Beinart of TNR says Iowa makes Dems too Dovish. This should play well.

[madfloridian]

A little note of sarcasm there. And then he has the nerve to invoke Dean's help in making the party more hawkish......:crazy:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A8097-2005Jan13.html
Rethinking Iowa
The Caucus System Keeps Democrats Dovish

By Peter Beinart
Friday, January 14, 2005; Page A19

SNIP..."In December 2000, on an obscure Canadian talk show, an obscure Democratic governor attacked the Iowa caucuses. "If you look at the caucuses system," he said, "they are dominated by the special interests in both parties. The special interests don't represent the centrist tendencies of the American people. They represent the extremes."

The governor was Howard Dean. He was absolutely right. And now, as a candidate for chairman of the Democratic National Committee, he has a chance to do something about it...."

AND then he blames Dean for making Kerry and Edwards not hawkish enough. I am about to burst out laughing here.

SNIP..."Instead, in the summer before the caucuses, vocal Iraq war opponent Howard Dean came from nowhere to grab first place in the Iowa polls. His rise set the tone for the race, forcing John Kerry and John Edwards to mimic his aggressively antiwar rhetoric and thus win back the caucus-goers Dean had lured away...." END SNIP

Now this should go over really well with Iowans. And Dean people. And Kerry/Edwards folks.

[KoKo]

1. Beinart again! You know I heard him on C-Span talking about his

article about how Dems needed to move Rightward and I realized I just don't trust him. There's something there that just didn't come off sincere when I saw him talking. His eyes seem dead..no life there. (I realize this is very subjective on my part)
BUT..
I think he's a DINO type...or worse. He's been yapping around about this and I don't know why he thinks anyone cares what he thinks about anything.

[madfloridian]

2. I cancelled my subscription to TNR, got my money back.

I told them I could not pay to listen to Beinart pontificate.

[kodi]

3. Those who show up get to decide. And Beinart is still an ass.

according to Beinart, participatory democracy is extremism.

what shit.

[Telly Savalas]

11. He does have a point...

"... the Iowa caucuses aren't that democratic at all. In a primary, people can vote all day. But in Iowa, you must arrive at your precinct caucus site at exactly 6:30 p.m. and stay for several hours, which virtually bars people who work at night. There are no absentee ballots, and voting is not secret -- people often raise their hands to show whom they support."

There's something to be said for replacing caucuses with primaries that make it easier to vote.

That said, I'm still trying to figure out what the fuck he's talking about with this Iowa dove bias. He seems to have forgot that Kerry, the guy who won Iowa in '04, voted for the Iraq War Resolution, and that the four candidates who opposed the war collectively won a mere 7 of the 35 delegates there. Either that, or Kerry's vision didn't measure up to Beinart's Chuck Norris movie approach to foreign policy.

I'm hesitant to use terms like "DINO" and "Republican-lite", because I firmly believe our party should be a big tent that should welcome moderates with open arms. Nevetheless, I can't figure out why this guy finds his home with us instead of the GOP.

[TheFarseer]

4. Don't blame Howard, he took a stance

and never backed off. Kerry took a stance and backed off and got back on again and never really took a reasonable stance that anyone could understand, and I don't know what the hell Edwards was talking about. All they had to say was go after the terrorists, Saddam has nothing to do with Al Queda, but by God I want Osama strung up from the highest tree in New York. It was that easy. Even when Kerry supported the war he was given an out when they asked him if it was still right to go to war even after every reason we were given for the war was a lie and he didn't take it. He has only himself to blame and the "no war in Iraq" position was NOT a dove position(we already were attacking Afghanistan - where the terrorists actually were) nor was it wrong. The complete lack of a coherent position WAS wrong!

[janx]

5. There are thirty or so people at the DNC looking at our primary system.

Dean has no intention of doing anything about that now and is interested in hearing what these people have to say. He's in no position to do anything about it now.

I heard him say this myself tonight during the conference call.

I've really had it with media speculation.

[RafterMan]

6. All of Beinart's recent work

gives the impression that his main reason for supporting the war was fear of looking weak. I wish he could see just how weak this reasoning really does make him look.

How about evaluating policies based on whether they're a good idea? Wouldn't that be novel?

[madfloridian]

8. And on TV he seems so apologetic for our party.

He has gone overboard.

[RafterMan]

9. Like many other pro-war Dems

he's no more capable of admitting a mistake than Bush.

[Tinoire]

7. LMAO!

"The special interests don't represent the centrist tendencies of the American people. They represent the extremes." "

Talk about a pot calling the kettle Black.

Personally, I'm kind of attached to the "extreme" special interests in the Democratic Party... you know, like human rights for non-Whites, health-care, the environment, respect of the worker.

Somebody, please, get me the name and number of Beinart's dealer! Oh these neo-liberals, they are so funny!

The "centrist tendencies of the American people'??!!! Yep, we all saw what happened to those centrists standing in the middle of the road- they got run over. Creamed. Splattered all over the highway.

Well, there is one bit of truth in there: "forcing John Kerry and John Edwards to mimic his aggressively antiwar rhetoric". Somebody tell this jerk that over 70% of the Democratic voters were/are against this war. Nobody forced Kerry or Edwards, to a much lesser extent, to mimic squat- they simply realized they had better start pandering; it's too bad they couldn't convince enough people that between a flip and a flop they deserved passionate support.

[PROGRESSIVE1]

10. Beinhart should go Rethug.