It's Called Release

Tuesday, November 6, 2006

Wednesday, November 7, 2006

Comments

[Cactus]

Was anyone else puzzled by the silence? I mean, leading up to the election. No last minute 'tape' released by Al Queda. No horrendous rovian dirty tricks. A few localized electoral computer glitches, but really, c'mon, really nothing major. As evidence that the lower echelons in the outer reaches were frustrated by this lack, witness Laura Ingram and her desperate attempt to have democratic electoral lines jammed. It was as eerie as a Halloween night with no trick-or-treat-ers. There was no bombing of Iran or Syria as had been casually threatened for months. There was a quiet smugness about the prancings of Rove, he had the 'real' numbers. Was it all whistling past their grave? Or did they know the fix was in?

xymphora, on her way to blaming it all on AIPAC and the Israeli lobby (http://xymphora.blogspot.com/2006/11/save-america-vote-republican.html) has hinted at something interesting. I remember that the turning point in the Watergate hoohah was when the conservative and respected republicans turned against Nixon. I remember hearing at that time that the "money men" behind those behind the republicans had begun to see him as a liability and suddenly we found out about the tapes. End of story.

Now I'm wondering if those same men-behind see Jr. as a liability and unable to carry out their programs. Did they want the dems to take over and thus stop the worst of his programs? Are the dems going to be stuck sopping up the viscera left lying around the world by these neocons? Will they be caught off-guard in 2008 and swift-boated by the republicans again? In short, are the money-men making a calculated risk to let off the steam in the mid-term, only to bring out the big guns again in 2008?

[jt from BC]

Cactus > 3 hours ago a released radio tape-some extracts, better late than never.

President Bush also comes under attack. The Al-Qaida leader calls him "the most stupid President" in U.S. history and calls on Bush to "escape" in the same way Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld did.

Future political challenges for the Democrats;

Iraq Wins the Election, What Now? (Tom Hayden)
http://www.commondreams.org/views06/1108-32.htm

[Cactus]

Thanks for the link. I sense a bit of the old SDS quixotic attitude, but he does make some good points. He's still not stressing the door-to-door organization to build the grass roots base and work upwards to a candidate (for 2008?). As for Rahm Emanuel, is he the next Liebermann or just the same old tired DLC-er?

I guess I'm just sensing a self-satisfaction among the left that I think is premature. There's a lot of work to do before '08 and concentrating on Iowa isn't the answer. If the left doesn't build a huge base to support the candidate, to get out the voters, then there isn't a chance. On Bill Maher's program Friday, it appeared they agreed that this country was more progressive than most people think. The left has to bring out those voters.