They didn't leave, the party left them.
Posted on 11/08/2006 3:48:50 PM PST by MadIvan
Our correspondent examines how the party masterminded its move to the centre and reined in liberals to seize hostile territories
They wear cowboy boots, chew tobacco, love hunting, hate abortion, want less government spending — and some voted for Ronald Reagan. Now they are headed to Congress as Democrats.
Although the Democrats’ victory was above all an overwhelming repudiation of the conflict in Iraq, it was also built on the back of moderate, often conservative candidates recruited to compete in traditionally Republican territory.
When Congress returns in January, both the House and Senate will see something of an ideological shift, with an influx of freshmen Democrats who, while unified in their opposition to the war, are well to the right of the party’s current caucus on cultural issues.
Their success reflects a resurgence of “Blue Dog” Democrats — socially conservative but generally economic populists — across the Midwest, and a bold new strategy to target the Republican-leaning West and South West — states such as Colorado, Wyoming and New Mexico — as a way of winning back the White House in 2008.
If Jon Tester, the Democrat’s Senate candidate in Montana, wins his race against Conrad Burns — he declared victory last night but votes were still being counted — the chamber will have a Democrat who is an anti-abortion, pro-gun, three-generation farmer with a buzz cut, three missing fingers on his left hand and no big fan of Hillary Clinton.
Jim Webb, the Democrat favoured to win a probable recount in the Virginia Senate race, was Reagan’s Navy Secretary. A social conservative, he hates liberals and likes guns so much he gave one to his son at the age of 8. He champions, as he puts it, “Southern redneck culture”. A decorated Vietnam veteran, he converted to the Democrats only over his opposition to the Iraq war.
Bob Casey, who soundly defeated the Republican Rick Santorum in Pennsylvania’s Senate race, is also anti-abortion. Like many of the new Democrats, he ran a profoundly populist protectionist economic message which attracted many blue-collar “Reagan Democrats” back to the party in the Midwest, where job losses and economic pessimism combined with Iraq to make the region one of the bleakest landscapes for Republicans yesterday.
Heath Shuler, a former quarterback for the Washington Redskins, was once courted by the Republicans as a possible congressional candidate. He is anti-abortion, pro-gun, anti-free trade — and is now the Democrat representative for the North Carolina 11th District.
In Indiana, a state overwhelmingly won by President Bush in 2004, three Republicans in the House of Representatives lost seats. All faced conservative Democrats. One, Brad Ellsworth, a county sheriff, is a social conservative who signed a no-tax-rise pledge during the campaign. Joe Donnelly was another cultural conservative winner in Indiana.
In Colorado, Democrats continued their push into the West with victory in the state’s gubernatorial contest, meaning the party now has a sweep of western governors stretching from Canada to Mexico, through Montana, Wyoming, Colorado and New Mexico.
In Kentucky, John Yarmuth, a former Republican candidate running as a Democrat, beat Anne Northup, a five-term veteran. Democrats also picked up an open seat in Republican Arizona and even unseated a Republican incumbent in Kansas — where Mr Bush won
62 per cent of the vote in 2004.
These new Democrats represent what Rahm Emanuel, the congressman who masterminded its takeover of the House, described as the future of the party, and the key to its presidential hopes. The growing belief of many Democrat strategists is that the South — the party’s base until the 1960s, but now solidly Republican — is beyond their reach, and that the future lies in targeting the Midwest and West with moderate candidates. That theory was bolstered by the defeat in Tennessee of Harold Ford. Despite running as a conservative on nearly every issue — even immigration — the black former congressman could not prevail in the one Southern senate seat in play.
The result was rich vindication for Mr Emanuel and other top Democrats who have spent two years recruiting candidates to make the party competitive in western states they had all but ceded in recent years.
Mr Emanuel and other centrists have told the incoming Democrat leadership — which is far more liberal than the new influx of moderates — that the party’s liberal wing must not dominate the agenda. The new crop of moderates will be anxious to keep the party rooted to the middle ground.
Their arrival on Capitol Hill will be one of the first early tests of the leadership skills of Nancy Pelosi who, as House Speaker, will have to forge a coalition in a party that has profound philosophical disparities.
Ironically, the greatest losses for Republicans came in the North East, the last redoubt of the party’s mainstream moderates. They were routed.
Part of the reason why that whole Blue State/Red State thing is entirely backward.
The left side of the spectrum is Red, the right is Blue. Same thing with the pH scale which goes from acidic Left to Conservative base.
A "blue dog" is a Dem that's more like a Pubbie. But the Dems are "blue"??
Go figger.
Regards, Ivan
Yes, all is not rosy in Libertarian Land today. They did succeed in turning control of Congress to their friends but they lost their two battles over legalizing dope.
This is such nonsense. These guys were recruited for their ability to appear moderate. When push comes to shove, they will follow the money--and that comes from Emily's List, NARAL and the Unions.
So newspapers like cowboys as long as they have a (D) by their name?
Regards, Ivan
Except that it is the current ranking minority members who will take over chairmanships of committees in January. These ranking members are the most left wing members of the DemocRAT delegation in the House. Even if theses freshman congressmen are "blue dog DemocRATS", they will be voting for Nancy Pelosi to be Speaker of the House.
But putting a former Andover cheerleader from Connecticut in cowboy boots is enough, right?
I mean, it worked for Bush.
They didn't leave, the party left them.
Once they've taken their first dollar from Hill's war chest, they all will be as liberal as Ted Kennedy and John Kerry.
Yeah, al-globaloverheating-gore used to be anti-abort too. Give these guys time.
Actually more like gun-shy than pro-gun.
Old Sarah Brady is positively damp tonight thinking of the possibilities
You know that as soon as they get to Washington they're going to be right in there with the Beltway elite, a disgusting, snobbish remote elite which is unable and unwilling to deal with the problems the government faces.
Regards, Ivan
Boob Casey is NOT anti-abortion.....and how anyone on God's green earth knows what he stands for is beyond me...the idiot never opened his mouth through the whole campaign....sorry, but I don't think I can stomach this a**hole for 6 YEARS!!!
So, maybe there's hope among the Blue Dogs too.
Regards, Ivan
Could some of you spare time to go to Kristinn's Gold Star Families in Iraq thread...
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1734425/posts
I'm with you, Ivan. They are frauds who ran to the right of RINOs, bought and paid for by George Soros. (Guess who was Bobby Casey's biggest contributor?) When they get to D.C., they WILL vote just like Nancy Pelosi and Teddy Kennedy tell them to vote. Do you remember that freshman congresswoman from around Philly that the Democrats, one on each side, escorted up the aisle to cast her vote for Clinton's big tax increase? She was reluctant to vote for it because she had promised her constituents that if they elected her, she was a Democrat who would NEVER vote to raise their taxes. Turned her into a one-timer, but she obeyed orders just like all good Democrats do.
So if the majority of this country is anti-abortion, why do you suppose so many pro-choice candidates one, hmm?
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