Comment of the Week

I'm bringing this feature back after the electon flurry - but it ties directly to the results (and yes, I'm hoping to do some non-political blogging through the end of the year). We welcome in Larry, a Reagan Democrat, who has a warning to his once and future party: don't take me for granted. I think this election did indeed begin the win the middle for the Dems, and the trick will be for us to be a political party and not a movement while sitll maintaining strong progressive values. Anyway, here's Larry:

I am "back" to the Democratic party, but they don't necessarily have me permanently. The ideas that animated the conservative revolutions are still alive. It remains sadly true that power corrupts; that corruption swept parties out of power in 1980, 1994, and 2006. I wish the victorious Democrats well and hope they succeed and remain honest.

Comments

[Slappy]

I am curious. What ideas animated these conservative revolutions? Small government? Local government? Less federal spending? Pro-gun? Abortion? Taxes?

Exactly how did the Republicans deliver on these issues? Guns are no longer an issue. Dems gave up on that long time ago. Certainly abortion and taxes. (Although taxes really didn't drop for the vast majority of people as they did for the super rich.) Certainly not on the small government front or local government front. And yet it is corruption that has convinced Larry. (Hi Larry)

What ideas animated the conservative revolution? Have these ideas changed or have the Dems hijacked them from the Republicans? Are these ideas still contrary to the Democrats? If so, is Larry voting against his own beliefs in order to remove some corrupt politicians?

Is this really about corruption as much as about how we are seeing the fruits of this revolution and America is realizing that these ideas do not work? I am sure corruption has much to do with it but most people believe that ALL politicians are corrupt. How does someone who believes in Reagan and Bush jump ship?

I'm glad to have these Reagan Dems back with the Dems but maybe they should realize that it is the failure of the very policies they supported that brought them back. This is a very important point that America needs to come to grips with before we really turn this country around.