Contrary to what a lot of folks are saying these days, I think the election in November will be a massive defeat for the Democrats (I explain why here).
I hope they do get beat, and not by a little, but by a whole awful lot. I'm hoping for a completely ignominous defeat, the worst defeat they have ever suffered as a Party.
Why? Certainly not Demo-hatred or schadenfreude. I was a Dem or Dem-leaning Independent my whole life - right up until I heard the Dem response to 9-11. But the important point is that I agree with Porphy when he says
I still want a revitalized, sincere liberalism, not because I would become one again myself, but the country is better off with two dynamic visions.
We need a healthy liberal party in the US. The Democrats used to be that, but right now they are neither healthy, nor liberal, nor an American political party - and by that last what I mean is they are not currently interested in what's best for America. To the contrary, the Democrats seem to have morphed into the Blame America First party. Or was that the Hate America First party? I forget.
We currently have one healthy political party in America and one bunch of goofs in tinfoil hats. In a two-party system like ours, this needs to get fixed.
If the Dems receive the thrashing they so richly deserve, then I hope that December will be devoted to soul-searching for the Democrats. In the first few months of 2005 they should devote themselves to a serious Spring Cleaning of the Party. They should kick out all the special-interest groups that are only losing them elections. Then for the remainder of the year I'd like to see them strive to once again become a viable political party for Americans.
I'm somewhat skeptical. It may be that the Democrats have to die as a party, and that we will need to invent a new liberal party in America.