Help Them Take Their Party Back

The current meme on Howard Dean (by opponents) is that, by playing to the Democratic base he can't win, and thus must tack to the center (or be replaced by some Lieberman who has already done that).

Our response has always been to call that tactic "Bush-Lite." That should win the nomination. But the goal is to win next November.

The critics are right about one thing. To win next November we need some of the other side's voters to switch. But Dean (unlike the other Democrats) doesn't need to change his stand on any issues to do this. There are, in fact, three large groups of Republicans who are growing increasingly angry with Bush, who quietly agree with Dean on important issues, and who would very much like to Take Their Own Party Back from its extremists.

  • Deficit Hawks are angry over Bushs' cut-and-spend policies. For many the Medicare bill was the last straw. They want their party back from Grover Norquist and his "starve-the-beast" ideology.
  • Military families see Iraq as a bad tactic. They see Al Qaeda gaining support, see liberation becoming occupation, and see America's military losing readiness. They want their country back from Paul Wolfowitz' "neo-con" ideology.
  • Libertarians worry about both the Patriot Act and the Christian social agenda. They may care about guns, but not God and gays. They want their party back from Pat Robertson and his "Christian Coalition" ideology.

Dean has the right message and the right record for all these Republicans. He has stood up to liberals in Vermont and balanced budgets. He wants to "de-Americanize" the Iraqi conflict, concentrate on Afghanistan and Arabia, and re-build American readiness. He wants the state to stop making religious choices, or at least give those questions back to the states.

These stands are more Republican than those of George Bush. Millions of Republicans are quietly seething over the sell-out of their principles to small groups of ideologues. They want their party back.

All we must do, over the next 11 months, is convince a minority of them that a loss to Dean would not be a disaster, because Dean is on their side concerning issues important to them. Each active Republican who switches counts twice, because it's a vote for us and one less vote for them.

Remember. They want their party back. And it's their country too. That, not "Bush-Lite," is the path to victory.

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