ESR | June 13, 2005 | Mainstream Dean

Mainstream Dean

By Dustin Hawkins
web posted June 13, 2005

Howard Dean is doing such a bang-up job as Chairman of the Democratic Party that many are convinced he is an operative of Karl Rove. Not since the days of the Carter Administration has any single Democrat made Republicans look so impressive. But when he isn't claiming that George W. Bush had beforehand knowledge of the 9/11 attacks, or attacking members of the military as brutal thugs, or stating that some 61 million moronic Bush voters "haven't worked an honest day in their life," Dean is trying to convince America that he and his liberal elitist friends represent Mainstream America.

The quickest assault that Democrats instigate against any candidate, whether political opposition or a judicial nomination, is that said candidate is "out of the mainstream." Defining what this means exactly is hard to tell. Inasmuch as Republicans have control of the Presidency, the House, the Senate, and control a majority of Governorships and State Assemblies, it is difficult to imagine that Republicans have absolutely nothing in common with the American public. Karl Rove isn't that good.

When Bush ran for President he touted himself as a "Compassionate Conservative." Neither Gore nor Kerry called themselves "Compassionate Liberals." Just like Bill Clinton had done, liberal Democrats tried to prove how conservative they really were and how much they actually love the military, guns, and going to church. And while Republican Presidential hopefuls are battling it out to prove just how conservative they are, Hillary Clinton is trying to prove how liberal she isn't. One of these groups of people sounds like they aren't afraid of the backlash of normal Americans. The other group is probably crafting wild conspiracy theories onstage at a gathering of Hollywood snobs and MoveOn.org nutcases, speaking of mainstream.

In fact, liberals survive on not appealing to the mainstream at all. Democrats go after voters who cast ballots in large numbers over one single overriding issue. They can pretty much lock up certain segments of the population by outright pandering. By supporting issues not in the mainstream, all while trying to convince these people that Republicans really, really hate them, the Democrats are able to lock up their most important constituencies. That is to say: blacks, gays, criminals, lawyers, teachers, and welfare addicts. Outside of one or two issues, most of these people have very little in common. Indeed, outside of one or two issues, most of these people are pretty much Republicans.

Liberals blame their failures in elections on being unable to easily connect with the American public. Conservatives, they say, can do this because their ideas are simplistic and people can easily understand and relate to their messages. It's amazing! Conservatives can say they support the military, favor lowering taxes, oppose abortion, fight for gun rights and still get elected, though somehow not be in the mainstream. This leaves the Democrats having to: claim to support the troops while calling them moronic derelicts; pretend to support lower taxation while proposing an absolute welfare state; declare to be "personally pro-life" while allowing the brains of a "cluster of cells" be sucked out by a vacuum; and walk around with a rifle without knowing where the safety is.

Perhaps the liberal elitists and Mainstream Dean are right. Perhaps Republicans do have simplistic messages that don't require constant day-to-day reshuffling. Perhaps Democrats are in trouble when it comes to finding their message because, well, they do not have one. And perhaps this is why the Democrats can't connect, relate, or win elections. Maybe this is why they do not represent Mainstream America, despite all claims that they do. Keep up the good work Chariman Dean, 2006 is just around the corner.