Bush's lunch menu today with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi: he's eating crow -- lots and lots of crow.
Posted by Christopher at November 9, 2006 08:31 AMAnd humble pie for dessert.
Hope he doesn't choke on it.
Posted by snark at November 9, 2006 08:45 AMI read Arianna Huffington saying the Democratic (DLC) centrists are wrong in claiming the moderate "middle" should be claimed and appeased by Tuesday's victory. She thinks Murtha should be the Majority Leader in the House and Iraq was the issue that should define the Dems in their execution of power in Congress. Here is something I would ordinarily be loathe to do--consider what Rush Limbaugh is saying right now:
quote
There hasn't been any ideology in the Republican Party, any conservatism, for at least two to maybe four years. You could argue Bush was more of an ideologue in the presidential campaign of '04, but in looking at what happened yesterday, it wasn't conservatism that lost. Conservatism won when it ran as a Democrat. It won in a number of places. Republicanism lost. RINO Republicans, country club blue-blood Republicans, this nonpartisan Republican identity, that's what went down in flames. I've always believed that those of us who are conservative believe in the ideology. We believe it wins. We believe it's best for the country. We believe it's best for the people. We believe it's ultimately compassionate, and it has not been present.
Now, I mentioned to you at the conclusion of the previous hour that people have been asking me how I feel all night long. I got, "Boy, Rush, I wouldn't want to be you tomorrow! Boy, I wouldn't want to have to do your show! Oh-ho. I'm so glad I'm not you." Well, folks, I love being me. (I can't be anybody else, so I'm stuck with it.) The way I feel is this: I feel liberated, and I'm going to tell you as plainly as I can why. I no longer am going to have to carry the water for people who I don't think deserve having their water carried. Now, you might say, "Well, why have you been doing it?" Because the stakes are high. Even though the Republican Party let us down, to me they represent a far better future for my beliefs and therefore the country's than the Democrat Party and liberalism does.
I believe my side is worthy of victory, and I believe it's much easier to reform things that are going wrong on my side from a position of strength. Now I'm liberated from having to constantly come in here every day and try to buck up a bunch of people who don't deserve it, to try to carry the water and make excuses for people who don't deserve it. I did not want to sit here and participate, willingly, in the victory of the libs, in the victory of the Democrat Party by sabotaging my own. But now with what has happened yesterday and today, it is an entirely liberating thing. If those in our party who are going to carry the day in the future -- both in Congress and the administration -- are going to choose a different path than what most of us believe, then that's liberating. I don't say this with any animosity about anybody, and I don't mean to make this too personal.
end quote
What do you think?
Posted by gtash at November 9, 2006 09:04 AMIt hasn't even been 72 hours since we regained the Congress. Rep. Nancy Pelosi is our House Speaker.
The time has come for us to support her.
Not to worry. Jack Murtha will be kicking ass.
Posted by Christopher at November 9, 2006 09:12 AMPart of what happened tuesday was regional. In 1994 the GOP picked up a lot of seats that had been held by southern Democrats. This was the pay off of Nixon's southern strategy. This gave the Republicans 12 years of control of the house because a lot of northern moderate Republicans were still in congress.
Tuesday was the payback night brought about by the southern strategy. Here's a good map that shows where the turnovers, in light blue, are. Notice how many of the districts are outside of the south. The Republicans are going to have to remake themselves as a national party, that won't happen overnight.
Posted by herbal tee at November 9, 2006 10:13 AMOne other note on the way the newly elected Democrats are being portrayed in the media. The most common buzzword used is 'conservative' as if these people are really Republicans who somehow ended up in the wrong party. If you look at what they really believe, the new congress will have a lot of pragmatic progressives, especially on economic issues. The Democrats are starting to look a lot like a racially integrated version of the old new deal coalition. That is the royal road to a blue America. Social issues take longer. Once the people know that this government is on their side economically, social change will follow.
Posted by herbal tee at November 9, 2006 10:41 AMIf you look at what they really believe, the new congress will have a lot of pragmatic progressives, especially on economic issues.
My thoughts exactly. The centrist Dems aren't at all conservative - they're pragmatists. And frankly, what we need in this country more than ever is pragmatic thought rather than ideological faith.
Posted by ann at November 9, 2006 10:50 AMCongratulations to Nancy Pelosi for achieving an important milestone for women in US government.
And in the great American tradition of unequal pay for women, are they going to try to pay her only 75% of what Dennis "hide the page molester" Hasturd got?
Posted by TIKI AL at November 9, 2006 11:16 AMIs there joy in Mudville?
Some.
but.
(Dems [sobriquet, spineless] voted for Patriot Act & torture, no?)
wait. Wait. Wait.
(No, keep pressing for change....)
to the person who's concerned about what Rush Limbaugh said---don't be.
He's the most disgusting of the Repropagandists, worst than Hannity, who at least will debate occasionally, albeit in a shouting over the opponents voice, every lowdown rhetorical trick in the book style. Rush is scared sh$#less of a debate. I think he only did it once, seriously. His style is to come on like the voice of God, all excited about his omniscience. This election should really spell his doom. During the Clinton years he had his America Held Hostage schtick, convincing his listeners that things will get better when we get rid of the Dems. But that didn't happen. Things got a lot worse and everybody knows it. So what stance is he supposed to take now? He's probably quite rightly disgusted with himself. Maybe he'll retire. Hope so.