Rove's New Minority

Many of the Republicans who lost on Tuesday (other than the corrupt ones who are going to jail soon) were moderates. Jim Leach of Iowa and Lincoln Chafee of Rhode Island pop to mind.

The moderates in the Republican party have been marginalized and ignored every bit as much as the Dems during Bush and Rove's tenure. This is exactly what Goldwater Republicans did to the venerable Nelson Rockefeller. He was booed by the radical right during the 1964 convention.

The result of such a political purge was to push many moderate Republicans into the Democratic Party in '64. I think "the Architect" is unintentionally producing the same effect. The Republicans will become more extreme and will lose the center.

Chafee is already thinking about changing parties. Marginalizing and ignoring smaller segments of his own party will boomerang on Rove. He may be in the midst of producing a "New Minority" instead of a new majority.

Rove should know better. The Democrats did severe damage to themselves by not allowing people like by Bob Casey's father speak at a convention because of his anti-abortion stance. There is nothing like losing power for 12 years to bring politicians to their senses. That is why the Dems backed Bob Casey despite his anti-abortion stance.

No party can produce a majority by establishing innumerable litmus tests a potential candidate must pass in order to get party backing. The Dems lost power trying to do it. Rove is doing it now. He's going to have a very small tent if he keeps it up.

Fun, Fun, Fun 'til Daddy Took the T-Bird Away

Fun, fun, fun was what Boy George, Cheney, Rummy, Rove and the neo-con-artists were having until George the Elder finally stepped in and had his men take control of his son. The midterms forced the old man's hand, though the Baker-Hamilton Commission was already a precursor of Rumsfeld's departure.

It was incredible to hear that in Bob Woodward's "State of Denial" that the Elder "did not want to interfere" in his son's ruination of our armed forces in Iraq and the Republican majority. To paraphrase: He wanted his son to have a chance to do it himself. What in God's name was that all about?

That is what you're supposed to do when a teenager is learning to drive or your kid is trying to win the soap box derby. It's not what you do when he is running the most powerful country in the world into the ground. Wait and see if he could do it himself? What a pitiable excuse for not taking action before this.

Now, with the appointment of Robert Gates as Secretary of Defense, Bush's father has essentially retaken control of the government of the country. Bush the younger and his cohorts Cheney, Rove, and Rumsfeld did not even want the Baker-Hamilton commission formed, let alone to issue a report on Iraq.

To the contrary, yesterday at his press conference, little George sounded like he could hardly wait for the Baker-Hamilton report to save him from further humiliation. There is hope now that, between Daddy and the Democrats, the US will salvage something out of Iraq and start rebuilding badly strained relations with allies.

One thing is for sure. Little George won't really be at the wheel anymore. Daddy took the keys away last weekend. Now Boy George will just be pretending to drive the T-Bird while sitting still in his driveway.

Oh My God! I'm a Minority!

How could this happen in America to a white, male or female, baby boomer? I've never been a minority in my whole life. However, my wife and I did something many years ago that has recently come back to haunt us and condemned us to minority status. We got married.

According to a New York Times story, dated October 15, 2006, as a married couple we are in a relationship that for the first time in the history of the country is in the minority. How could we know back then? We were so young!

The Times story reports that living alone, or with other unmarrieds, has overtaken married couples in the majority of households in the U.S. This is according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

It makes us very uncomfortable, considering America's past history of treating minorities with less than TLC. Worst of all it might make us a target of Karl Rove and other Republican strategists in the next election cycle.

Everyone knows that Rove, and his Republican predecessors, have made political hay bashing minorities, from blacks, to feminists, and most recently gays. They are also good at identifying a new minority like ours and quickly adapting their political strategy to take advantage of it for political gain.

Thank heavens the news of our minority status comes too late to be used as cannon fodder in the upcoming mid-term elections. But what about in election year 2008? I can see the Republican "attack ads" coming in the run-up to '08 election.

If I, my wife, or other married progressives run for office we'd best be prepared for the Republican onslaught of negative advertising. There's nothing like scapegoating a minority to hustle up a bushel full votes from the Republican base.

Here's what I fear Republican negative advertising against a married liberal would look like:

Voiceover:
"Vote Republican, vote for Joe Right Wingnut this fall. He's the father of three and has been happily divorced twice, just like Newt Gingrich. Joe is presently shacking up with his latest girlfriend.

He is just an average American like most of us. (Insert attractive color film of candidate
Wingnut, his housemate and three children, shot during his visitation weekend). He will lower your taxes by reinstating the marriage penalty on those shameless married couples who flout their relationships in public by wearing wedding rings."

(Switch to an unflattering, grainy black and white picture of the married Democratic candidate, looking out of the side of his eyes, making the candidate look as though he just stole a voter's wallet.)

Voiceover:
"This is Mr. Wingnut's opponent, (insert name). He (or she) wants to cut and run from Iran as well as Iraq. He wants to impose estate and gift taxes on Paris Hilton. If you can believe it, he actually expects business to live up to their pension obligations, and wants to make healthcare available to everyone, even poor children.

(Voice full of ridicule) But what would you expect, from a married person?

Vote Republican this fall. Vote Wingnut. Stop the "married minority" from running and ruining your life."

(Switch back to Wingnut, housemate, and kids, now playing with cute dog on lush green grass in front of a house that he does not own.)

"I'm Joe Wingnut and I approved this ad because my Republican consultant told me to."

Wow! It never occurred to me that those Republicans would smear the opposition party's candidates on a relationship status they used to praise. Until I became a minority. Now our "alternative lifestyle" has my wife and I very worried.