Why Did The Democrats Lose?

NA | Yooper

[PogySailor]

My top 5, FWIW:

1. Disregard for the law in NJ
2. The Wellstone "memorial" turned Pep Rally
3. North Korea admitting they have nuke program within days of Mr. Peanut getting the Nobel Peace Prize. Showed people the dangers of listening to the Democrats on foreign policy.
4. The Bagdad three.
5. Terry McAwful/Bill & Hillary Clinton/Al Gore/Tom Daschle

[breakem]

If I could just add:

Bill Clinton

Hillary Clinton

Jesse Jackson

Senator Dasshole

Alec Baldwin, Barbara, and the others who went abroad and spoke out about how much they hate Bush. The public is fed up with these people. They just don't get it. It's national security time stupid, shut up.

[The KG9 Kid]

"... Where can I learn more about this?"

From the FreeRepublic Archives:

Here comes the US cavalry, 2001-style

[jslade]

The straw that broke the voters back.

Boy, have you got that right. These people are pond scum!

[uncbob]

Just to show how out of touch these arrogant democrats are
They had no idea that farce in Minnesota would turn people off.

They are absolutely shocked at the result

[ChadGore]

How bad was the loss ?

2002
Today's democrat party is disconnected from leadership power at every level of government.

1) The democrat party doesn't have the White House.(1R-0d)
2) The democrat party lacks a majority in the Senate.(51R-48d-1)
3) The democrat party lacks a majority in the House of Representatives.(226R-209d)
4) The democrat party lacks a majority of Governors seat across the 50 states.(25R-25d)
5) The democrat party lacks a majority of State Houses across all 50 states. (25R-22d)

Today's democrat party doesn't enjoy majority leadership at either the state or federal level.

A) The same can be said of the green party.
B) The same can be said of the socialist party.
C) The same can be said of the communist party.

[Shooter 2.5]

In case any DU dems are reading:

The dems lost because they aren't far left enough. They didn't use hillary and bill enough. They didn't have Jimmy Carter explain his solution for the ecomomy. They didn't unveil their plans to ban all guns and higher taxes.

Yeah, that's the ticket.

[Excuse_My_Bellicosity]

Exactly right. We're in a war for the survival of our country and all the DemonRats want to do is spin it into mean-spiritedness and hate towards innocent people. They believe it, they marketed it, and people saw them for the disgusting power opportunists that they are (a lot of Demo voters had to vote the other way for this to happen).

There is an appropriate time for kind compassionate action. There is a time for harsh ruthless action. We have evil enemies in the world, and now is the time for harsh ruthless action toward them. We have to protect our country and our citizens and the DemoRats have completely lost sight of that mission.

[Arpege92]

Well, lets see now....hmmm....oh I know.....It is not very polite for ex-presidents to travel the world bashing this country and current President. Also, could it be that most people could care less how Babs feels about Republicans? I personally think the "DUMBOCRATS" did a sorry job in protecting this country against terrorists!

[Wolfstar]

No election turns on just one thing. But there can be no question the terrorist attacks on 9/11/01, the nearly simultaneous anthrax attacks, continued threats from radical Islamists, and the recent sniper attacks all had an effect on how people voted this year. Another factor was President Bush's forceful, even courageous handling of foreign policy and national security since the 9/11 attacks. He has focused like a laser beam on protecting the American people and preventing another attack. True, turning this giant ship of state around is no easy task and there is still so much to do on immigration, inter-agency coordination, intelligence, and so on. But the president has made great strides in just over one year.

[truth_seeker]

In political terms, it was a BIG victory for Republicans.

It is the result of about a 6 to 7 percent shift, towards the Republicans, by the voters. That means that about 93 to 94 people out of one hundred voted the same, as before.

So when we talk about a BIG shift of 6 to 7 people, out of one hundred, we are talking about the factors which CHANGED the way they vote.

In that perspective, I would say the major factor was 9/11/01 which is what Gephardt says, too.

It is their satisfaction with the way Bush has governed in the aftermath of 9/11/01, and a belief that Republicans are better to trust, with national security. Bush makes these swing voters feel SAFE.

I think it has little to do with the Clintons, Gore, Daschle, etc. The Wellstone funeral "rally" may have stirred up Republicans, in MN.

[Chuck N]

And might I add, the democrats care about nothing except to tax working people into oblivion and use the collected money to build powerful constituencies of greedy "gimme-mine" classes who would rather take other peoples money than work for a living.

