtually no new jobs created. And every month thousands-more jobs are “outsourced” to foreign countries. Meanwhile his tax-cut policy, which was supposed to be the cure for what ailed the economy, has done little more than further enrich millionaires and create the largest budget deficit in the history of the world.

The Medicare prescription drug plan, which Bush had hoped would undermine Democrats, has turned into a public relations disaster. We learned that the budget estimates Bush used to sell the plan understated the cost by nearly 40%. Furthermore, it turns out that Bush muscled Medicare’s top financial expert, illegally ordering him to withhold the true cost of the plan from the Congress. Medicare recipients will not see prescription drug coverage until 2006, but billions will be funneled to private insurance companies and drug companies beginning this year.

Then there’s the “No Child Left Behind Act,” which turns out to be a farce. It is under-funded, with inflexible standards and is causing a revolt from parents, teachers, and politicians across America. Both Republican and Democratic governors are complaining loudly and Bush is quietly trying to change the rules to avoid a major election year embarrassment.

None of the above was predicted or expected by the purveyors of the conventional wisdom. The reality of 2004 finds Bush on the defensive on nearly all of the issues he expected would allow him to coast to re-election.

Among Democrats, opposition to the war in Iraq has galvanized opposition to Bush and further intensified the sense of rage and unity we have felt since the Florida fiasco of 2000. The continued erosion of Bush’s credibility has caused independent voters to lose trust in Bush and to rethink their once reflex-patriotic support for him.

In 2000, Al Gore had great difficulty in capitalizing on Bill Clinton’s years in office. Democratic voter motivation was low, and Ralph Nader captured the votes of many left-leaning voters – Greens and Democrats alike.

Bush has, however, given us a gift this year. His divisiveness, his “your either with me or against me” style, along with his pursuit of a very conservative social agenda and an extraordinarily polarizing approach to foreign policy, have come together to awaken Democrats and independents.

Every day we see the signs of a Democratic political renaissance. Spurred by a phenomenal level of grassroots activism in the primary campaign, new life and energy has infiltrated the ranks of our Party. Perhaps because of the sense of Bush’s vulnerability, or because of a collective rejection of his discordant and simple-minded policies, enthusiastic activism is resurging.

In Los Angeles there has been an explosion of new Democratic clubs and organizations and a rebirth of many recently moribund groups. In the past 6 months, we have witnessed the creation of LA’s first Iranian-American Democratic club, the first-ever Bangladeshi-American Democratic club, the first-ever Muslim-American Democratic Club and an Indo-American Democratic club. Groups who have not met in years are seeking new charters and new ways to activate and engage voters.

Young Democrat and College Democrat clubs have sprouted up all around the county and old chapters have been revived. Interest in taking back the White House is palpable, even on conservative college campuses.

And the enthusiasm sparked by the Dean and Clark campaigns has resulted in hundreds, if not thousands, of newly energized activists. Dean has begun his Democracy for America group and his former supporters have been meeting locally, training and planning their role in the November election. The former Clark network is transforming itself into a group of Democratic clubs, who also hope to have a high-profile role.

In the past month, I have spoken at a half-dozen gatherings of activists who are preparing to open grassroots campaign headquarters around the county. Each group had a substantial turnout and boundless zeal.

At each Democratic Club I have spoken to there is incredible enthusiasm to oust Bush and the debate has clearly shifted to how we best organize to elect Kerry.

For our part, considering the failure of the conventional wisdom so far this election cycle, the LACDP has commissioned an extensive analysis of LA’s Democratic voters, district-by-district, precinct-by-precinct. We intend to create a new GOTV paradigm, not based on the traditional voter patterns and targets used, but based on a fresh approach that recognizes that every vote in LA County will be necessary to offset Republican gains in the Inland Empire, the Central Valley and other parts of the state.

Once we have completed this analysis – probably in the late spring - we will meet with our grassroots partners and the leaders of the CDP, labor, affiliated campaigns and other shared-interest groups to present our findings and help finalize our voter mobilization efforts.

The impact of new federal campaign laws (BCRA), will force us to work smarter, with greater sophistication. Since no buckets of money will drop from heaven or Washington, we will be forced to be more creative and precise than at any time in history.

The combination of profound Democratic enthusiasm, newly-analyzed voter data and revitalized methodologies for turning out our base will be explosive, giving us the perfect foundation to deliver LA County by its largest margin ever.

For this I must thank President Bush. His arrogant and divisive cowboy presidency has awakened the sleeping giant – and he will pay the price this November.


PERMISSION IS GRANTED FOR REPUBLICATION
Copyright 2004 Eric C. Bauman

[Melodybe]

1. Thanks for posting this, I agree wholeheartedly

:kick: