 By Tom Proebsting June 06, 2006
There are several reasons I believe a Democratic upset will happen this fall. First, Number Two rolls downhill. The latest polls put President George W. Bush at his lowest level since he took office in early 2001, in the lower 30 percentile range. This unpopularity will filter down to his fellow Republicans who are up for election. The president is dragging the conservative politicians down. Now for the reasons our president's popularity is slipping: Where do I start? How about the war in Iraq? More and more Americans are becoming impatient and disheartened with the coming civil war in the former Mesopotamian region. Daily killings are not going down in spite of Vice President Dick Cheney's affirmation last year when he stated the insurgency was "in the last throes." More and more Americans want change and realize that the US cannot be the Policeman of the World. A "Cut & Run" strategy would be most welcome. The new Medicare plan is nothing but confusion for senior citizens who should be looking forward to a relaxing retirement. Instead, they have to pore over reams of government writing to try and figure out the best plan for their own situation. Many of them throw up their hands in frustration, letting their medical futures fall into the hands of fate. How many of our retired folks now have a jaded view of the Bush-style of Republicanism? The fright of President Bush's failed plans to privatize Social Security was enough to give most American citizens a heart attack-whether young or old. We are eternally grateful those plans were shelved, but there is still a bad taste in our mouths over it. Our Social Security is an institution which is better left alone. Last month the House passed a $2.7 trillion federal budget bill increasing military spending, but cutting spending on domestic programs such as education, energy, and national parks. Entitlement programs such as Medicaid and farm subsidies will be heavily trimmed-to the tune of $6.8 billion. The Senate passed their version of a budget last March. The two versions are very different, so the final bill is yet to be passed and signed by the president. However, it appears inevitable that essential services are likely to be cut whatever the final outcome. Voters with special interests will remember Congress' decision this November. Americans have further suffered the indignities of the National Security Agency listening in on our private phone conversations. This was done without the benefit of a warrant. In addition, various phone companies may have given private monthly tabs of our calls to the NSA. Now US citizens know what victims of Peeping Toms feel like. The prisoner abuses, murders, and lack of legal rights at Guantanamo Base, Abu Ghraib and various secretive CIA-run prisons throughout Europe are not a plot from a B-rated movie. They are real horrors instigated during the watch of President George W. Bush. Add to this the "Collateral Damage" (Read "Murder of Iraqi and Afghan Citizens") since the two wars started and you may experience a numbing of the collective psyches of most Americans. The US should be the light and beacon for the rest of the world, not the beast in the pit. Who can forget the federal government's response to Hurricane Katrina last year? The Bush Administration reacted with the speed of molasses flowing in January. Bodies are still being found in New Orleans and the rest of the Gulf Coast. Complete rebuilding may never take place. Compare this to the President's swift response to last year's hurricane in Florida. The Gulf Coast voters will remember this fall. Add to these the cases of super-lobbyist Jack Abrahamoff, former Majority Speaker Tom DeLay, former Senate Majority leader Trent Lott, "Scooter" Libby, and trigger-happy VP Dick Cheney and you have enough scandals to rival Watergate. Also, the rest of the civilized world is frightened and aghast at America and her unique foreign policy goals. They're wondering which third-world nation will be the next "Pre-Emptive Strike" victim. Will it be Iran, Syria, Sudan, Venezuela, North Korea or someone else? Fellow Democrats and liberals,
rest easy. I see a superlative victory this November. I believe
the Democrats will gain back the majority of seats in both the
House and Senate. To borrow a term from Patrick Buchanan, we
will "take back our country."
and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Sitnews.
|