The reign of King George

(1/26/05)

On Thursday, January 20th in the year two thousand and five George Walker Bush was sworn in for a second term as the 43rd President of the United States. Despite the best efforts of a Democratic Party with a tendency for shooting themselves in the foot, the Grand Old Party and its band of merry men definitively took Washington over and called it their own. I had the pleasure of witnessing the Inauguration ceremony firsthand and it was nothing short of awe-inspiring due both to the pomp and circumstance of the event, but more importantly due to the message it sent to the liberal blowhards and bleeding heart Democrats lining both coasts of this fine country.
While enduring freezing temperatures, mobs of tourists, and pathetically driven protesters I could not help but feel a smug sense of satisfaction that the Republicans had taken control of the government and sent the Democrats in to a tailspin of alarming proportions.
Instead of doing the right thing and regrouping with class, the Democrats have been so shaken that they've taken their sour grapes public, the most notable examples of this are seen in the confirmation hearing of Secretary of Stateelect, Condoleezza Rice and Attorney General-elect, Alberto Gonzalez. During Dr. Rice's hearing she was essentially lectured by California liberal Barbara Boxer and essentially told by Mr. John Kerry that her being a successful black woman was nice, but it didn't give her the right to take over for Colin Powell.
The smug statements by Boxer and Kerry were a microcosm of what the Democrats have allowed themselves to become, which is essentially a party of rogue members with no real core of leadership (unless you count the aspiring head of the DNC, Howard Dean).
I do not mean to sound so blindingly partisan, I have some issues with the conservatives stances many Republicans take on matters such as abortion and gay marriage, but as a citizen and an observer I take this past election and the time that has elapsed since then and see a Party that has truly fallen on hard times and cannot right the ship, not due to a lack of passion, but due to a lack of understanding of the country they exist within.
I've watched hours of CSPAN and forced myself to read the New York Times during the past few months and I see the Democratic Party trying to mend themselves by establishing a new doctrine of reaching out to minority groups in this country and attempting to secure those groups as their base constituency. While this push to include the important ethnic vote is certainly a sound and viable political strategy, the Democratic braintrust fails to see or admit the fact that the country is a more conservative lot than the Democrats realize.
Instead of adjusting their party base, they need to adjust their stances on some things in order to sway some of the more moderate Republicans to their side.
If this past election has proved anything, it is that strength and a strong voice counts more than any pollster or pundit had ever realized. What the world perceives as a cowboy swagger and a tendency for violence is something that I'm proud of, despite the peace signs and banners I saw dirty ideologues pushing in D.C. last week. I believe most Americans live their lives for the advancement of themselves and their loved ones and would fight to the death to protect these things.
This is our national conscience and the world perceives it as being violent and belligerent.
The European Union, with the exception of Britain (to a degree) is not much more than a group of has-beens with little global influence other than that carried by their names and history.
Do not expect the President to bend to the will of the E.U.
or worse, the United Nations in his second term. No matter how you cut it, George Bush is dedicated to spreading democracy during his remaining time as President and if that really means spreading capitalism and ensuring our safety through global trade then so be it. Regardless of how you feel or are told to feel about the current administration and the red tint of Congress, remember that it is your fellow citizens and neighbors that elected them, not some smoky backroom billionaires club.
The President was, indeed given political capital and was issued a mandate, not through his 51 percent victory over John Kerry, but in the Republican sweep of Congress.
I see one of two possible scenarios playing out over the next four years in the political landscape of America. There is the possibility of Republican members of Congress parting with Bush?s political ideology in hopes of capturing the more moderate population in preparation for a run for the Republican nomination in 08?, this of course would only effect a few bigwigs in the House and Senate who have the notoriety and support to make a push for the GOP nod in 08. The other possibility is the Republicans taking this last election and pushing further to the right because of the perceived right-leaning trend of the population. If this happens then expect more than a few Democrats to tone down the usual party rhetoric and start to tow the middle of the fence a little more in order to get their snouts in the trough with the ruling Republicans.
However it works out, keep your eyes peeled for media criticism of every single piece of legislation on the hill, and prepare for the sky to be falling in the blue states every day for the next four years. It is going to take the Democrats a long time to get over this one, fellow citizens. Being in a scholastic atmosphere may I also advise to put down the protest signs and give it a rest for a while. Seeing the protesters at the Inauguration would have been sad if I had room in my heart to think about all those misguided and idealistic souls waving their signs and shouting at the heavens while being too naive to realize no one was listening. These people didn't even have the clout to be regarded as a humorous sideshow; they more closely resembled a colony of lepers or freaks that you feel bad for because you know they'll never enjoy a normal life.
The first test of Bush's second term comes on January 30th, when the Iraqi elections are to be held. The turnout and result of this election could possibly change the tone either way of the Bush Administration and set the policy for the near future. I'm sure I'll be ranting about that soon.