Text 11546, 93 rader
Skriven 2005-04-14 14:58:24 av Alan Hess
Ärende: an opening for Democrats?
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Dems are probably too foolish to take advantage of any opening.
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washingtonpost.com
Will Democrats Seize the Opening?

By David Ignatius

Wednesday, April 13, 2005; Page A17

The Republican Party, seemingly intent on squandering its 2004 election gains,
is handing the Democrats a golden opportunity to restore their credentials as a
governing party. To seize the moment, the Democrats must do what the
Republicans have been avoiding -- which is to get serious about the nation's
economic problems.

The Republicans lately have exhibited many of the unpleasant traits that got
the Democrats in trouble over the past generation. With their attempts to
impose political solutions to private moral issues, they come across as
meddlesome busybodies who want to run other people's lives. Americans didn't
like self-righteous scolding when it came from liberals, and they don't like it
now from conservatives.

Life as the governing party has been as corrosive for the GOP as it was for the
Democrats during their era of dominance. That's the real import of the Tom
DeLay case; it's not that the House majority leader is uniquely unethical but
that his lapses are so reminiscent of what the Democratic grandees did back
when they ruled Capitol Hill. Reading the recent headlines about lobbyists run
amok, you can't help but remember the bad old days of Lyndon Johnson, Bobby
Baker, Wilbur Mills and Jim Wright. Even those Democratic oligarchs would have
quailed at DeLay's attempt to pack the House ethics committee with pliant
cronies.

The DeLay follies mask the deeper disarray of the Republicans. As conservative
commentators have noted, there's a growing gap between the party's
libertarians, who abhor government social engineering, and a more authoritarian
strain that favors it so long as conservatives are the engineers. There are
also growing tensions over foreign policy between the GOP's neo-Wilsonians, who
embrace President Bush's rhetoric of global democratic transformation, and the
more cautious realists and isolationists who form the party's traditional base.

So how can the Democrats steal a march on their disorganized rivals? They must
show the country that they are ready to tackle the nation's toughest economic
problems. They must present themselves as the party of responsible government.
To adopt the shorthand used by columnist Michael Kinsley, they must cast aside
a generation of Mommyism and become the "Daddy Party."

A sensible Democratic leadership would gather this very weekend to begin
formulating a plan to address America's looming economic crises. These party
leaders would develop specific proposals to reduce the trade and budget
deficits that are spooking the financial markets. They would gather experts who
have been warning that we're heading for a financial crackup -- people such as
former Treasury secretary Bob Rubin, former Federal Reserve chairman Paul
Volcker and investor Warren Buffett. Bolstered by their good advice, the
Democrats would work cooperatively with the administration and Fed Chairman
Alan Greenspan to reassure markets if the dam begins to crack.

My imaginary Democrats would get serious about energy, too. They would admit
that with soaring Asian demand pushing against tight supplies, the world is
facing a long-term squeeze. Rather than pretending that the solution is somehow
to mandate lower prices, they would do something about increasing supply (yes,
even from the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge) and reducing demand (yes, we are
all going to be driving versions of the Toyota Prius someday).

Even as they framed plans to deal with the immediate economic dangers, my
imaginary Democrats would offer proposals to solve the longer-term threats to
the solvency of Social Security and Medicare. Above all, they would face up to
the reality the Republicans generally have avoided: that there is no way out of
the fiscal mess without a mix of higher taxes and benefit cuts for those who
can afford to take the hit.

Rather than trying to take political advantage of the president's stumbles on
Social Security, these New Democrats would do the right thing. They would
reject Bush's half-baked plan for private accounts, but at the same time they
would give the president political cover to do what's necessary to begin
matching future benefits to future revenue. For Democrats in the wilderness of
opposition, it's a chance to become the party of stand-up guys. Not the usual
role for Democrats, but one that the duck-and-cover Republicans are handing
them.

The Democrats don't deserve this makeover opportunity. On economic issues,
they've mostly behaved as irresponsibly as the Republicans since 2000 --
looking for cheap shots and short-term gains. And sadly, they're often as
slavishly supportive of their special-interest friends as is the GOP. Do the
Democrats have the leadership and political guts to seize the moment? Probably
not, but they're fools to let it slip by.

davidignatius@washpost.com

+ 2005 The Washington Post Company

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