How much of the "Dems are doing nothing"meme is a right wing taking point?

[Stinky The Clown]

I'm not going to cite links and arcane facts here. Instead, I'll just think out loud.

This past weekend I happened to hear Mass Rep Jim McGovern on some CSpan show. He was being interviewed by four 'journalists'. Two things came to mind as I watched.

Jim McGovern is as anti war as they come, and reflects very well the mood of his constituents.

Jim McGovern was lavish in his praise of the work being done by the leadership, and specifically, by (DU demonized) Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

McGovern made his case on both of those points. I'm not going to repeat them here.

But this led me to consider the whole notion that our being in Iraq is somehow the fault of the Democrats. (The analogy of giving the car keys to a drunk is often cited.)

I then think about what I hear on teevee. In particular, I hear the media 'concern trolls' cluck clucking about how awful it is to be in Iraq as long as we've been there. Of course, this is always followed by some statement of how opposed the troll in question is to the war. The troll in question, however, also suffers from selective memory and forgets how erect their little 'Thingie' got during the "Shock and Awe' phase.

So here we have the very people who got all done up in pom pom suits, shaking the actual pom poms to chants of "Go Team!" now cluck clucking over the inability of Dems to stop the war.

All this suits well the notion that the Dems may not deserve either the Congress or the White House in 08.

Have the Dems somehow been less than stellar in their performance? Yeah .... maybe.

Have they been as bad as both the right and some on the left say?

Those are things for each person paying attention to decide for themselves.

Has the meme that the Dems accomplished nothing been pushed by BOTH the right and some on the left?

Yeah.

To me, that ain't helpful ...... yanno?

This is not an excuse or meant to excuse. It IS intended to provoke some thought, discussion, and maybe some intellectual honesty.

[opihimoimoi]

1. Its a PLOT to Denigrate the DEMs...for the GOOPers to avoid blame...at the very least,

Share the Blame.

Notice the huge increase of threads dissing Hilliary, Nancy, the Dem party??
\
The SwiftBoating has intensified.....

[frylock]

17. it isn't swiftboating if it's the truth

[OregonBlue]

2. I agree completely. Let's start posting threads about what they have done.

[DURHAM D]

3. Start with - "Dems were elected to congress to stop the war".

In 2006 we were told over and over again that the Dems were elected to Congress to stop the war. I have not been able to find a single exit poll to support that theory - in fact, just the opposite.

Exit polling showed that people cast votes with the following interest: (1) The economy and health care (2) Immigration (3) General war on terror. The war in Iraq was 4th but even then they were not polled on "stopping" the war - the polling was on "interest" in the war.

Rove types looked at the slim Dem majority in the House and the compromised Senate and decided they had found a way to make the Iraq war the problem of the Democrats and make the leadership look inept and ineffective.

So Rovers fed the line to their corporate "happy to oblige" media that the Dems took over congress to stop the war - knowing full well it was not true and the Dems could not stop the war. Presidential candidates picked up the rightie talking point (DK and JE) in order to find supporters. And finally, that lie, that right wing talking point - "Dems were elected to congress to stop the Iraq war" lives on in all its glory here at the graveyard of right wing talking points - the Democratic Underground.

It was not true. It is not true. And Dems have been played once again.

[Stinky The Clown]

4. Perfectly stated!

Yup ..... and particularly that polling. That, in particular, is what those on the left who further this meme ignore. (For the most part) NO one was specifically and narrowly elected to 'stop the war'.

I am also quick to add, however, that NONE of the Dems (including our 08 hopefuls) want to specifically escalate or even continue the war. But you'd never know that from what we see and hear - from both sides.

[tandot]

7. You hit the nail on the head.

The country as a whole wanted a change in direction in all of these issues. Some people might have voted with the hopes that this would bring an immediate end to the war. However, the reality is that not enough voted for Dems and we don't have the veto-proof majority we need to make big changes.

If anything, blame voters who didn't go vote that day or voted for Republicans.

