All Out of Excuses Now

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All Out of Excuses Now
by James Hall, Senior Associate Editor

November 13, 2002

"Leaning Left"

James Hall "Give the people a choice between a Republican and a Republican and they will choose the Republican every time." - Harry Truman

Harry was right. By campaigning and winning political contests against mostly centrist Democrats on his home ground (9 out of 10 of Senate seats up for grabs this election were in "red" states Bush won in the 2000 election), George W. Bush has retaken the Senate leadership for Republicans. Meanwhile, incumbent-friendly redistricting of the House guaranteed the continued Republican majority there. (Nationally only a handful of seats changed hands and people voted 52%--45% for Republicans over Democrats.). But Republican control of Congress and the White House is a double-edged sword, because Republicans have run out of excuses and must now deliver on their promises.

Was this election a mandate, as some Republicans proclaim? The president was successful in "nationalizing" it---i.e., in making it about national security and the war with Iraq, and in turning out his supporters to vote for Republicans. But not everywhere, and not by much. Three of the Republican gains in the Senate---in New Hampshire, Missouri and in Minnesota---were within a total of 49,000 votes of keeping Democrats in charge of the Senate. And only 39% of registered voters actually voted, meaning that only one in five of registered voters came out and voted with the president. Sorry, Republicans, we're not talking a Reagan landslide here.

Centrist Democrats learned a valuable lesson in this election. Being "bipartisan" and supporting the president on key issues was no help to them at all when election time came around. Jeanne Carnahan, Jeanne Shaheen, Mary Landrieu and Tim Johnson all announced their support of the president's foreign policy, education policy and tax cuts, and all were ruthlessly campaigned against by the president anyway, proving that George W. Bush doesn't want bipartisanship and never did---he wants Republicans in office.

The thing for Democrats to do is not see how "Republican" they can be, but to stick to the issues where they have the advantage---running the economy, balancing the budget, fixing Social Security, and dealing with corporate corruption. Even in the foreign policy field, where Republicans currently hold sway, they can insist that the president eschew cowboy diplomacy and work with the international community and deal more strongly with an Arab/Israeli conflict that so powerfully motivates Arabs to distrust America.

Democrats have lacked strong leadership after 9/11 when the American public stepped forward to support the nations' leader. Partisanship opposing the president's policies was mistaken for---and often deliberately portrayed by Republicans as---a lack of patriotism. The Democratic base, which had little to fight for as their leaders played it safe, failed to rally in 2002 in large numbers, though Democrats and their ideas actually did well in state and local races, gaining governorships, especially in Midwestern states crucial to the 2004 presidential election. But even in states like Florida, where Republicans swept the statewide races, voters passed Democratic-inspired initiatives which will require these Republicans to raise taxes in order to reduce class sizes, hire more teachers, and begin free public pre-kindergarten education for all children there.

In the US Senate, where the president liked to blame the Democratic leadership for blocking his programs, Trent Lott now rules again. But the Senate is an unusual body, where having a majority vote doesn't always prevail---unless one has a majority of 60 members, the number required to break a filibuster that any one Senator can launch. President Bush will likely find that the Senate moves almost as slowly under Republican leadership as it did under Tom Daschle. But with no Tom Daschle to blame this time.

There's no honeymoon, either. Now the 2004 presidential election process will begin almost immediately, because it takes almost two years for a candidate to set up an organization and begin campaigning across the country. Bush's strength in this election may dismay some of the current Democratic presidential hopefuls, who may decide that 2008 looks better. But Al Gore is reviving his campaign, and Dick Gephardt's resignation as minority leader is likely to pave the way for his presidential run.

By a narrow margin voters went for the status quo this time. But the economy, Social Security reform, the cost of prescription drugs, and other domestic issues can't go begging while President Bush fights his wars in the Middle East. If they do, those who gained in 2002 will lose in 2004. ***

Photo of the author courtesy of staff files