Tag: Boucher

Earlier today, Lowell brought to our attention the enthusiasm gap between Virginia Democrats and our Republican colleagues as we close out 2011 and look ahead to 2012 and 2013. Republican candidates are coming out of the Tea Party woodwork to prepare for statewide runs in 2013, while the Democratic side is silent. I joined the comments to promote discussion of several observations I have on the matter, but I wanted to pull them all together in a diary to get more discussion and throw out some more controversial thoughts.

First, 800 pound gorilla in the room is the Junior Senator from Virginia, soon to be Senior Senator, and former "His Excellency" Mark Warner.

There is a push in the party to get Warner to return to Richmond in 2013 as the only way to reverse the party's fortunes after setbacks in 2009 and 2011. You can see my comment on this possibility here. For this diary I'll just say that until we get a clear statement from Warner one way or another I wouldn't count on the Democratic lead up to 2013 to come alive with announcements.

Next, to borrow from Lowell, "why would any sane Democrat WANT to be governor of Virginia?"  

Apparently, George W. Bush thinks he hasn't done enough damage.  Now he surfaces to say that he thinks his worst failure is not privatizing Social Security.  I'd  call that one of the Democrats' bigger success stories.  It's all in the perspective.  THE GOP is on the wrong side of public opinion and the wrong side of history.  

Americans do not want to lose their Social Security checks.  Young Americans want to believe it will be there for them.  With the current thinly-disguised GOP plan, it won't be.  Thank you, George for proving our point. Today, a number of GOP candidates (Sharon Angle included)have scrubbed their websites and their language to deceive Americans about their intentions.  As many of you know, Angle first talked about eliminating Social Security, but now claims otherwise.  

These 2010 GOP candidates aim to turn Bush' failure into a nightmare for the rest of America.  Americans of all ages will one day need their Social Secuity checks.  But gaming the system, de-funding the Social Security Trust Fund while handing the same monies over to Wall Street will only serve to force the collapse of the Social Security System.  The monies will also end up in wealthy executives' bonus checks.  Bush and the GOP know this.  They hope that we don't.

Young or old, if you care about your future economic security, trust (most) Dems to protect both your private pensions and your Social Security.  Don't look the the GOP to protect your economic health.  If it were not for the Pension Security Act which The Clinton administration enforced, my own father would have been hurt when the corporation taking over his former company wanted to stiff retirees of their pension checks. The Democratic administration made sure that did not happen.  Thank you, Bill Clinton.  (When it came to Social Security, Bill Clinton flirted with and was on the brink of a privatization scheme of his own, though.)  Since then, most Dems have learned.  But Republicans never learn.