Democrats Need to Keep Their Eyes On the Prize

Karl Rove must be smiling right about now. The Palin nomination has been rolling itself out like a classic page from his political playbook. The U.S. economy is arguably in recession, thousands of Americans are losing their homes, the Republican Party has led the charge for one of the most unpopular and expensive wars in U.S. history, it's leaders have cost U.S. lives and credibility around the world, and the 72 year old, four-time cancer surviving Republican presidential candidate just tapped someone with no national or foreign policy experience to be his running mate. Yet, the whole country is talking about abortion, hunting rifles and the "evil genius" of Sarah Palin.

In his acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention, Barack Obama deliberately tried to reach out to evangelical and conservative voters, saying "We may not agree on abortion, but surely we can agree on reducing the number of unwanted pregnancies in this country. The reality of gun ownership may be different for hunters in rural Ohio than for those plagued by gang-violence in Cleveland, but don't tell me we can't uphold the Second Amendment while keeping AK-47s out of the hands of criminals." In other words, he intentionally sought to downplay these divisive issues, saying "We need a President who can face the threats of the future, not keep grasping at the ideas of the past." And Sarah Palin, despite being able to read from a teleprompter, has no experience even thinking about issues relevant to large-scale economic policy, national security, ethics, or international relations. All of the speakers at the Democratic convention focused on big ideas and set out an impressive platform of issues of profound importance: health care, education, the economy, Afghanistan, Iraq, national and international security and cooperation, the promise that American holds out to her citizens and the hope she can offer to a world in turmoil. Sarah Palin demonstrated a ferocious sort of anger that will continue to alienate American from the world.

Yet now, in just one news cycle, the Democrats have permitted the Republicans to set the tone and content of the nation's political discourse and have fallen into the familiar role of responding to Republican talking points. Once again, the Democrats have allowed the Republicans to set aside the crucial issues facing our country and the world and turn the conversation to the same hot-button issues that energized the evangelical base of the Republican party. In doing so, they are ceding the floor to discussions which, in the past, convinced thousands to vote against their own economic and social interests and elect George W. Bush. If the Democrats are to win in November, they must learn from their past mistakes and reclaim the reigns of the campaign discourse.

Clearly, there are many of concerns about Sarah Palin and Democrats will all be deeply concerned about abortion rights and the Supreme Court. But most all Americans will worry about national security, and about the idea of a person with no national or foreign policy credentials being a heartbeat away from the oldest president in U.S. history. This is the time for the Democrats to go on the offensive, and to highlight the strength of their ticket and the decisions made by the man at the top. He has chose to leave Joe Biden to steer the ship of State - a man with decades of relevant experience and particular knowledge of foreign policy - who also embodies the spirit of working-class America. McCain, in contrast, has chosen to gamble the future of the country and the world on a person about whom he knows virtually nothing, and whom, herself, until very recently, didn't even understand the nature of the very job she has accepted.

The Republican have now lost their trump card. They can no longer try to scare Americans about the dangers in the world and then tell them that they will be safer with a Republican in the White House. They can no longer claim to be the party that is not willing to gamble America's national security. Rather than engaging in old red-state/blue-state debates and tabloid speculations about a runner-up beauty queen, the Democrats should be setting the agenda of the campaign. They should stay on message about Palin's lack of experience and repeat the fact that she has none again and again. They should point out over and over that Palin joined her fellow Republicans in lying to the American people at their convention, just as they have lied during the last eight years. Moving forward, messaging and repetition should be the Democrats' relentless strategy for steering and dominating the campaign. This tactic worked for the Republicans whether they were making the case for WMDs or "heck 'uv a job" being performed by top Bush Administration officials. In this case, truth is on the side of the Democrats. If they want to win in November, they need to keep reminding Americans how dangerous a vote for John McCain could prove to be, and how much the Democratic ticket has to offer to Americans of all political stripes.

Comments

[gymmy]

As you've stated, Lisa, "Democrats have ceded the floor", once again to what tastes good , as opposed to what is good food for you....... "this will be a much more transparent administration", said Mcain at the convention. Palin STILL hasn't fielded questions from anyone, even people at a bbq shack stop over with Mcain! The American people are falling prey again like they did in 2000 and 2004 with this extremely acidic Republican strategy of inciting a new culture war which they think is more necessary than uniting over common every day issues like health care, job, and financial security.