Election protest shows why Dems don't count

Chicago Sun Times ^ | January 9, 2005 | Mark Steyn

[finnigan2]

Thought for the day, from a gloomy party member on the Democratic Underground Web site: ''Reality sucks. That's the problem. We want another reality.''

Well, they're doing a grand job of creating their alternative universe. At midday Thursday, as George W. Bush was about to be confirmed formally as the winner of the presidential election, the Rev. Jesse Jackson, described by Agence France-Presse as the ''Democratic former presidential hopeful,'' led 400 other Democrats in a protest outside Congress. Presidential-wise, they may be former but they're still hopeful. So they were wearing orange, the color of the election protesters in Ukraine, who overturned their own stolen election with an ''orange revolution.''

Now, on the one hand it's very brave for the Rhymin' Reverend to lead an orange protest. There is no rhyme for the word ''orange.'' Irving Berlin tried and the best he could manage was ''door-hinge,'' which just about works in certain boroughs of New York but would make an unreliable jingle for the Rhymin' Rev to bellow at Bush from outside the White House:

''We're here, we're orange

We're pushing at your door-hinge . . .''

On the other hand, what's he really saying? That Americans are in the same situation as Ukrainians? That their election was stolen? In Ukraine, the one side poisoned the other side's candidate. His face broke out and his hair turned gray. John Kerry's hair is fabulous and for much of the campaign his glowing moisturized skin looked like an orange revolution all by itself. He was obviously worried about being poisoned, which is why he nibbled so tentatively during his pretend lunch stop at Wendy's and only took a couple of sips when he was doing his impression of a regular guy drinking beer at that sports bar in Ohio. But he managed to dodge that bullet and Jesse Jackson never got a chance to channel Danny Kaye: The pellet with the poison's in the Brahmin with the Botox.

But I'm beginning to wonder if Karl Rove didn't manage to slip something into the whine cellar at Democratic headquarters. It beggars belief that Rev. Jesse on the steps of Congress, and the Congressional Black Caucus in the House, and Barbara Boxer in the Senate would start the new term with yet another reprise of the same old song from the last four years -- that Bush, the World's Biggest Moron, somehow managed to steal another election. That makes three in a row. The GOP's obviously getting better at it.

As usual, the media did their best to string along with the Democrats' alternative reality. For the most part, the press now fulfill the same function for the party that kindly nurses do at the madhouse; if the guy thinks he's Napoleon, just smile affably and ask him how Waterloo's going. So Alan Fram of the Associated Press reported with a straight face that Sen. Boxer, Congressman Conyers and the other protesting Democrats ''hoped the showdown would underscore the problems such as missing voting machines and unusually long lines that plagued some Ohio districts, many in minority neighborhoods.''

I think not. What it underscores is that the Democrats are losers. Speaking as a foreigner -- which I believe entitles me to vote in up to three California congressional districts -- I've voted on paper ballots all my life and reckon all these American innovations -- levers, punch cards, touch screen -- are a lot of flim-flam. I would be all in favor of letting the head of Bangladesh's electoral commission design a uniform federal ballot for U.S. elections. But that's not the issue here. What happens on Election Day is that the Democrats lose and then decide it was because of ''unusually long lines'' in ''minority neighborhoods.'' What ''minority neighborhoods'' means is electoral districts run by Democrats. In Ohio in 2004 as in Florida in 2000, the ''problems'' all occur in counties where the Dems run the system. Sometimes, as in King County in Washington, they get lucky and find sufficient votes from the ''disenfranchised'' accidentally filed in the icebox at Democratic headquarters. But in Ohio, Bush managed to win not just beyond the margin of error but beyond the margin of lawyer. If there'd been anything to sue and resue and re-resue over, you can bet those 5,000 shysters the Kerry campaign flew in would be doing it. Instead, Boxer and Conyers & Co. are using a kind of parliamentary privilege to taint Bush's victory without even the flimsiest pretext.

And that's sure to work, isn't it? Another two years of Tom Daschle obstructionism and Michael Moore paranoia. You don't need to run a focus group to know that's the formula that will sweep Dems into office on Election Day 2006, right?

A Democrat chum said to me on Thursday, oh, well, they're just doing this to toss a bone to the base. But they're running out of bones to toss, and the base needs a reality check, not more pandering. One reason why the party has shriveled away to Greater New England plus the ''minority neighborhoods'' of a few cities is that it's all fringe, and no mainstream. The base is out of control; the kooks still holding their post-election vigil outside one of John Kerry's mansions sound no loopier than the big-time senators. The party has no urge to move on from moveon.org.

I say all this -- takes out onion and starts to peel -- more in sorrow than in anger. Two plausible parties are necessary for a functioning democracy, especially in war, especially in a long war which will inevitably have to be fought by presidents both Republican and Democrat. The Dems might get lucky. The GOP might nominate some freaky goofball in '08, and the other fellow will win by default. But, as the 2004 field reminded us, this isn't a party exactly brimming with talent and fresh faces. And, as for ideas, when was the last time you heard a fresh policy from a Democrat? The serious arguments about war, social security, immigration and pretty much everything else are all within factions of the right. The Democrats' only contribution is to insist that someone in Halliburton has figured out a way to get the touch-screen voting machines to make Democrats' votes vanish. Democrats' votes are vanishing because Democrat voters are vanishing because Democrat intellectual energy has all but vanished. Or as Republican Congresswoman Deborah Pryce summed up Thursday's Boxer rebellion: ''Their objection is a front for their lack of ideas.''

