Democratic whining is politics of puny

Brian Smith
The Right Angle

While name recognition is still a problem with all the Democrat candidates (John Edwards probably couldn't get a table at a Waffle House), the field of eventual losers has successfully steered the coming presidential election to two issues: national security and the economy.

Good in theory but really bad for Democrats in reality. The economy is growing at a rate not seen since (surprise!) Reagan. Strike one for Democrats. There has not been a major terrorist attack on American soil since Sept. 11, 2001. Strike two. And bearing down on the Democrats like a 100-mile-per-hour fastball is Iraq.

Imagine a scenario where the finest fighting force in the world, the U.S. military, begins to get the insurrections in Iraq under control. Imagine handing over sovereignty to the Iraqi people as early as next summer. Imagine thousands of troops coming home every week beginning right after a Democrat is nominated. This is not an unrealistic situation; some indications show there's a good chance it will happen Σ strike three. They're out.

Democrats are running against the past. They're running against a recession that is over, a war that is over and an "occupation" that could be winding down just when the campaign is heating up. And they say Conservatives are backward looking!

First, the economy. The Department of Commerce has reported that the economy is growing at an exponential rate. As the third round of Bush tax cuts goes into effect, the economy is taking off. Not since another tax cutter was in office in 1984 has growth looked so promising.

Unemployment claims are falling, consumer confidence is rising and long-term financial forecasts are constantly changing to keep up with the good-looking numbers. This all makes statements like, "George W. Bush has been the most fiscally irresponsible president in the history of the United States of America," recently uttered by presidential candidate Joe Lieberman, seem sort of foolish.

In fact, all the Democrats are starting to look foolish on this issue. Every single candidate has proposed either partially or totally eliminating the Bush tax cuts, which many analysts agree is the main factor in the current economic recovery.

Democrats are running against a non-existent recession, which will certainly be over by Election Day. President Bush will be presiding over a robust economy, and Democrats will be clamoring for tax hikes.

The other major issue in the coming election will be national security. Two years ago, Republicans were able to thump Democrats when they made national security the No. 1 issue. With the economy off the table, national security is all that is left.

Iraq looms large on the political horizon, and voters will be watching closely on how the situation is handled by the president in the coming months. The possibility of less violence, Iraqi sovereignty and many troops coming home is a real one.

Candidate Howard Dean rose to prominence completely opposing the war with Iraq. If President Bush succeeds in stabilizing Iraq, what exactly will Dean be running against? The fact that the people of Iraq are free? The fact that Iraq can no longer sponsor terrorists? The fact that Saddam Hussein is no longer in power? Like the economy, Dean and the rest will have nothing to run against but the past.

How can Democrats credibly attack President Bush's foreign policy when Iraq is free, Hussein is gone, terrorists are on the run and have been unable to attack America since Sept. 11? With the economy on the rise and the problems in Iraq on the decline, Democrats are left only with their far-left agendas and their vehement hatred for President Bush, a strategy Republican strategist Mary Matalin called "the politics of puny" recently on NBC's "Meet the Press." It will not be enough to win the election for Democrats.

It's becoming clear that the Republican Party is the party of new ideas while the Democrats are using their same playbook from 50 years ago. President Bush has rescued the economy from the Clinton recession, decimated al-Qaeda, overthrown a dictator, liberated the people of Iraq and recently added a prescription drug plan to Medicare (supported by the AARP, historically supporters of Democrats).

The Democratic response? Moan about the job Bush is doing while having no real plans of their own. They seem content to rip the president and just assume his ideas will not work. The mantra of the Democratic Party since Bush took office is unilateral opposition to everything he has proposed. Now that Bush's proposals on the economy, national security, Iraq and, coming soon, Medicare are working, what are they left with?

The answer is nothing but the politics of puny.

Right Angle appears every Monday. Brian is a law student. His views do not necessarily reflect those of the Daily Egyptian.

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