Another reason the democrats lost is the fact they are amoral and immoral. Anything goes. They don't stand for anything. Democrats are just like their ancestors, THE PAGANS.

And the democrats worship on one thing...only one thing is sacred to a democrat...ABORTION. It's their golden calf, they worship abortion.

And that makes most people sick. And that's why they lost.

[truth_seeker]

"Someone I debate at work, a hardcore liberal, said I influenced him and his wife to vote for Talent by hammering on the corruption that dems use as policy."

Good work. Grassroots politics. One person, persuading another. Useful debate results in a conversion, by persuasion.

[pfflier]

They went to Iraq and showed sympathy and support for Saddam Hussein while directly criticizing President Bush. No one likes a traitor.

[RANDomScout]

These people are pond scum!

I beg to differ! Pond scum has no power to confiscate my hard earned dollars or means of self-defense. Pond scum won't make my property or business worthless because of unreasonable regulation. When pond scum becomes a problem, I can scoop it up and recycle it into compost (see how 'green' I am ;} ). All in all, I'd take pond scum over some of these 'leaders' of our nation anyday.

[Zebra]

To your most excellent list, I add:

The 'War On Terror':

1. Sending three Democratic US Senators to Iraq to kiss Saddam's ass. Bad idea, especially a month before the election. It's un-American, and cost the Democrats plenty.

1A. Once it became apparent that the voting majority was repelled by this outrage, criticism of the party leadership was muted, reinforcing the perception that these traitorous loons represented the views of the Democrats.

2. America's memory of 3000+ people killed by terrorists on worldwide TV is still fresh in their minds. When we retaliate against their leaders with missile-launching Predator drones, it's a bad idea to insist that they should have had defense lawyers and a jury of their peers. Sorry Liberals, but out there in the 'War On Terror' due process is a laser-guided missile.

2A. Many Americans with long memories (which grew longer after 9-11) recall Joe Biden's attack on the President about 10 weeks after 9-11; once again, criticism of the party leadership was muted, reinforcing the perception that this plagiarizing dunce represented the views of the Democrats.

3. Hundreds of thousands of US troops weren't killed in Afghanistan fighting the 'deadly and undefeated Mujahedin' who supposedly were the worlds fiercest warriors that lived in caves and ate dirt for supper. In fact, they got eaten alive by flying robot bombs and 40-year old US B-52s. The Green Berets even conquered them in a cavalry charge, which is the Mujaheddin's own game. Utter humiliation for the Taliban.

3B. Coupled with the results in the Gulf War, the contrast of the embarrassment in Mogadishu and pathetic responses to the first World Trade Center bombing, the USS Cole, the bombed embassies, etc., reminded Americans of who was better prepared to use America's might effectively to punish our enemies. Bonus pain for Dems: the revelations of the North Korean double cross. Double bonus pain: the Moscow theatre horror reminded all of us that these crazies are still out there and mean business. Final nail in the "it's the economy, stupid" coffin: John Williams was determined to be John Muhammad.

5. Instructing former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle to obstruct the wildly-popular president (77% approval as of November 6th, 2002) at every turn in the War On Terror: Bad idea.

5A. Supporting or failing to muzzle Al Gore in his "trial balloon" attacks on the President's position on Iraq, especially the debacle in San Francisco; once again, criticism of the party leadership was muted, reinforcing the perception that this tin-eared sore loser represented the views of the Democrats.

The War at Home:

7.5. While the Torricelli gambit worked to disgrace the state of New Jersey and reward it with two ethically-challenged and powerless members of the minority (who will deliver NOTHING for the Garden State), it struck the flyover citizens as a third world move. It reinforced the rapidly-gaining-in-acceptance notion that the Democratic Party is the party of lawsuits and judicial challenge to elections and processes. Brought up the worst memories of the Florida and the Gore-that-wouldn't-go-away. Energized the conservative base and alienated a lot of independents.

Poor Taste:

9. A funeral for a Democratic US Senator that died with his family in a tragic plane crash is not an occasion to invite 10,000 U of Minn college students and ply them with free beer. It's not a place for Bill Clinton to sign the thighs of college coeds with a felt-tip pen, to blow horns, drop confetti, or release balloons. It's not a campaign stop. It should look like a memorial service. When eight people die, it's not the time to play Fleetwood Mac's 'Don't Stop Thinkin' About Tomorrow'. Americans don't like it, and were shocked to consider that the Liberals would have acted the same way even if Paul Wellstone's body would have been in the same room. By contrast, Norm Coleman's acceptance speech looked more like a fitting memorial to Paul Wellstone. Admit it, you Liberals aren't from this world, are you? Wellstone's 'memorial service', covered by the network TV cameras, was a very bad idea.

