Thursday, June 08, 2006
Cliches Exist For A Reason
One of the biggest cliches in politics is: "XXXXX weeks/months/days is a lifetime in politics." It is a phrase usually uttered by the candidate/campaign/political party that has had a string of bad luck and feels that it is running behind.
However, it is also fact -- such as "Five months is a lifetime in politics." Forty-eight hours ago, George W. Bush and the Republicans were reeling, possibly looking at the loss of long-held GOP seat in California and the president still suffering from approval ratings in the mid-30s (to be generous) -- partly due to an increasingly unpopular war in Iraq that didn't seem to offer any positive developments.
Uh, and where are we now? The awkwardly timed front-page New York Times story tries to spin the California 50th election as a sort-of defeat for Republicans.
And, of course, overnight the biggest fish in Iraq has been taken out.
By no means does this suggest that Republicans can breathe easy (Um, how's that gay marriage amendment doing, guys?).
But it does mean that the Democrats have to do more than just hope that the stock market continues falling, Iraq remains volatile and other such matters (the William Jefferson drama has effectively made the corruption issue a wash). They need to make the case for taking control of Congress, because one can never underestimate the power of the incumbent party.
UPDATE: Another fine example of the Democrats helping the GOP get out of their "culture of corruption" hole. Thought experiment: Can you imagine my former boss Newt Gingrich assisting either Jim Wright or Tom Foley in trying to get an FBI search declared unconstitutional? Were I a Democrat, I wouldn't be too happy with Nancy Pelosi right about now.
UPDATE II: Perfectly-titled -- and uncannily-timed: "The Short, Violent Life of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi" just out from The Atlantic.
Technorati Tags: war on terror, Iraq, Republicans, Zarqawi
|
However, it is also fact -- such as "Five months is a lifetime in politics." Forty-eight hours ago, George W. Bush and the Republicans were reeling, possibly looking at the loss of long-held GOP seat in California and the president still suffering from approval ratings in the mid-30s (to be generous) -- partly due to an increasingly unpopular war in Iraq that didn't seem to offer any positive developments.
Uh, and where are we now? The awkwardly timed front-page New York Times story tries to spin the California 50th election as a sort-of defeat for Republicans.
And, of course, overnight the biggest fish in Iraq has been taken out.
By no means does this suggest that Republicans can breathe easy (Um, how's that gay marriage amendment doing, guys?).
But it does mean that the Democrats have to do more than just hope that the stock market continues falling, Iraq remains volatile and other such matters (the William Jefferson drama has effectively made the corruption issue a wash). They need to make the case for taking control of Congress, because one can never underestimate the power of the incumbent party.
UPDATE: Another fine example of the Democrats helping the GOP get out of their "culture of corruption" hole. Thought experiment: Can you imagine my former boss Newt Gingrich assisting either Jim Wright or Tom Foley in trying to get an FBI search declared unconstitutional? Were I a Democrat, I wouldn't be too happy with Nancy Pelosi right about now.
UPDATE II: Perfectly-titled -- and uncannily-timed: "The Short, Violent Life of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi" just out from The Atlantic.
Technorati Tags: war on terror, Iraq, Republicans, Zarqawi
