Wednesday, August 09, 2006

Pejman Sej it

A Chequer-Board of Nights and Days :: "Apart from Ned Lamont, the big winner tonight was John McCain. Although he is more of a conservative than people give him credit for, his maverick personality and high-profile forays towards the land of political moderation will allow him to crowd the center in his Presidential run should he win the Republican nomination. At the same time, if Lieberman Democrats find themselves drummed out of their own party, they will gravitate towards McCain. Meanwhile, if conservatives and right-of-center libertarians who believe in American engagement in international affairs see the Democratic Party drift towards the Left, they won't care about their past serious disagreements with McCain over various issues and will latch on to his candidacy as the only way to keep the Republic safe from what they perceive as the deleterious foreign policy platform of the Lamont crowd.

Basically, this whole dynamic resembles nothing more than the ostracism suffered by the Scoop Jackson Democrats in the 1970's. That ostracism brought about the Reagan Democrats and the leader who lent his name to their demographic. A victory by Senator Lieberman as an Independent in the general election will do little to stop this dynamic from playing itself out. At the end of the day, movement Democrats have told the Lieberman Democrats that the latter are no longer welcome at the table."

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Or Giuliani in place of McCain. Either could do it.

Leftist purges have always been delf-destructive affairs.

Rick Ballard said...

Skook,

Giuliani benefits much more than McCain. It isn't as though there are a ton of Scoop Jackson Dems remaining in the Democratic Party. Giuliani will have a lot more pull on the remains of the party than McCain would.

The real loser is Miz Clinton with her barb wire fence straddle. She's not half the liar that Bubba is and she's not teachable at any but the most rudimentary level.

Anonymous said...

Yes, Giuliani should benefit more. And for whatever it is worth, Giuliani would be - is - liked by the MSM, since he made New York, the center of their narrow cultural universe, a better place to live. I think he would thus get better press than McCain, though there are things that could be dredged up about both. In a McCain-Clinton race, the MSM would be squarely in the Clinton camp. But I think the MSM would be torn between Miz Rodham C. and Rudy. Advantage - Rudy.

As to Scoop Jackson Democrats, no, there are none left among our generation and younger. But I find that when I talk to people from the oldest generation of Democrats, say, 70 and up, who traditionally do turn out at the polls, there is still this pathetic delusion that they are voting for the party of Harry Truman. I don't think there are enough to matter, but you never know.

And no - she ain't no Bubba.

chuck said...

...there is still this pathetic delusion that they are voting for the party of Harry Truman.

Not to mention Roosevelt. And yes, I find the same thing among my older relatives, although 80 and up would be a more accurate demographic for them.