[garbanzo]

Two plausible parties are necessary for a functioning democracy, especially in war, especially in a long war which will inevitably have to be fought by presidents both Republican and Democrat... And, as for ideas, when was the last time you heard a fresh policy from a Democrat? The serious arguments about war, social security, immigration and pretty much everything else are all within factions of the right. The Democrats' only contribution is to insist that someone in Halliburton has figured out a way to get the touch-screen voting machines to make Democrats' votes vanish. Democrats' votes are vanishing because Democrat voters are vanishing because Democrat intellectual energy has all but vanished. Or as Republican Congresswoman Deborah Pryce summed up Thursday's Boxer rebellion: ''Their objection is a front for their lack of ideas.''

An absolutely key paragraph. The Democratic Party and 20th Century liberalism is completely spent. All of the good ideas of 20th Century liberalism have been adopted and gone mainstream. All the bad ideas have been rejected. There is nothing left for them to run on and little hope of reform. My prediction would be that the Democratic party essentially stops being a national party by the middle of the next decade and that the Republican party splits.

[Ditter]

Great article with some great lines to remember! he he

[mewzilla]

But I'm beginning to wonder if Karl Rove didn't manage to slip something into the whine cellar at Democratic headquarters.

Whine cellar!! ROTF!!

[Republican Red]

Oh boy, the birth of a new tagline!

[bert]

Leftist Black America on parade this week showed itsself to be a living joke.

The players have lost thier roles and are being relegated to a filing cabinet for old scripts.

[Jim Noble]

Is Mark Steyn the greatest, OR WHAT???

[trisham]

Democrats' votes are vanishing because Democrat voters are vanishing because Democrat intellectual energy has all but vanished. Or as Republican Congresswoman Deborah Pryce summed up Thursday's Boxer rebellion: ''Their objection is a front for their lack of ideas.''

******************

Excellent article. Thanks for posting.

[flitton]

Cooming soon, should be a good one.

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0895260786/ref=pd_sim_b_2/002-8946753-8150400?%5Fencoding=UTF8&v=glance

[EllaMinnow]

I had just finished reading this DU thread:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=203x271528

when I came upon the Steyn column. Steyn is being too kind!

[ChadGore]

Great line:
But in Ohio, Bush managed to win not just beyond the margin of error but beyond the margin of lawyer.

[ChadGore]

Please don't link to "liberaldrivel.blah"

[shubi]

"Bush, the World's Biggest Moron"


I have been amused to consider how stupid the Rats are to continue to lose to the world's biggest moron.

[SouthTexas]

So they were wearing orange

Quite appropriate, the residents of our county jail wear orange.

[Ditter]

LOL I just read that one at DU. What is wrong with those people? I seriously wonder if posters like that one are really freepers. If they are, then they can easily suck dummies into agreeing with them. Silly dummies. Its not like the election was close. The precincts where they are saying fraud occurred are heavily democrat, controlled by democrats. I BELIEVE they are silly dummies.

[shubi]

"It's not that Democrats don't count, it's that they CAN'T count."

Doug Giles explains why Rats can't count:
http://www.townhall.com/columnists/douggiles/dg20050108.shtml

Its the schools the Rats have created that are destroying them. Sort of poetiec justice, don't you think? (except Rats don't study poetry all that much, just Vietnam anti-war slogans)

[Caipirabob]

I just find it all hilarious. It just can't be helping the moral of the rats to continually claim that Bush is a moron, and yet he manages to outwit them time and time again.

The rats used to be quite successful. One of their more stellar examples of implementing the 10 planks of Communism was the effort to degrade and destroy public education as an institution so that all it could produce was an individual ignorant of their rights and fully indoctrinated towards rat-oriented beliefs. The Communists called them "useful idiots".

The problem is that the "useful idiots" inevitably became Democrats. The next problem is that these "useful idiots" proved to be more "idiot" than "useful". They simply overwhelmed the base and now they drive the train carrying the rats agenda. As with any pending train wreck, it's hard to tear your eyes away from it.

The train-wreck that the Democrat party has become is altogether well deserved, spectacular and can't come soon enough.

As for myself, I'm sitting back and enjoying some popcorn.

[poindexter]

" We're pushing at your door-hinge . . full of used porridge...."

Hmmmmm.....better leave this to the pros! ;-)

[Monti Cello]

What a great headline. That's gonna piss off the libs so much that they have to read it.

[Arrowhead1952]

So Alan Fram of the Associated Press reported with a straight face that Sen. Boxer, Congressman Conyers and the other protesting Democrats ''hoped the showdown would underscore the problems such as missing voting machines and unusually long lines that plagued some Ohio districts, many in minority neighborhoods.''

I think not. What it underscores is that the Democrats are losers.

.......Another two years of Tom Daschle obstructionism and Michael Moore paranoia. You don't need to run a focus group to know that's the formula that will sweep Dems into office on Election Day 2006, right?

.....And, as for ideas, when was the last time you heard a fresh policy from a Democrat?

This is just great. The whiny left and their candidates have gone so far left, they just don't get it. The last sentence is so true. "When WAS the last time you heard a fresh policy from a democrat?" As Rush says, "It's from the same old, worn out, democrat playbook."

Chirp
Chirp
Chirp
Chirp
Chirp
Chirp

I din't hear one lately either.

[RobFromGa]

As usual, the media did their best to string along with the Democrats' alternative reality. For the most part, the press now fulfill the same function for the party that kindly nurses do at the madhouse; if the guy thinks he's Napoleon, just smile affably and ask him how Waterloo's going.

If the media (or the shareholders) can ever be turned away from the Dark Side, the Liberals are completely toast. The leftist media is still good for ten points in the middle with the uninformed and politically disinterested.