What Democrats are up against in today’s GOP

[pberq]

http://www.nwanews.com/story_print.php?paper=adg&Editorial=section&storyid=110209

Gene Lyons

Posted on Wednesday, March 9, 2005

<snip>
Many Democrats still don’t grasp what they’re up against in today’s Republican Party. Naïve souls, they prefer to see national politics as a giant PTA meeting, and to comfort themselves with civics text bromides about the virtues of compromise and bipartisanship. Even in the face of the Clinton impeachment and the naked power play that decided the 2000 presidential election, they have trouble comprehending the sheer ruthlessness of the GOP political juggernaut. This is nothing new. Even during FDR’s presidency, Will Rogers joked that he belonged to no organized political party: He was a Democrat. Today, however, the party simply must learn to effectively counter the well-organized army of think-tank, opinion page and cable TV propagandists who parrot the GOP party line, no matter how illogical or preposterous.

In effect, organizations like FOX News, The Washington Times, The Wall Street Journal editorial page, Rush Limbaugh and right-wing talk radio are simply adjuncts of the Republican Party. To this add scores of Washington pundits often employed by tycoon-financed "think tanks" such as the American Heritage Institute, Cato Foundation, etc. For all the braying about "liberal media bias," which may be the most successful GOP "spin point," Democrats simply have no equivalent propaganda machine.

[papau]

1. Very True :-(

:-(

[blogbear]

2. The Giant PTA Thinking Might Help If...

We All Think Of It In Terms Of 'Harper Valley PTA'

[checks-n-balances]

3. He should change that to "What the American People are up against"

There are lots of naive and unthinking people who follow this crap who are going to be crapped on eventually by the fascist GOP machine. They're caught up in it and will be run over and lose everything.

I know this is veering off the topic and it's another excellent Gene Lyons article. I'm just on a soapbox about that because I think we should start saying that the GOP machine is going to hurt MOST AMERICANS, not just us Dems.

Anyway, thanks for posting it!

[pberq]

6. True, and the biggest hurdle

is breaking the grip of the right-wing propaganda machine on the media. They are able to brainwash the public on any topic through their well-organized machine.

David Brock's book was a real eye-opener for me, even though I thought I knew a lot.

[Coastie for Truth]

4. Absolutely correct

The era of "bi-partisanship" and "statesmanship" is over. This is a new Washington of total war, total victory and unconditional surrender.

This is the Washington of DeLay, Gingrich, Rove and media types like Bill O'Reilly and Ann Coulter.

O'Reilly won't know the truth if it bit him in the butt.

[pie]

5. The GOP declared total war on us years ago.

Looks like a lot of Dems still 'don't get it.'

[Inland]

7. "PTA meeting". I think "circle jerk" would be a better metaphor.

Where are the nuts and bolts of electoral victory? Where are the institutions that are our analogy to the media, the churches, the chamber of commerce? Not unions, anymore. Not colleges.

[Nomadic]

8. Anyone watching the DNC meeting on C-SPAN?

they are discussing the primaries, maybe someone can start a new thread to discuss it.