It seems like the Dems will be taking both houses of Congress.

[MrFun]

Originally posted by VJ
FDR and JFK are both brilliant examples of Presidents whose entire "strong leader" stature was crafted by a co-operative media. Both had their health problems, Kennedy was too impulsive and immature for a leadership position.

HW Bush seems like a very dignified and calm leader in retrospect. Reserved, thoughtful, giving credit where it's due, doing his best.

If I'm not mistaken, JFK had a serious, chronic back problem.

[Rufus T. Firefly]

Originally posted by Adam Smith
First, the idealists can certainly provide the vision you say the Democratic Party lacks. But I think that the prevalence of wonks arises from the realization, through experience, that policies and programs have to perceived as affordable to voters and likely to succeed. (e.g. current costs of Great Society programs; mechanics of Clinton health care reforms, to name two.) Is this reflected in Cuomo’s “provide what reasonably we might”?

I agree. The wonks are very useful in this regard, and the Dems are terrible at pragmaticly translating their visions into sustainable programs. (That was not the case with Clinton health care, however; the problem there was that the program wasn't liberal enough.) That's why I have doubts about Obama, who lacks the experience to to translate soring rhetoric into wonky reality; like Ramo, I'm partial to Feingold. But it's also why I still regret Cuomo's refusal to run; Cuomo, a very effective governor, could play the whole game.

Second, as I am sure you know, Obama’s quote makes explicit religious reference. (“Am I my brother’s keeper?” Genesis 4:9, RSV) Even if one believes the caricature that “the evil evangelicals and conservative protestants who have taken over the Republican party don’t share these values”, there is still a large swath of religious people who do share them. Do you view Obama’s quote as, in part, as an admission that important core values of religious belief are also important core values of the Democratic Party?

I have always said, to anyone who would listen (including friends who disagree bitterly with me on this point), that the Dems' worst mistake ever was ceding Christian rhetoric to the GOP. Before the 80s, mainstream Christianity was a very comfortable part of progressive politics and of the Democratic party. But when extremists in the GOP hijacked Jesus, extremists in the Dems let Him go. Stupid, stupid stupid. Obama and others seem to have figued out that the Chistianity that most often figures in GOP rhetoric is the Christianity of Revelations and the Last Judgment; the Dems can still pick up the Christianity of the Gospels, whose central messages (love thee one another; whatsoever you do to the least of my brothers, that you do unto me) is transparently more Democratic than Republican. Pelosi -- a devout Catholic -- also walks this walk, as does Hillary -- who is that endangered species, an old-school, mainstream Protestant. I think you'll hear a lot more Dems talking like this, which will be just fine with people like my mother's entire parish, who are devout Catholics and die-hard Democrats in equal measure.

[Drake Tungsten]

A Democratic congressman from New York says he wasn't trying to insult Mississippi in published remarks Thursday, but a Republican colleague from Mississippi says Rep. Charles Rangel should apologize to the state.

Rangel, D-N.Y., was quoted in a Thursday article in The New York Times, saying: "Mississippi gets more than their fair share back in federal money, but who the hell wants to live in Mississippi?"

http://www.sunherald.com/mld/sunherald/news/state/15972549.htm

More please...

[Imran Siddiqui]

DD is going to be pissed... even though Rangel is right .

[Drake Tungsten]

Rangel is both right and an idiot for saying so on the record.

I'm excited about the Democrats taking control of Congress; they should be way more entertaining than the disciplined, boring Republican drones we've grown accustomed to. Bring on the ill-advised candor and party infighting!

[Rufus T. Firefly]

Oh man. The GOP just spent months demonizing San Francisco -- a truly great city -- and Rangel's catching flak for pointing out the obvious about Mississippi? Unreal...

[DinoDoc]

Originally posted by Imran Siddiqui
DD is going to be pissed...

Why? I already know Northern Democrats view the South and its people as backward, ignorant people only fit to be condecended to. I've stopped letting such prejudices about my home bother me.

Originally posted by Rufus T. Firefly
and Rangel's catching flak for pointing out the obvious about Mississippi? Unreal...

Gene Taylor is a Democrat.

[Dinner]

It sounds like Obama's religious refrences in his speech is an attempt to regain the nonextremist christian vote. To show that being a Democrat and following progressive principles is exactly what Jesus taught and would want us to do. I.E. care for the sick, educate children, help the elderly, etc...

[Kuciwalker]

Or maybe he's actually a christian?

[Ogie Oglethorpe]

Originally posted by MrFun



If I'm not mistaken, JFK had a serious, chronic back problem.

Yep Marilyn had to do it cowboy style.

[Ogie Oglethorpe]

Originally posted by Jon Miller
I have always maintained that Christians should be socialist..

JM

Why? When Christians talk about giving to the poor and ministries they understand that these are matters of individual faith and individual minisitries according to the whims of free will.

Why would compulsion by force of state be in keeping with christian values when that invalidates free will?

[Arrian]

Originally posted by Ramo
Something interesting Chafee said:

"Two days after losing a bid for a second term in an election seen as a referendum on President Bush and the Republican Party, Sen. Lincoln Chafee said he was unsure whether he'd remain a Republican," the AP reports.

When asked whether he felt that his loss may have helped the country by switching control of power in Congress, he replied: "To be honest, yes."

http://politicalwire.com/archives/2006/11/09/chafee_may_leave_gop.html

Wow...

Indeed. Seems like an intelligent, reasonable fellow.

I am vaguely concerned that the few remaining NE liberal Republicans took a beating along with the more ideologically pure types elsewhere. That could be a bad thing.

-Arrian

[Ogie Oglethorpe]

Originally posted by Arrian


Indeed. Seems like an intelligent, reasonable fellow.

I am vaguely concerned that the few remaining NE liberal Republicans took a beating along with the more ideologically pure types elsewhere. That could be a bad thing.

-Arrian

It's not so strange a comment. There are comments all over the place within repub party saying repubs deserved it and they better get back to principled (small government) and ethically rigorous stands.

It would be interesting to understand why Chafee said what he said. Perhaps in Chafee's case his point was the war in IRaq as he was on record opposing Bush policy, but the sentiment is more than that for others you hear.

[Arrian]

I didn't say it was strange. I imagine any moderate Republican has been pretty frustrated for some time now.

It wasn't too long ago that I'd have described myself as a moderate Republican. Look how pissed off I got

Chaffee, as you mentioned, was the lone Repub senator to vote against the war. I think he's typically (for this area) socially moderate, whilst still holding to the old belief in small government. The man must be pretty conflicted right now.

-Arrian

[Dinner]

Originally posted by Ogie Oglethorpe

Why? When Christians talk about giving to the poor and ministries they understand that these are matters of individual faith and individual minisitries according to the whims of free will.

Why would compulsion by force of state be in keeping with christian values when that invalidates free will?

The reason is the patch work private charities never do a good job of reaching everyone who is in need. Only government programs like Social Security can fill the gap and really make a difference.

You know it, I know it. And if Christians really want to fulfill Christian values of helping the poor then they need to acknowledge that fact too.