[RaleighNCDUer]

9. Wrong.

Just because the MSM polls didn't ask the right question it doesn't follow that the dems were NOT elected to stop the war.

EVERY dem I know went to the polls with that in mind. Not a single one went to authorise MORE war. Claiming that exit polls which didn't ask supports that claim is nonsense.

We DID elect them to stop the war. And the elected dems are NOT doing that.

Put it this way -- did YOU go to the polls intending to prolong the war?

[tandot]

5. It appears that we play right into the right-wingers' hands.

Sometimes I have to double-check to make sure I am on DU and not on FR.

Especially those people who claim that they can't vote for a certain Dem because of their "principles" but don't see a problem if that would lead to another Republican presidency. I suspect that they wouldn't have voted for a Democrat in the first place anyway.

[Stinky The Clown]

6. You would think that at somepoint, we'd get it.

But we don't.

[blondeatlast]

11. That oughta be a stand-alone thread. nt

[grasswire]

8. it's not just the GOP pushing that, H2S

Those on the left who worked to split the party in 2000, who said there wasn't a dime's worth of difference between Bush and Gore, are working to destroy Democrat chances of winning in 2008 in order to destroy the Democratic Party. They're doing it again, and there is a loud contingent of them on DU.

The RNC, the non-Dem left, and the media water carriers have framed the national impression of Dems as weak and bumbling. It's really going to hurt us in 2008. I can hear it now. It's everywhere.

[tandot]

10. "...loud contingent of them on DU..." I agree

I am not even sure what their ultimate goal is. It is hard to understand if they just don't mind another Republican president or if they just don't give a sh*t about people who are really affected by Republican policies. To encourage people not to vote for any Dem or to write-in someone who isn't even running is not going to bring any change.

[grasswire]

24. What was Ralph Nader's goal?

To split the Democratic Party beyond repair. (Unless there was money involved, which would present a whole new scenario.)

The goal of some on DU is to split the Democratic Party beyond repair. When you ask some of these people who they supported in 2000, they slink away.

[DURHAM D]

12. Amen. n/t

[blondeatlast]

13. AMEN! The following thread below is a stellar example of how it works, too.

Media publishes a piece that is so spun it makes one dizzy and it's also got some glaring editing mistakes, someone calls it out, it gets well-critiqued, and still the latecomers who don't bother to read the OP or the thread chime in with uninformed knee-jerks.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=2005138&mesg_id=2005138

[JackRiddler]

14. How true - I guess the Democrats should stop providing the opening for this

and use their power and position to defund the war, initiate muscular investigations into its origins, and stop voting for resolutions that facilitate an attack on Iran. Apologies to those Democrats in the Congress who have tried to do that.

[blondeatlast]

15. Kixk for more discussion. nt

[leftofthedial]

16. what have they accomplished?

do you have a list?

this is not a "meme" from anyone, but a question from me.

[Stinky The Clown]

18. On th Greatest Page is this thread ......

....... http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x2005734 ....... notice all the deleteds. That would be evidence of the DUers who see things ....... uh ..... differently.

I'll call them the Hissyfitters.

[leftofthedial]

21. thanks for the link

First minimum wage increase in 10 years--which accomplished nothing. The economic inequities in our country have grown and continue to grow.

9/11 Commission recommendations to screen all air cargo and overseas port cargo, improving communications between first responders--way to go :applause:

Tough rules to establish highest ethical standards in Congressional history--accomplishing what? main purpose of this was to avoid tackling meaningful campaign finance and lobbying reform. things had become so institutionally corrup under the repukes that taking a crap in the Rotunda would constitute a "clean-up."