9A. I hope some talented pollster will somehow be able to measure the national effect of this tawdry embarrassment and how it motivated otherwise marginal or undecided voters (or unlikely voters) to vote GOP. Most decent people reflexively gagged at the spectacle; upon recovering, I am sure that many wondered how the Democrat leadership could have allowed and participated in it. Indelible image: Governor Ventura walking out, his wife in tears.

10. 'Building The Bridge To The Twenty-First Century' should not include washed-up old has-beens like Walter Mondale who's been wearing sweaters that smell like mothballs for twenty years. Mondale is the man that tried with all his might to kill the NASA Apollo program in the mid-1960s after three brave men died in an accident. With pussies like him in charge, America would never have gone to the Moon. That's the man Democrats had in mind for leading America into the 21st Century? Fitting and expected coming from Liberals, but a very bad idea.

10A. The Mondale move was just plain stupid, and it became a national focus (transcended the Minnesota Senate race). It was probably made more so by the vulgarity of the Wellstone "fune-rally", but it reminded voters of some of the worst moments of the liberal plank of the party. His nastiness in the debate with Coleman reinforced the growing perception that the party of Clinton is mean. I was reminded of the disrespectful tone of Lloyd Bentsen in the Quayle debate, immediately preceding the slaughter of the Dukakis-Bentsen ticket. See 15, below, for the real bad news.

11. On the subject of failed politicians, it's time to tell the Democrats that Bill Clinton is the kiss of death. Every candidate he's flown in to campaign for since the year 2000 loses in a landslide. Face it Dems, the Clinton Era is over. Most Americans think 'Clinton' and want to barf. Don't believe me? Look at the scoreboard. Having Clinton campaign for you is a bad idea.

11A. He was and is a horror of a person, and he has dirtied everyone in his party. The Clinton taint will not wash off for a generation, at least, and when history produces the record of Bill Clinton, it will make the Warren G. Harding and Richard Nixon scandals and character flaws look innocent and mild by comparison (sooner or later, some of these people are going to tell all). Tuesday night was the beginning of the real end of the Clintonistas, and I predict a rapid distancing of the people from Hillary as a national figure. Bush has become emblematic of class and the importance of grace and character, and the picture of the Clintons at the Wellstone thing capture the qualities that repel Americans today. I am not sure who the Dems will turn to in 2008 (2004 is now off), but it will not be anyone associated with Democrats when the Clintons were in power.

12. Attack campaigning is a loser idea, especially when your candidate is dirtier than their opponent to begin with. There's a special place in Hell for those who accuse their enemies of their own worst crimes. Attack campaigning is a bad idea.

12A. I diagree with this point. It works, especially to keep people from going to vote. I personally find it distasteful, but it is proven effective.

The Future:

13. Turning further politically Left is a recipe for disaster. Ignoring my kind advice is a bad idea.

13A. Nancy Pelosi--her ascension assures further gains for the GOP in 2004.

14. Believing George W. Bush to be an idiot dunce who cheated his way into the White House with the help of his daddy's money is self-prescribed BS that Democrats should have gotten over before New Years Day 2001. He's outsmarted every single Democrat in the nation fair and square, as well as most pundits. Running a campaign as the 'Anti-Bush' is a bad idea.at your own peril.

14A. One of the most understood messages of this election. It underscores the impotence of the Dems and their lack of ideas. It also shows the lack of qualification of someone like Terry McAuliffe to lead the Democratic Party. 15. The graciousness with which the GOP winners accepted the will of the people was in stark contrast to the gracelessness of the Clintonites at the Wellstone circus and the mean-spirited tone of Terry McAuliffe, James Carville and Paul Begala. This will be remembered, especially in contrast to the dishonor of Sore-Loserman in 2000 and the vandalism of the White House by the Clinton staffers. 16. A shift back to the sovereignty of America and the impulse for unilateralism when called for is apparent with GWB's near rejection of the UN in the face of its hypocrisy over Iraq. The Democratic impulse is to resist this, and this will be an ongoing source of problems for the Democrats.

[Johnny Shear]

Thank you. That's great!

[ladyinred]

I really think that it was their usual politics of personal destruction. They were all attacking Bush, claiming he didn't win the election, blah, blah, blah, and he wanted to take the old people's SS, you know, same old lies. The American people are sick of this and saw the Democrats as obstructionists. I think they like the new tone of President Bush to be honest.