Agree Or Disagree? How the Democrats blew it in only eight months

[babsbunny]

http://www.freepress.org/columns/display/2/2007/1585

August 9, 2007

Led by Democrats since the start of this year, the U.S. Congress now has a "confidence" rating of 14 percent, the lowest since Gallup started asking the question in 1973, and five points lower than what the Republican-controlled Congress scored last year.

The voters put the Democrats in to end the war, and it's escalating. The Democrats voted money for the surge in Iraq and the money for the next $459.6 billion military budget. Their latest achievement has been to provide enough votes in support of Bush to legalize warrantless wire tapping for "foreign suspects whose communications pass through the United States." Enough Democrats joined Republicans to make this a 227-183 victory for Bush.

[mike_c]

1. agree, mostly....

My only lack of conviction has to do with whether or not "it's" well and truly blown yet. If dems change course now and go after the bastards with real conviction-- and GET some convictions, as in criminal convictions, while they're at it-- then they can pull it out of the fire yet. But if they continue to enable the neocons and the hardline republicans? In that case, they will blow it beyond redemption.

[elizm]

5. "If the dems change course now"....

:rofl: How many times are you going to let them break your heart?

[mike_c]

9. yeah well-- I'm trying to be charitable...

...but I'm not holding onto the hope any longer.

[elizm]

16. Good on ya for that.... :) nt

[grasswire]

2. Karl Rove is snickering every time someone says such a thing.

Geez.

[babsbunny]

4. The Dems Love to make Karl happy?

What else could it be?

[acmavm]

6. He's snickering because its true. If you want to make it better, you need

to address the real issue. Not blame others for the lack of action and the spineless behavior of the democrat we elected to change things.

[AtomicKitten]

very disappointing so far

[hijinx87]

10. given the "huge" majorities we have in either house

I think the "public" is being petulant and childish.

yes, I know. there is nothing to be done about it. it is what
it is.

[AtomicKitten]

13. I completely understand.

I think John Q. Public is anxious and for good reason.

[hijinx87]

15. you didn't see this coming, AK?

given the narrowness of our majorities, and the decided
lack of progressive credentials of many of our freshman
legislators?

my expectations just weren't that high in the first place.

[AtomicKitten]

18. oh, you most definitely had it right from the get-go.

There have been so many rule changes, i.e., super-majorities, etc., the slim Dem majority has been rendered impotent. I could live with that. However, the recent epic acquiescence to this administration on the issue of warrantless wire-tapping was a huge mistake. I understand the motivation for this, the pressure, etc., but I really wish the Democrats had not gone along with reducing the Constitution to toilet paper on this one. Looming elections have a tendency to produce some pretty egregious legislation.

[hijinx87]

22. well, I must admit

having been right is no solace for what I am seeing right now.

[AtomicKitten]

30. hang in there

I know it sounds cheesy to say, but a new day is on the horizon.

We have waited so long. I have great hope for a better tomorrow. Cheers.

[hijinx87]

32. thank you, AK.

you gave me back a little perspective. things are much better today
than they were 2 years ago.

[calimary]

41. Hi AK! LOVE your "dream ticket"!

I would LOVE to be able to vote for a Dem, or Dem team, that really made my heart sing, rather than go to the polls resigned to stick with a "well, at least he/she is not a republi-CON..." attitude. It's MUCH nicer to approach the booth with a lilt in one's step rather than dragging one's feet. Gore/Obama!!!

[nebula]

3. The Democrat elects are less than worthless. n/t

[nebula]

7. It's as if the GOP were still the majority party in both houses of Congress.

...and the '06 elections never happened.

[KingFlorez]

8. Because 8 months is such a long time

There were some people were expecting the war to be over and Bush to be out of office a month after the Democrats took office. Things don't change overnight and articles like this are hardly rational.

[nebula]

11. B.S.

Your B.S. defense of this lameduck Congress is laughable.

[KingFlorez]

17. Whatever

The fact remains, things don't change quickly and there is still plenty of time for things to change.

[grasswire]

36. and there are people on this site...

...who are here to divide Democrats. And they don't all work for Karl Rove. Some did the same thing in 2000.

[pwb]

12. Republican obstructionism has slowed the democrats agenda.

So i have to be in the disagree line on this one. Democrats need republicans to join them, and they are still rubber stamping bush at every turn.
however i do have a poor view of the senate republicans demanding 60 votes for almost everything instead of the normal 51 votes needed for passage.

the republicans are obstructing the democrats and we need to vote more of them out. this post is way to harsh on the democrats.

[nebula]

20. You're not making sense

The Dems are still rubber stamping Bush at every turn, despite outnumbering Repubs in the House by a huge margin. The number of seats the Democrats have makes no difference.

Even if the Dems had 90% of the seats in the House and Senate, they would still be whining "Yeah but we need 99% of the seats in order to get anything done!"

[pwb]

29. you don't understand politics.?

Why didn't you say so.

[IndianaGreen]

33. The American people know a cave-in when they see one, and they are tired of Beltway types

that are always telling them that they understand politics better than those in the rest of the country, and that Washington knows what's best for the rest of us!

[Somawas]

14. Agree.

I have been a Democrat for 40 years. Not so sure anymore. What an ineffectual crowd! They go along with the Worst President Ever almost as good as rubber stamp Republicans. They were elected to get out of Iraq and to put some checks on Dear Leader. They have done neither. Never have I been more disappointed in my party.