Most sweeping lobby and ethics reform in a generation, hailed by reform groups as “landmark reform” and “a sea of change”--see above. primarily PR fluff to avoid tackling actual lobbying and campaign reform

Pay-as-you-go budget discipline restored to end six years of deficit spending--only if you exclude the costs of continuing the illegal occupation of Iraq and now the possible attack on/invasion of Iran should king george decide that's necessary

Fiscal discipline that produces a balanced budget by 2012--see above; does not include the costs of the "war" on "terror"

A comprehensive Innovation and Competitiveness agenda to double basic research & development and reinvest in math and science education--far too little, far too late, but way to go! :applause:

Emergency funding to support and equip troops, including tripling Mine-Resistant Ambush
Protected (MRAP) vehicles in Iraq--yeah, support the occupation of Iraq! yay us!

Tighter rules against foreign investment that weaken national security, after the Dubai Ports scandal
Reduction of backlog on passports after 9/11 requirement through hiring boost--yawn. money finds its way where money wants to go in this capitalist sewer.

Benchmarks and progress report required on Iraq--General Betray-us gave us a good report, que no? This is less than meaningless.

Emergency assistance to protect children’s health coverage--way to go I guess. Didn't help me or my kids or anyone I know.

Overdue disaster aid to farmers and ranchers--a good thing, but that's their job

Overdue hurricane aid to rebuild Gulf Coast housing, hospitals, schools, and levees--and king george's buddies appreciate the funding for their "rebuilding" projects

Emergency funding to fight wildfires--again, a good thing, but that's their job

U.S. Attorney appointments protected from political influence--I don't believe that's true

Vigorous Congressional oversight restored after six years, saving billions of taxpayer dollars, exposing corruption and incompetence--I'd like to see evidence of this

Green the Capitol plan launched to cut carbon footprint 50%--way to go! :applause:

National Summit on America’s Children to align policies with latest science--ooh. a study.

This list is even worse than I expected. Things have gotten worse, not better.

[Stinky The Clown]

26. .

.

[mopinko]

19. it is tough to be a dem. that is why i wouldn't run for dog

catcher. we want them to be perfect. dems hang for misdemeanors, thugs get away with murder. but i don't see any way around it. i think that a lot of us here, if we were the ones with the car keys, would drive the god damn thing through the picture windows, and just fucking stop this insane machine that is the united states government. or at least we hope that we would.
we want them to be who we dream that we are. we want them to be heroes. that is a tall order. but then there is howard dean. al gore. paul wellstone. heroes. they do exist. we need them so badly. but where the fuck are they? where? god damn it.

[L. Coyote]

20. Obstructionism is an actual strategy of the Rs for this purpose, to paint

the Dems as doing nothing. They are blocking every move possible in Congress as a political tactic to impact the 2008 election. THAT SIMPLE!

[liberalla]

22. just today, I was listening to calls on CSPAN, and

I noticed how angry 2 Repubs, 1 Libertarian, 1 Independent and 1 Democrat were on that topic -- how the Dems are doing nothing. Specifically they were discussing the FISA reform and how the Dems might cave to bush, again. (It was only 10-12 minutes that I listened, while I waited for Randi Rhodes to start.)

It kind of annoyed me, especially the Repubs and Libertarian. Were you that angry when bush began the illegal wiretapping?

[Mike03]

23. Great Post

It is like a virus that is contageous, even here at DU.

I know what you are saying, and it is very distressing what is happening.

Kick and Recommend.

[grasswire]

25. why isn't the GOP being bashed for the war?

It is the GOP that has Congress hogtied.

It is the GOP propping Bush up with procedural tricks and arm twisting and lockstep voting.

Why bash Democrats?????????????????????????

Take the criticisms to centrist Republicans!! They are the ones denying the will of the American people.

[Stinky The Clown]

27. Read upthread .... just a few posts up

You'll see. Its obviously easier to trash EVERY FUCKING THING the Dems do than say one bad thing about a Republican.

Fuck Ralph and his asinine posse.

[nadinbrzezinski]

28. There is quite a bit of that, see NYT article today on FISA

and how it is full of misinforation

But there is also some inabitly to do things, becuase the leadership has no will or abitly to use all tools in the quiver

So I'd say is a combo, and truly it depends on the day