[emulatorloo]

19. Turn on CSPAN -- Dems introduce legislation, Repubs block it and emit talking points.

I have seen similar polls which show that although confidence rating in congress overall is 14% , confidence rating in Dems is something like 48%/.

[nebula]

21. 14% approval of Congress

but 48% approval of Congressional Dems??

That is mathematically IMPOSSIBLE.
If the former is true, than the latter cannot possibly be!

So you sir are full of it.

[emulatorloo]

26. No Personal Attacks -- And here is a link -- Congressional Dems 46% approval July

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x1421332

http://commonsense.ourfuture.org/reversing_slide?tx=3

[nebula]

28. 14% and 48%?

They both can't be true at once, mathematically.

It's one or the other.

[emulatorloo]

35. WHOLE CONGRESS vs DEMOCRATS -- "I HATE THE WHOLE CONGRESS, BUT I LIKE THE DEMOCRATS"

Of course they can both be true -- Think about it -- imagine somebody who says:

"The whole congress includes jackass republicans who do nothing but obstruct and cover for Bush. So the whole congress gets 14% of my approval."

But the dems in congress do things I like about half the time. So they get 46% of my approval."

[HughMoran]

23. Repubs = automatic no, Dems = didn't stop war, no; total= 14%

The problem is, the low rating is mostly due to Democratic voters dissatisfaction.

Does anyone actually think that the Dems are gonna vote for proven warmongers (i.e. Republicans) as an answer?

NOT! These low numbers couldn't possibly be more deceiving for the future of Democratic rule. If anything, people realize that the Dems will need the Presidency and a supermajority to put an and to Republican obstructionims and criminal behavior.

[IndianaGreen]

24. The FISA vote, making Gonzo the spy tsar, was the last straw.

The Democratic Congress succeeded in getting Keith Olbermann, Bruce Fein, and Jonathan Turley to speak of the end of the Fourth Amendment and the imperial Presidency, all thanks to the latest Democratic cave-in.

Thanks for killing the Republic and shredding the Constitution. Thanks to all the "impeachment is off the table" Dems for enabling a dictatorship.

SHAME!

[zulchzulu]

25. People who diss the Democratic leadership need to take Civics 101 again

It takes votes to get things passed and the Democrats have slim majorities...not all Democrats think the same way either. Change is going to be incremental. It's not like some video game where the Democrats come in with laser zappers and frag the Republicans and then storm the hill and plant the flag.

I'm willing to give them more time to get more accomplished. Except for the FISA turncoats, there has been some good things done so far. I'm not sitting back and watching either. I'm just not throwing out the baby with the bath water.

[IndianaGreen]

31. Democratic leadership should be taking Civics 101

Starting with what our Founding Fathers and the Framers of the Constitution said about an overreaching Executive, and ending with the Bill of Rights and how they have been subverted by a "unitarian" Presidency.

They are as gutless as Marshall Petain, of Vichy France infamy!

BTW, my local PBS station is now showing Bill Moyer's Journal. The topic: Impeaching President Bush and Vice President Cheney. Guests include constitutional lawyer Bruce Fein and The Nation's John Nichols.

[zulchzulu]

39. Agreed...actually, they should re-read the oath that they took

I got John Nichols to autograph my copy of his book about Impeachment. I wish every congressperson had a copy. It boggles the mind that there aren't enough votes to impeach Bush and Cheney.

The book is excellent:
http://www.thenewpress.com/index.php?option=com_title&task=view_title&metaproductid=1637

[John Q. Citizen]

34. The majority Dems didn't have to schedule a vote on bush's bill.They knew when

they scheduled it that it was going to pass.

[struggle4progress]

38. Do you have any evidence Pelosi "scheduled" a vote on *'s bill?

[John Q. Citizen]

42. Who sets the agenda, if not the Speaker? Is there someone else who also

has this power?

[HughMoran]

37. "not all Democrats think the same way either"

Tell me about it - it's supposed to be our strength and one of the key differentiators of us versus them, yet people can't seem to understand how extremely difficult it is to get a consensus when your party is not a bunch of lockstep marching morons.

over 80% of DEMS voted against the FISA legislation

...but lets not let a few facts stand in the way of a good old fashioned lynching.

[Bitwit1234]

27. With the constant drum beat from the MEDIA

about the lack of bills congress has passed, I guess people are saying they don't approve.

But the media is lying. They couldn't get the bill thru congress to tie the end of the war to funding. And the blue dogs kissed bush's ass (since they are rubber stamp republicans) so the media had a good chance to bash them.

Why don't they tell the country all the good bills they passed. Minimum wage, college loans and all the others. Oh heck no that would let the country know they are trying to do something, but between the arcadic senate rules where the republicans can stop everything, bush vetoing some of the good bills they did pass, and the blue dog rubber stampers I think they are doing a good job.

If anybody is to blame it is the American people for voting for the blue doggers and didn't give them enough of a majority in the senate.

[IndianaGreen]

40. We don't need the MSM to tell us anything. When the Dems do their BOHICA dance for Bush

it is done in front of the whole world!

[Totally Committed]

43. I couldn't have said it better, myself!

This is the point, exactly.

They don't give a rat's ass about us, our mandate to them, the welfare of the people who elected them..... nothing. They are craven traitors. They ALL need to be UNelected ASAP. It will take years, but each and every one of them needs to go, and be replaced with those who will actually REPRESENT us.

TC